The invention relates to gathering data about a hydrocarbon well by dropping a ball or dart (1) through the well (21) that emits an acoustic signature and/or senses information about the wellbore, such as deformation or bending. The dart signature and/or sensed data is communicated to the surface via a DAS cable (25) running down the tubing (20). The dart (1) may be made in two detachable modules, the first module (4) containing an acoustic emitter and the second module (6) having a certain drift diameter and being one of a set of interchangeable modules of different drift diameter that may be selected and assembled to the first module (4). The second module or both modules may be dissolvable. The dart (51) may store data as it descends through the tubing (60) and then dock with a docking station (65) that is connected with a TEC line (66) running up the outside of the tubing (60) and download the data via the TEC line (66) up to the surface.

Systems and methods for automated first arrival picking are disclosed. The method includes obtaining a seismic dataset composed of a plurality of seismic gathers and determining a pilot for each gather, where the pilot includes a position on an ordinate axis for each seismic trace representing a first arrival. The method continues iteratively until a stopping criterion is met by creating a preconditioned gather using the pilot, determining a differential pilot using global path tracing subject to a constraint and incrementing the pilot using the differential pilot to create a total picked first arrival. Once the stopping criterion has been met, the method further includes determining a final picked first arrival based on the total picked first arrival, determining a seismic velocity model from the final picked first arrival using a tomographic inversion and creating a seismic image using the seismic velocity model and the seismic dataset.

Systems and methods for automated first arrival picking are disclosed. The method includes obtaining a seismic dataset composed of a plurality of seismic gathers and determining a pilot for each gather, where the pilot includes a position on an ordinate axis for each seismic trace representing a first arrival. The method continues iteratively until a stopping criterion is met by creating a preconditioned gather using the pilot, determining a differential pilot using global path tracing subject to a constraint and incrementing the pilot using the differential pilot to create a total picked first arrival. Once the stopping criterion has been met, the method further includes determining a final picked first arrival based on the total picked first arrival, determining a seismic velocity model from the final picked first arrival using a tomographic inversion and creating a seismic image using the seismic velocity model and the seismic dataset.

Devices, systems, and methods for stabilizing a gyroscopic sensor include bearings supporting a MEMS-type gyroscope located in a shell. The shell rotates around a secondary shaft connected to an extension arm of a primary shaft. A biasing element pre-loads thrust bearings on either side of the shell against the extension arm, which can limit motion of the shell during operation of the sensor, thereby improving measurements made by the sensor.

Devices, systems, and methods for stabilizing a gyroscopic sensor include bearings supporting a MEMS-type gyroscope located in a shell. The shell rotates around a secondary shaft connected to an extension arm of a primary shaft. A biasing element pre-loads thrust bearings on either side of the shell against the extension arm, which can limit motion of the shell during operation of the sensor, thereby improving measurements made by the sensor.

Analyzing solid components in the return line of a borehole can be accomplished by implementing a bar or disc in the return line. As solid components pass by, they will generate an acoustic wave on impact. In another aspect, solid components can be directed to a shaker system where the solid components will impact a soundboard. The acoustic waves can be captured, such as by a microphone or transducer. The acoustic waves can be processed and transformed into acoustic data. A machine learning system can use previously trained models to determine the solid component parameters using the acoustic data. The parameters can include the size, shape, composition, density, softness, wettability, and other parameters of the solid components. These parameters can then be used as inputs to users or other borehole systems, such as a well site controller to improve drilling operations or to identify the need to implement corrective actions.

Analyzing solid components in the return line of a borehole can be accomplished by implementing a bar or disc in the return line. As solid components pass by, they will generate an acoustic wave on impact. In another aspect, solid components can be directed to a shaker system where the solid components will impact a soundboard. The acoustic waves can be captured, such as by a microphone or transducer. The acoustic waves can be processed and transformed into acoustic data. A machine learning system can use previously trained models to determine the solid component parameters using the acoustic data. The parameters can include the size, shape, composition, density, softness, wettability, and other parameters of the solid components. These parameters can then be used as inputs to users or other borehole systems, such as a well site controller to improve drilling operations or to identify the need to implement corrective actions.

A method for making gyroscopic azimuth measurements includes estimating a pitch angle and a roll angle of a gyroscopic surveying tool in a wellbore; determining a measurement duration for each of a plurality of gyroscope measurements from the estimated pitch and roll angles; making each of the plurality of gyroscope measurements at the determined measurement duration when the gyroscope is disposed at a corresponding plurality of rotational positions in the tool housing; and computing an azimuth of the wellbore from the plurality of gyroscope measurements.

A method for making gyroscopic azimuth measurements includes estimating a pitch angle and a roll angle of a gyroscopic surveying tool in a wellbore; determining a measurement duration for each of a plurality of gyroscope measurements from the estimated pitch and roll angles; making each of the plurality of gyroscope measurements at the determined measurement duration when the gyroscope is disposed at a corresponding plurality of rotational positions in the tool housing; and computing an azimuth of the wellbore from the plurality of gyroscope measurements.