The fiber optic cable will become a "spinal cord" for the well, relaying directed instructions as well as passively monitoring the status and condition of the wellbore. Automated pre-programmed responses, similar to the human body's autonomic reflex system, will deal with expected problems before they become a major danger.
Alerts will be sent by light cable to the surface telemetry system, which will relay data and conditions by satellite to the field control operation onshore. Additional instructions can then be sent to the in-bore tools to effect repairs.
Mankind has achieved similar things before, most recently in the NASA Mars Sojourner space programs. Unmanned probes could become an operational norm for the next century.
The petroleum industry AI system of the future will have the ability to learn and adjust to the specific characteristic of unique production flows. In addition, the system will control all the tool systems operating in the well.
These active elements within the wellbore will be robotic devices that can adjust or tune the hydrocones and other specialized production equipment in the factory. They will be able to move freely within the borehole and will receive instruction by fiber optic cable and internal telemetry. The systems will be equipped with sonar/radar imaging systems to provide visual data to distant human field controllers.
The artificial intelligence (AI) stored in the "brain" of the well will instruct these devices as to their tasks. At first, the devices will be task specific, similar to today's dedicated electo-mechanical systems. As these robotic tool systems evolve a more general programmable tool, they will be able to handle multiple tasks.
Copyright 1998 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.