Controlling a bottom hole assembly in a wellbore
Techniques for controlling a bottom hole assembly (BHA) include determining a model of BHA dynamics based on sensor measurements from the BHA; determining, based on the model of BHA dynamics, an objective function including a predicted future deviation from a planned wellbore path; determining a control input to the BHA that satisfies the objective function for a set of operating conditions of the BHA; generating, at a secondary system, relational information that relates the control input to the set of operating conditions; and transmitting the relational information from the secondary system to the BHA.
1. A computer-implemented method of controlling a bottom hole assembly (BHA), the method comprising:
determining a model of BHA dynamics based on sensor measurements from the BHA;
determining, based on the model of BHA dynamics, an objective function comprising a predicted future deviation from a planned wellbore path;
determining a control input to the BHA to reduce deviation between a desired and predicted trajectory, without an intermediate operation, that satisfies the objective function for a set of operating conditions of the BHA, wherein the control input controls the BHA to reduce the deviation;
generating, at a secondary system, relational information that relates the control input to the set of operating conditions, further comprising:
determining a first control input to the BHA that satisfies the objective function for a first set of operating conditions of the BHA;
determining a second control input to the BHA that satisfies the objective function for a second set of operating conditions of the BHA;
determining that the first control input to the BHA and the second control input to the BHA are identical to each other;
combining the first set of operating conditions and the second set of operating conditions into a combined set of operating conditions; and
relating, in the relational information, the combined set of operating conditions to a single control input that corresponds to both the first and second control inputs;
transmitting the relational information from the secondary system to the BHA; and
controlling the BHA using the relational information.
2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:
storing, at a memory location of the BHA, the relational information that relates the control input to the set of operating conditions;
detecting an operating condition of the BHA;
determining a candidate set of operating conditions comprising the detected operating condition;
accessing the relational information from the memory location of the BHA; and
determining, based on accessing the relational information, a control input to the BHA that is related to the candidate set of operating conditions comprising the detected operating condition.
3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2 , wherein determining, based on accessing the relational information, a control input to the BHA is performed without performing computations to solve the objective function for a control input that satisfies the objective function.
4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein generating, at a secondary system, relational information that relates the control input to the set of operating conditions comprises: generating a relational database that relates the control input to the set of operating conditions.
5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:
detecting, at the secondary system and based on sensor measurements from the BHA, that a relational information update event has occurred; and
updating the relational information at the BHA based on detecting that a relational information update event has occurred.
6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 , wherein updating the relational information at the BHA comprises:
determining an updated model of BHA dynamics based on updated sensor measurements from the BHA;
determining an updated objective function based on the updated model of BHA dynamics;
determining an updated control input to the BHA that satisfies the updated objective function for the set of operating conditions of the BHA;
generating, at the secondary system, updated relational information that relates the updated control input to the set of operating conditions; and
transmitting the updated relational information from the secondary system to the BHA.
7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6 , wherein transmitting the updated relational information from the secondary system to the BHA comprises:
determining a difference between the updated relational information and the relational information; and
transmitting the difference between the updated relational information and the relational information from the secondary system to the BHA.
8. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 , wherein detecting that a relational information update event has occurred comprises:
determining a threshold bound for a drilling parameter; and
determining that at least one of a rate of change of the drilling parameter or an absolute value of the drilling parameter does not satisfy the threshold bound.
9. The computer-implemented method of claim 8 , wherein determining a threshold bound further comprises determining the threshold bound based on at least one of a desired control performance, a communication bandwidth between the secondary system and the BHA, or a processing capability of the secondary system.
10. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 , further comprising implementing a constraint on the control input to the BHA while updating the relational information at the BHA.
11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting the relational information from the secondary system to the BHA comprises transmitting the relational information and the model of BHA dynamics from an above-surface location of the secondary system to the BHA.
12. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting the relational information from the secondary system to the BHA comprises transmitting the relational information and the model of BHA dynamics from a below-surface location of the secondary system to the BHA.
13. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein determining an objective function comprises:
determining a weighting factor based on at least one of the model of BHA dynamics or the sensor measurements from the BHA; and
determining a weighted combination of the predicted future deviation from the planned wellbore path and a predicted future cost of applying a control input to the BHA, weighted by the weighting factor.
14. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein determining a control input to the BHA that satisfies the objective function for a set of operating conditions comprises determining a control input to the BHA that minimizes a weighted combination of the predicted future deviation from the planned wellbore path and a predicted future cost of applying the control input to the BHA over a subsequent period of time during which the model of BHA dynamics satisfies the set of operating conditions.
15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14 , wherein the predicted future cost of applying a control input to the BHA comprises at least one of a predicted energy consumption for the BHA, a predicted torque on the BHA, a predicted fluid flow to the BHA, a predicted angular position of the BHA, or a predicted financial cost.
16. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:
determining a candidate control input to the BHA;
determining a predicted wellbore trajectory, based on the candidate control input to the BHA and the model of BHA dynamics; and
determining the predicted future deviation from the planned wellbore path based on a deviation between the predicted wellbore trajectory and the planned wellbore path.
17. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein determining a control input to the BHA comprises determining at least one of a first bend angle control, a second bend angle control, a first packer control, or a second packer control.
18. A system comprising:
a first component located at or near a terranean surface;
a bottom hole assembly (BHA) at least partially disposed within a wellbore at or near a subterranean zone, the BHA associated with at least one sensor; and
a controller communicably coupled to the first component and the BHA, the controller operable to perform operations comprising:
determining a model of BHA dynamics based on sensor measurements from the BHA;
determining, based on the model of BHA dynamics, an objective function comprising a predicted future deviation from a planned wellbore path;
determining a control input to the BHA to reduce deviation between a desired and predicted trajectory, without an intermediate operation, that satisfies the objective function for a set of operating conditions of the BHA, wherein the control input controls the BHA to reduce the deviation;
generating, at a secondary system, relational information that relates the control input to the set of operating conditions, further comprising:
determining a first control input to the BHA that satisfies the objective function for a first set of operating conditions of the BHA;
determining a second control input to the BHA that satisfies the objective function for a second set of operating conditions of the BHA;
determining that the first control input to the BHA and the second control input to the BHA are identical to each other;
combining the first set of operating conditions and the second set of operating conditions into a combined set of operating conditions; and
relating, in the relational information, the combined set of operating conditions to a single control input that corresponds to both the first and second control inputs;
transmitting the relational information from the secondary system to the BHA; and
controlling the BHA using the relational information.
19. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium encoded with at least one computer program comprising instructions that, when executed, operate to cause at least one processor to perform operations for controlling drilling of a bottom hole assembly (BHA) in a borehole, the operations comprising:
determining a model of BHA dynamics based on sensor measurements from the BHA;
determining, based on the model of BHA dynamics, an objective function comprising a predicted future deviation from a planned wellbore path;
determining a control input to the BHA to reduce deviation between a desired and predicted trajectory, without an intermediate operation, that satisfies the objective function for a set of operating conditions of the BHA, wherein the control input controls the BHA to reduce the deviation;
generating, at a secondary system, relational information that relates the control input to the set of operating conditions, further comprising:
determining a first control input to the BHA that satisfies the objective function for a first set of operating conditions of the BHA;
determining a second control input to the BHA that satisfies the objective function for a second set of operating conditions of the BHA;
determining that the first control input to the BHA and the second control input to the BHA are identical to each other;
combining the first set of operating conditions and the second set of operating conditions into a combined set of operating conditions; and
relating, in the relational information, the combined set of operating conditions to a single control input that corresponds to both the first and second control inputs;
transmitting the relational information from the secondary system to the BHA; and
controlling the BHA using the relational information.