Title: Tong jaw and a method for constructing the tong jaw
Abstract: A method for constructing a power tong jaw, including the steps of: (1) providing a substantially flat upper plate and a substantially flat lower plate; (2) providing at least two separately formed substantially elongated column members, at least one of the column members having a die insert groove formed therein; and (3) connecting the upper plate to the lower plate using the column members.
Patent Number: 7,017,450 Issued on 03/28/2006 to Bangert
| Inventors:
|
Bangert; Daniel S. (156 Beau Coteau Pkwy., Broussard, LA 70518)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
638783 |
| Filed:
|
August 11, 2003 |
| Current U.S. Class: |
81/57.33; 81/57.15; 81/57.2; 81/57.18; 166/77.51; 166/85.1 |
| Current Intern'l Class: |
B25B 13/50 (20060101) |
| Field of Search: |
81/5733,573.4,571.5,571.6,572,572.1,571.8
166/775.1,851
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
| 4576067 | Mar., 1986 | Buck.
| |
| 5060542 | Oct., 1991 | Hauk.
| |
| 5653297 | Aug., 1997 | Whisenhunt.
| |
| 5671961 | Sep., 1997 | Buck.
| |
| 5702139 | Dec., 1997 | Buck.
| |
| 5819604 | Oct., 1998 | Buck.
| |
| 6070500 | Jun., 2000 | Dlask et al.
| |
| 2002/0108748 | Aug., 2002 | Keyes.
| |
| Foreign Patent Documents |
| WO 03/093630 | Nov., 2003 | WO.
| |
Primary Examiner: Meislin; Debra S
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrere, & Denegre, L.L.P.
Goverment Interests
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
None.
REFERENCE TO A SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING APPENDIX
SUBMITTED ON COMPACT DISC
None.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to pipe tongs or power tongs used in the oil and
gas industry to make-up and break-out sections of drill pipe and other tubular
members having threaded connections. More particularly, the present invention relates
to a jaw for use in such tongs and a method for constructing the jaw.
B. Description of Related Art
Power tongs are often employed in the oil and gas industry to break-out or
make-up threaded connections on tubular members (such as drill pipe, tubing, or
casing). It is generally required that one tong grip and rotate one section of
a tubular string and a second tong grip and hold stationary the other section of
the tubular string. The first tong rotating the first tubular member is typically
referred to as the power tong, while the second tong holding the second tubular
member stationary is typically referred to as the back-up tong. Examples of conventional
power tongs can be seen in references such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,671,961, 5,702,139,
and 5,819,604 to Buck, which are incorporated herein by reference.
Power tongs ordinarily have two or more jaws which are actuated to grip and
release the tubular member. The actual contact with the tubular is typically accomplished
through the use of die inserts which are removably positioned in the power tong
jaws. Die inserts are commonly held in place through a dovetail key arrangement
or other groove and spline configurations as seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,067 to
Buck, which is incorporated herein by reference, and the patents cited therein.
Power tong jaws are commonly machined from solid pieces of metal bar stock,
or semi-finished casting or from ring forgings which are rolled to near final dimensions
and then machined to final dimensions. An example of jaws 1 constructed
in this manner is seen in FIG. 1. It can be seen that the jaw 1 includes
a jaw body 4 with dovetail slots 3 formed therein. The rear portion
of the jaw body 4 includes a jaw roller 5 secured to the jaw body
4 by a roller pin 6. A number of machine hours on lathes, mills,
and saws are required to construct these jaws 1 from the preliminary material.
A portion of these hours are spent forming the complex dovetail slot 3 in
the jaw 1, which dovetail slot 3 receives the die insert 2.
The process of forming jaws from solid material in this manner is costly and time consuming.
Jaws are often formed from multiple pieces for applications where the weight
of a completely solid jaw might be excessive. An example of such jaws 106
is seen in FIG. 2. Lower and upper plates 100 and 102 are cut, e.g.,
using a laser, waterjet, or torch. Afterward, the plates 100 and 102
must be machined or milled before they are connected to a jaw mid-section 101
using bolts 105. Like the solid jaws 1 discussed above, the jaw mid-section
101 is cut from metal bar stock or ring forging and machined. Although the
jaw mid-section 101 is smaller in diameter than the solid jaw 1 (and,
therefore, involves less material), like the solid jaw 1, the jaw mid-section
101 contains dovetail slots 104 for receiving die inserts 103.
As noted above, substantial machine work is required to form these dovetail slots
104. Thus, the process of constructing jaws in this manner is less expensive
than constructing jaws out of solid material, but this manner of constructing jaws
is still costly—primarily because of the machine work that must be done on
the jaw mid-section 101, especially the complex machine work required to
form the dovetail slots 104. What is needed in the art is a power tong jaw
design which may be manufactured less expensively, from less preliminary material,
and requires less machine work.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a jaw for use in power tongs and a method for
constructing the jaw.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A power tong jaw comprising:
a. an upper plate and a lower plate; and
b. at least three column members positioned between said upper plate and said
lower plate, at least two of said column members having die insert grooves formed therein.
2. The power tong jaw of claim 1, wherein said column member not having one of
said die insert grooves therein comprises a tip at each of said column member's ends.
3. The power tong jaw of claim 2, wherein said upper plate and said lower plate
each comprise two column member slots and one column member opening.
4. The power tong jaw of claim 3, wherein said column member not having one of
said die insert grooves therein is positioned between said upper plate and said
lower plate such that said tips of said column member extend into said column member openings.
5. The power tong jaw of claim 4, wherein each of said column members having
one of said die insert grooves therein is connected to said upper plate and said
lower plate at said column member slots.
6. The power tong jaw of claim 1, wherein said power tong jaw comprises four
said column members, two of said column members having said die insert grooves
formed therein.
7. The power tong jaw of claim 6, wherein each of said column members not having
one of said die insert grooves therein comprises a tip at each of said column member's ends.
8. The power tong jaw of claim 7, wherein each of said upper plate and said lower
plate comprises two column member slots and two column member openings.
9. The power tong jaw of claim 8, wherein said column members not having one
of said die insert grooves therein are positioned between said upper plate and
said lower plate such that said tips of said column members extend into said column
member openings.
10. The power tong jaw of claim 9, wherein said column members are positioned
parallel to each other.
11. The power tong jaw of claim 10, wherein each of said column members having
one of said die insert grooves therein is connected to said upper plate and said
lower plate at said column member slots.
12. The power tong jaw of claim 11, wherein said column members having said die
insert grooves therein are positioned to face inwardly in an arcuate orientation.
13. The power tong jaw of claim 12, wherein said power tong jaw is capable of
being incorporated into a sliding jaw adaptor for a pivoting jaw power tong.
14. The power tong jaw of claim 1 wherein said tong jaw further comprises a jaw roller.
15. The power tong jaw of claim 14, wherein said jaw roller is positioned between
said upper plate and said lower plate.
16. A method for constructing a power tong jaw comprising the steps of:
a. providing a substantially flat upper plate and a substantially flat lower plate;
b. providing at least one substantially elongated column member having a die
insert groove formed therein;
c. providing at least one substantially elongated column member not having one
of said die insert grooves formed therein; and
d. connecting said upper plate to said lower plate with said column members.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein said at least one column member not having
one of said die insert grooves therein comprises a tip at each of said column member's ends.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein each of said upper plate and said lower plate
comprises two column member slots and a column member opening.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein said column member not having one of said
die insert grooves therein is positioned between said upper plate and said lower
plate such that said tips of said column member extend into said column member openings.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein each of said column members having one of
said die insert grooves therein is connected to said upper plate and said lower
plate at said column member slots.
21. The method of claim 16, wherein said step of providing said column members
includes manufacturing said column members by a casting process.
22. The method of claim 16, wherein said step of providing said upper and lower
plates includes manufacturing said plates by a high speed, precision cutting method.
23. The method of claim 16 further comprising the step of connecting a jaw roller
to said tong jaw.
24. The method of claim 23 further comprising the step of positioning said jaw
roller between said upper plate and said lower plate.
25. A method for constructing a power tong jaw comprising:
a. providing a substantially flat upper plate and a substantially flat lower plate;
b. providing at least two separately formed substantially elongated column members,
at least one of said column members having a die insert groove formed therein; and
c. connecting said upper plate to said lower plate using said column members.
26. The method of claim 25 further comprising the step of connecting a jaw roller
to said tong jaw.
27. The method of claim 26 further comprising the step of positioning said jaw
roller between said upper plate and said lower plate.
28. A power tong jaw comprising:
a. an upper plate and a lower plate; and
b. at least two separate means for connecting said upper plate to said lower
plate, said at least two means for connecting said upper plate to said lower plate
being positioned between said upper plate and said lower plate, at least one of
said means for connecting said upper plate to said lower plate comprising means
for gripping a tubular member.
29. The power tong jaw of claim 28 wherein said tong jaw further comprises a
jaw roller.
30. The power tong jaw of claim 29, wherein said jaw roller is positioned between
said upper plate and said lower plate.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
None.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a prior art power tong jaw constructed from solid
metal. FIG. 1(
a) shows a right jaw, and FIG. 1(
b) shows a left jaw.
FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a prior art power tong jaw constructed from multiple
pieces FIG. 2(
a) shows a right jaw, and FIG. 2(
b) shows a left jaw.
FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a power tong jaw constructed using the method
of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a close-up view of a column member having a die insert groove formed therein.
FIG. 5 is an assembled view of a power tong jaw constructed using the method
of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is an exploded view of a power tong jaw member constructed using the
method of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is an assembled view of a power tong jaw member constructed using the
method of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a back-up power tong incorporating a jaw member
of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The following detailed description refers to the accompanying figures.
The term "power tong" as used herein refers to both power tongs for rotating
tubular members and back-up power tongs for holding tubular members stationary
against rotation.
In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides a pivoting power tong jaw as
seen in FIGS. 3 and 5. The jaw
205 comprises an upper plate
200,
a lower plate
201, and three column members
203. The upper plate
200 and lower plate
201 are arranged horizontally, the former above
the latter. The upper plate
200 and the lower plate
201 each contain
two column member slots
206 and one column member opening
207. In
a preferred embodiment, the upper and lower plates will be formed by a high speed,
precision cutting process. Examples of high speed precision cutting processes would
include laser cutting or water jet cutting, shear or punch press types of heavy
metal fabrication techniques, and may include plasma torch cutting. Plasma torch
cutting and flame torch cutting would generally not be considered precision cutting
processes, and conventional milling would not be considered high speed, although
these methods could be used in less preferred embodiments for producing the plates,
as could casting processes. As illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 5, each of the column
members
203 is positioned vertically. Two of the column members
203a
have die insert grooves
204 formed in them for receiving dies. (A close-up
view of a column member
203a is depicted in FIG. 4, which clearly
shows the die insert groove
204.) As seen in FIGS. 3 and 5, the two column
members
203a having the die insert grooves
204 are positioned
between the upper plate
200 and lower plate
201 such that each end
of each of these column members
203a fits into a corresponding column
member slot
206. The column members
203 are welded into place, or
secured by another common method (e.g., using bolts or screws). The third column
member
203b is also positioned between the upper plate
200
and the lower plate
201. This column member
203b does not
have a die insert groove
204 and has points
208 at each end which
extend through the column member openings
207 in the upper plate
200
and lower plate
201, thereby stabilizing the column member
203b.
As seen in FIGS. 3 and 5, the jaw insert
101 (depicted in FIG. 2) is not
present in this embodiment of the present invention. Thus, this design greatly
reduces the amount of material and machining required to produce the jaw. Additionally,
the column members can be formed by a more economical method than machining, such
as investment casting. Thus, a large number of identical column members could be
produced for use in constructing the tong jaws of the present invention. Because
the column members contain the complex detail required to retain the dovetail die
inserts, the casting further reduces the amount of machining required to produce
each tong jaw. Moreover, the same column members may be used on a variety of different
jaw sizes (i.e., jaws designed to grip different diameter tubulars). To produce
different sized jaws, it is only necessary to modify the top and bottom plates.
Thus, one benefit of this design is that a jaw for an usual diameter tubular may
be manufactured very quickly by cutting the correct size top and bottom plates
and assembling them with pre-manufactured column members, which would be the same
size regardless of the top and bottom plate dimensions. This method can reduce
the time necessary to produce a nonstandard sized jaw from days to hours. This
method is also far more economical than prior art methods, allowing jaws of the
present invention to be produced at approximately 77% of the material and production
cost of prior art jaws.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a power tong jaw member as seen
in FIGS. 6 and 7. The jaw member
301 comprises an upper plate
304,
a lower plate
305, and four column members
302. The upper plate
304
and lower plate
305 are arranged horizontally, the former above the latter.
The upper plate
304 and lower plate
305 contain column member slots
306. The column members
302 are connected to the upper plate
304
and lower plate
305 at the column member slots
306. Two of the column
members
302a have die insert grooves
303 for retaining die
inserts
307. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the column members
302a
having die insert grooves
303 are positioned such that the die inserts
307 face inwardly in an arcuate orientation corresponding to the curvature
of the particular diameter tubular being gripped, thereby allowing both of the
die inserts
307 to come into contact with the surface of a tubular when
the power tong jaw member
301 is in use. The column members
302b
which do not have die insert grooves
303 are positioned parallel to
each other on opposite sides of the upper plate
304 and lower plate
305.
The power tong jaw member seen in FIGS. 6 and 7 could be used in a sliding jaw
adaptor for pivoting jaw power tongs as seen in U.S. patent application Ser. No.
10/139,053, which is incorporated by reference herein. The jaw members of the present
invention could replace the sliding solid jaw members seen therein.
This embodiment of the present invention could also be used to replace the solid
arcuate jaw members found in back-up power tongs known in the art, for example,
the back-up power tongs shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,702,139 to Buck, which is incorporated
herein by reference in its entirety. A back-up power tong design incorporating
power tong jaw members according to the present invention is illustrated in FIG.
8. FIG. 8 shows a back-up power tong
402 a having power tong jaw member
401 mounted on an outside jaw assembly
404 and an inside jaw assembly
403. As shown in FIG. 8, this jaw member is similar to that seen in FIGS.
6 and 7, however, there are no column members on the side of this embodiment of
the jaw member. As discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,702,139 to Buck, when actuated,
the outside jaw assembly
404 and inside jaw assembly
403 of the back-up
power tong shown in FIG. 8 lock together around a tubular (not shown). A cylinder
assembly
405 having an arcuate jaw member
407 is extended toward
the jaw members
401 so that the arcuate jaw member
407 engages the
tubular. The contact between the arcuate jaw member
407 and the tubular
brings the tubular into contact with the die inserts
406 on the jaw members
401, which, in cooperation with the arcuate jaw member
407, grip
the tubular. A polyurethane cylindrical spring
408 is used to hold the jaw
member
407 in the proper position for the initial bite, but allows the jaw
member
407 to move to accommodate undersized tubulars or to compensate when
subjected to high torques. While only one spring
408 is shown in contact
with each of the jaw members
401 in FIG. 8, it will be understood a second
spring
408 is located on the other side of jaw
401, but is hidden
from view. The springs
408 are composed of relatively rigid elastic material
and are secured by being positioned between the jaw member
401 and bolts
500 (or bolts
501 for the spring hidden from view). The springs
408
could be secured by other means known in the art, e.g., it could be secured by
pins running through the jaw assembly and the spring. While the pivoting jaw embodiment
of the present invention offers the greatest cost savings, the sliding jaw adapter
embodiment and the back-up power tong embodiment also offer significant savings
over earlier power tong jaw designs known in the art.
While many parts of the present invention have been described in terms of specific
embodiments, it is anticipated that still further alterations and modifications
thereof will no doubt become apparent to those skilled in the art. For example,
other designs besides a dovetail slot might be used to retain die inserts, or the
number of column members having die insert grooves could be altered. Other embodiments
are possible and modifications may be made to the embodiments without departing
from the spirit and scope of the invention. The preceding detailed description
is not meant to limit the invention. Rather, the scope of the invention is defined
by the appended claims. It is therefore intended that the following claims be interpreted
as covering all such alterations and modifications as fall within the true spirit
and scope of the invention.
*
