A Portable System for Acquiring and Analyzing Dynamometer Data

A new portable system has been developed for both the acquisition of dynamometer data and the subsequent analysis of that data. This equipment may also be used to determine acoustic fluid levels and obtain surface acoustic pressure-transient data. This paper contains a brief description of the hardware system, how the data is analyzed, and how the data is interpreted to obtain the diagnostic bottom hole dynamometer cards and surface torque analysis. Two features of the system include a new load cell concept and a displacement transducer. The loads are taken with a normal strain gauge which can be of the cable transducer type that is fastened to one of the bridle cables or of the conventional horseshoe type transducer that is placed on the polished rod below the polished rod clamp. The displacements are obtained by recording acceleration from an accelerometer contained in the selected transducer, which is later integrated twice to obtain displacement at the surface. An appropriate method is included in the software to evaluate the constants of integration which result from this integration. Motor current is also recorded when the determination of counter balance is desired. Conventional methods are used to calculate the bottom hole card. The operation of the equipment will not be described here, that may be learned from the operators manual associated with the equipment, rather this paper will deal with how the equipment works and how it may be effectively used.