Well Path Design and Optimization Using Composite Cubic Bezier Curves

Summary Well path design is a primary part of the well plan for well drilling. The main objective of well path design is to generate a continuous and smooth trajectory from a start point to a target point under various design constraints. The conventional approaches usually consist of a number of circular arcs and straight lines, representing build and turn sections and hold sections, respectively. This study presents a new methodology to generate a continuous and smooth well path trajectory with low dogleg severity (DLS) using composite Bezier curves. The trajectory consists of a number of piecewise cubic Bezier curves that satisfy C1 and/or C2 continuity conditions, meaning that the joining curves share the first and second derivatives at the joining points, respectively. The comprehensive methodology for determining the composite curve and the primary properties of the well trajectory is presented. Their advantages regarding feasibility and efficiency are demonstrated in case studies. The proposed method is also applied in a field case, where the automatically generated well path using composite Bezier curves is smoother with a smaller DLS. It can also be quickly updated if a real-time anticollision adjustment is required. The presented work has strong potential to be an efficient and automatic tool for path design and optimization in well planning.