DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 3 and 4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 3 is drawn to both a contact tool and a non-contact tool. Claim 3 depends from claim 2, which presents the contact and non-contact tools as alternatives, which is interpreted as a possible situation where both types of tools are not present, thus claim 3 is rendered indefinite as structure is claimed that may not be present because of the language of claim 2. Claim 4 is rejected here because claim 4 depends from claim 3.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-7 and 9-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2022/0065100 A1 (Lim et al.).
As concerns claim 1, Lim et al. discloses a system, comprising: a downhole tool configured to run into a wellhead of a resource extraction system, wherein the downhole tool comprises: a lockdown elevation measurement tool (see, 0029) configured to collect one or more measurements indicative of a location of one or more lockdown grooves within the wellhead above an uppermost casing hanger in the wellhead, wherein the one or more lockdown grooves are configured to engage a lock of a tubing hanger in a subsequent tubing hanger installation (see, 0045, “an ultrasonic sensor can be provided along a drilling adapter of the wellhead assembly to detect a groove or other surface of a running tool or landing string. In some instances, the groove or other surface is located (with respect to a hanger or packoff) such that the groove or other surface passes into or out of an ultrasonic beam from the sensor upon landing of the hanger or packoff at a target location within the bore”); and one or more additional tools configured to perform one or more additional operations in the wellhead, a blowout preventer (BOP) coupled to the wellhead, or a combination thereof (see, figure 1, illustrating tubing heads, casing heads and various hangers, all of which perform additional operations or functions in the well).
As concerns claim 2, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the lockdown elevation measurement tool comprises a contact tool, a non-contact tool, or a combination thereof, configured to obtain the measurements indicative of the location (non-contact in this instance, see at least figure 2).
As concerns claim 3, as best understood, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the contact tool includes one or more first measurement devices and the non-contact tool includes one or more second measurement devices, where the first and second measurement devices are arranged in the same or different positions along the downhole tool (figure 11, figure 12).
As concerns claim 4, as best understood, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 3, wherein the first and second measurement devices are arranged in a plurality of circumferential positions about a central axis of the downhole tool, a plurality of axial positions over an axial distance along the central axis, or any combination thereof (Id.).
As concerns claim 5, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the one or more additional tools comprises a wear bushing tool, a casing hanger tool 106, a blowout preventer (BOP) tool, or any combination thereof.
As concerns claim 6, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the lockdown elevation measurement tool comprises a non-contact tool having one or more measurement devices configured to obtain non-contact measurements indicative of the location to determine a distance from the uppermost casing hanger to the one or more lockdown grooves (see, 0035, “In some embodiments, the ultrasonic sensor 105 can be used to measure a distance between the ultrasonic sensor 105 and the hanger 102 (e.g., the total distance between the ultrasonic sensor 105 and the hanger 102 or a distance across gap 112 between the hanger 102 and the bore wall of the housing 101) based on the emission, reflection, and sensing of the ultrasonic waves”).
As concerns claim 7, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 6, wherein the one or more measurement devices comprises an optical measurement tool, a magnetic measurement tool, a wireless signal tool, an imaging tool or camera, or any combination thereof (0029).
As concerns claim 9, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 6, wherein the one or more measurement devices comprises a wireless signal tool having an acoustic measurement tool or an ultrasonic measurement tool (Id.).
As concerns claim 10, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 6, wherein the one or more measurement devices are arranged in a plurality of circumferential positions about a central axis of the downhole tool, a plurality of axial positions over an axial distance along the central axis, or a combination thereof (see figure 11, figure 12).
As concerns claim 11, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 6, comprising a controller having a processor, a memory, and instructions stored on the memory and executable by the processor to: receive measurement data of the one or more measurements indicative of the location of the one or more lockdown grooves; and determine the distance based on the measurement data (see, 0046 and figure 13).
As concerns claim 12, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 11, wherein the lockdown elevation measurement tool comprises one or more landing detectors configured to detect a landing of the downhole tool on the uppermost casing hanger in the wellhead, wherein the controller is configured to initiate the one or more measurements in response to detection of the landing (see, 0033, “The hanger 102 can be lowered into the bore with a running tool 115. The one or more acoustic sensors 104 are able to detect the acoustic signature of the hanger 102 (e.g., to detect the sound made by landing the hanger 102 on landing shoulder 113, as represented by sound waves 114 in FIG. 4) to indicate that the hanger 102 is in the process of landing. Additionally, the ultrasonic sensor 105 can take measurements to indicate that the hanger 102 has properly landed within the housing 101 at the target position”).
As concerns claim 13, Lim et al. discloses a method, comprising: running a downhole tool into a wellhead of a resource extraction system; operating a lockdown elevation measurement tool (see, 0029) of the downhole tool to collect one or more measurements indicative of a location of one or more lockdown grooves within the wellhead above an uppermost casing hanger in the wellhead, wherein the one or more lockdown grooves are configured to engage a lock of a tubing hanger in a subsequent tubing hanger installation (see, 0045, “an ultrasonic sensor can be provided along a drilling adapter of the wellhead assembly to detect a groove or other surface of a running tool or landing string. In some instances, the groove or other surface is located (with respect to a hanger or packoff) such that the groove or other surface passes into or out of an ultrasonic beam from the sensor upon landing of the hanger or packoff at a target location within the bore”); and operating one or more additional tools of the downhole tool to perform one or more additional operations in the wellhead, a blowout preventer (BOP) coupled to the wellhead, or a combination thereof (see, figure 1, illustrating tubing heads, casing heads and various hangers, all of which perform additional operations or functions in the well).
As concerns claim 14, Lim et al. discloses the method of claim 13, wherein operating the lockdown elevation measurement tool to collect one or more measurements comprises obtaining non-contact measurements indicative of the location to determine a distance from the uppermost casing hanger to the one or more lockdown grooves (see, 0035, “In some embodiments, the ultrasonic sensor 105 can be used to measure a distance between the ultrasonic sensor 105 and the hanger 102 (e.g., the total distance between the ultrasonic sensor 105 and the hanger 102 or a distance across gap 112 between the hanger 102 and the bore wall of the housing 101) based on the emission, reflection, and sensing of the ultrasonic waves”).
As concerns claim 15, Lim et al. discloses the method of claim 14, wherein obtaining the non-contact measurements comprises obtaining optical measurements, magnetic measurements, wireless measurements, images, or any combination thereof (0029).
As concerns claim 16, Lim et al. discloses the method of claim 14, wherein operating the lockdown elevation measurement tool to collect one or more measurements comprises obtaining contact measurements indicative of the location (see, 0033, the actual landing of the hanger is reasonably interpreted as a “contact measurement”).
As concerns claim 17, Lim et al. discloses the method of claim 13, wherein operating the one or more additional tools comprises operating a wear bushing tool, a casing hanger tool 106, a blowout preventer (BOP) tool, or any combination thereof, of the downhole tool.
As concerns claim 18, Lim et al. discloses a system, comprising: a downhole tool configured to run into a wellhead of a resource extraction system, wherein the downhole tool comprises: a lockdown elevation measurement tool (0029) configured to collect one or more measurements indicative of a location of one or more lockdown grooves within the wellhead above an uppermost casing hanger in the wellhead, wherein the one or more lockdown grooves are configured to engage a lock of a tubing hanger in a subsequent tubing hanger installation (see, 0045, “an ultrasonic sensor can be provided along a drilling adapter of the wellhead assembly to detect a groove or other surface of a running tool or landing string. In some instances, the groove or other surface is located (with respect to a hanger or packoff) such that the groove or other surface passes into or out of an ultrasonic beam from the sensor upon landing of the hanger or packoff at a target location within the bore”), wherein the lockdown elevation measurement tool comprises a non-contact tool having one or more measurement devices configured to obtain the one or more measurements indicative of the location to determine a distance from the uppermost casing hanger to the one or more lockdown grooves (see, 0035, “In some embodiments, the ultrasonic sensor 105 can be used to measure a distance between the ultrasonic sensor 105 and the hanger 102 (e.g., the total distance between the ultrasonic sensor 105 and the hanger 102 or a distance across gap 112 between the hanger 102 and the bore wall of the housing 101) based on the emission, reflection, and sensing of the ultrasonic waves”); and a controller having a processor, a memory, and instructions stored on the memory and executable by the processor to: receive measurement data of the one or more measurements indicative of the location of the one or more lockdown grooves; and determine the distance based on the measurement data (0046 and figure 13).
As concerns claim 19, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 18, wherein the one or more measurement devices comprises an optical measurement tool, a magnetic measurement tool, a wireless signal tool, an imaging tool or camera, or any combination thereof (0029).
As concerns claim 20, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 19, wherein the lockdown elevation measurement tool comprises one or more landing detectors configured to detect a landing of the downhole tool on the uppermost casing hanger in the wellhead, wherein the controller is configured to initiate the one or more measurements in response to detection of the landing (see, 0035, “In some embodiments, the ultrasonic sensor 105 can be used to measure a distance between the ultrasonic sensor 105 and the hanger 102 (e.g., the total distance between the ultrasonic sensor 105 and the hanger 102 or a distance across gap 112 between the hanger 102 and the bore wall of the housing 101) based on the emission, reflection, and sensing of the ultrasonic waves”).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lim et al. in view of US 2014/0014334 A1 (Mason et al.).
As concerns claim 8, Lim et al. discloses the system of claim 6, wherein the one or more measurement devices comprises an optical measurement tool (see, 0029), but lacks to disclose the measurement tool having a laser measurement tool or a light detecting and ranging (LiDAR) tool.
Mason et al. discloses a position feedback system for a downhole tool that has a laser measurement tool or a light detecting and ranging (LiDAR) tool (see at least 0025). One of ordinary skill in the art, prior to the effective filing, would have obviously considered incorporating a laser measurement tool into the system of Lim et al. with a reasonable expectation of success, as this would provide the desirable result of providing highly accurate, high resolution data.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 2023/0358133 A1 (Gray) discloses a monitoring system that incorporates transducers coupled to a running tool to determine that a tubing hanger is properly located in a landed position based on the sensor signals.
US 2023/0358108 (McHugh et al.) discloses a monitoring system includes one or more sensors coupled to a hanger running assembly that is configured to be inserted into a housing. The one or more sensors are configured to output sensor signals indicative of a respective distance between opposed ends of a lock ring of the hanger running assembly. The monitoring system also includes one or more processors configured to determine a condition of the lock ring based on the sensor signals.
International Publication Number WO 2022/177899 A1 (Guidry et al.) discloses a system that includes a hanger with a radially-outer surface with a hanger surface texture. The system also includes a sensor configured to detect vibrations induced by the hanger surface texture as the hanger moves through a housing of a wellhead. The system further includes a controller configured to receive signals indicative of the vibrations from the sensor and to process the signals to determine a position of the hanger within the housing of the wellhead.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAMES G. SAYRE whose telephone number is (571)270-7045. The examiner can normally be reached from 9:30-6:00 Monday-Friday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicole Coy can be reached at 571-272-5405. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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JAMES G. SAYRE
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3672
/JAMES G SAYRE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3672
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