1. An fixator comprising:
at least one rail;
at least one pin suitable for use in bone fixation; and
at least one clamp system having a pin clamp, a rail clamp functionally connected by a hinge, wherein the pin clamp is capable of holding the pin in a first plane and the rail clamp is capable of holding the rail in a second plane; and the pin clamp is hingedly adjustable to the rail clamp.
2. The fixator of claim 1, wherein the rail is negatively threaded.
3. The fixator of claim 2, further comprising positively threaded nuts attached to the rail, the nuts being capable of pushing the clamp system along the rail.
4. The fixator of claim 3, wherein the pin clamp comprises a pin clamp bottom, a pin clamp top, wherein the pin clamp bottom and top together define at least one passage configured to receive the pin.
5. The fixator of claim 4, wherein the pin clamp further comprises at least one spring disposed such that when the spring is flexed it allows the pin clamp bottom or top to pivot and create an opening capable of receiving the pin.
6. The fixator of claim 5, wherein the pin clamp comprises two sets of pin clamp bottoms and tops, with each set defining one passage of a diameter to receive a first sized pin and a second passage of a second diameter to receive a second sized pin.
7. The fixator of claim 5, wherein the clamp system comprises at least two rail clamps.
8. The fixator of claim 5, wherein the rail clamp comprises a rail clamp bottom and a rail clamp top that together define at least one passage configured to receive the rail, wherein the rail clamp further comprises at least one spring disposed on the fixator such hat when the spring is flexed, it allows the rail clamp bottom or top to pivot and create and opening capable of receiving the rail.
9. The fixator of claim 5, wherein the fixator comprises at least two clamp systems attached to the same rail.
10. The fixator of claim 9, wherein the fixator comprises at least three clamp systems and at least two rails, wherein the first clamp system is attached to the first rail at a first location on that rail, the second clamp system is attached to the first rail at a second location on that rail and a second rail at a first location on that rail, and the third clamp system is attached to the second rail at a second location on that rail.
11. A clamp system for a fixator comprising:
a first clamp area comprises a pin clamp top and a pin clamp bottom attached to a pin clamp bolt, wherein the pin clamp top and pin clamp bottom that together define a pin passage and the pin clamp top and bottom can be flexed to allow for a pin to be snapped into the pin passage;
a hinge that is attached to the pin clamp bolt and hingedly connects the first clamp area to a second clamp area; wherein the hinge comprises a bolt assembly capable of fixing the first clamp area in a fixed position in relation to the second clamp area;
wherein the second clamp area comprises a rail clamp top and a rail clamp bottom that are attached to a rail clamp bolt, wherein the rail clamp top and rail clamp bottom together define a rail passage, and the rail clamp top and bottom can be flexed to allow for a rail to be snapped into the rail passage.
12. The clamp system for the fixator of claim 11, wherein both the first clamp area and second clamp area further comprise bolt assemblies capable of fixing the pin and rail into the pin and rail passages.
13. The clamp system for the fixator of claim 11, wherein the first clamp area further comprises a second pin clamp top and bottom attached to the pin clamp bolt, the second pin clamp top and pin clamp bottom together defining a second pin passage.
14. The clamp system for the fixator of claim 11, wherein the first clamp area further comprises a second rail clamp top and bottom that together define a second rail passage, and the second rail clamp top and bottom being flexible to allow for the second rail to be snapped into the rail passage.
15. An external fixation device comprising:
a rail;
at least one pin;
a first clamp and a second clamp, each clamp comprising a first spring-loaded component configured to attach the clamp to the rail, a second spring loaded component configured to attach to at least two pins, and a hinged component that can adjustably connect the first spring loaded component to the second spring loaded component, wherein both clamps are attachable to the same rail.
16. The external fixation device of claim 15, wherein the spring-loaded components are splined.
17. The external fixation device of claim 16, wherein at least one of the clamps has two or more spring-loaded components configured to attach the clamp to pins.
18. The external fixation device of claim 17, wherein the rail is negatively threaded.
19. The external fixation device of claim 18, wherein the device further comprises at least one nut that is capable of moving at least one clamp along the rail.
20. The external fixation device of claim 15 wherein the pins attached to the first spring-loaded component are anchored in a bone at a first location and the pins attached to the second spring-loaded component are anchored in a bone at a second location.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. An apparatus, comprising:
a downhole tool body including a motor to receive surface motor power from a monoconductor;
a processor to provide processed data;
a filter coupled to the motor; and
a power regulator coupled to the filter, wherein the surface motor power is to be provided to the motor using a monoconductor terminal of the power regulator, and wherein the processed data is to be transmitted along the monoconductor by coupling the processed data to the monoconductor so that the surface motor power can be applied to operate the motor at substantially the same time the processed data is transmitted on the monoconductor.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the monoconductor comprises one of a monocable and an insulated slick line.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising:
a sensor to couple to the motor and to acquire downhole data to couple to the processor, wherein the processed data is to be derived from at least a portion of the downhole data.
4. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising:
a reduction drive having a ratio of greater than 10:1 to couple the motor to the sensor.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the power regulator comprises a shunt regulator.
6. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising:
a motor controller to measure back-electromotive force as an indication of velocity of the motor.
7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the motor controller is to provide pulse-width modulation to adjust the velocity.
8. A system, including:
a surface facility to provide surface motor power and to receive processed data;
a monoconductor to couple to the surface facility;
a downhole tool body including a motor to receive the surface motor power from the monoconductor;
a processor to provide processed data;
a filter coupled to the motor; and
a power regulator coupled to the filter, wherein the surface motor power is to be provided to the motor using a monoconductor terminal of the power regulator, and wherein the processed data is to be transmitted along the monoconductor by coupling the processed data to the monoconductor so that the surface motor power can be applied to operate the motor at substantially the same time the processed data is transmitted on the monoconductor.
9. The system of claim 8, wherein the filter comprises a pair of inductor-capacitor filters coupled to opposite ends of the monoconductor.
10. The system of claim 8, wherein the downhole tool comprises a data compression module to provide at least a portion of the processed data.
11. The system of claim 8, comprising:
a display to display at least a portion of the processed data.
12. The system of claim 8, comprising:
a rotatable ultrasonic transducer coupled to the motor using a reduction drive.
13. A method, comprising:
acquiring downhole data associated with a borehole casing;
processing a portion of the downhole data at a downhole location to provide processed data;
regulating surface motor power received at a motor downhole;
filtering the surface motor power; and
transmitting the processed data to a surface location on a monoconductor that carries the surface motor power.
14. The method of claim 13, comprising:
prior to the transmitting, formatting the processed data into a transmission frame on a per-scan basis associated with the acquiring.
15. The method of claim 13, wherein the regulating comprises:
shunting the surface motor power.
16. The method of claim 13, wherein the filtering comprises:
filtering the surface motor power proximate to the motor; and
filtering the surface motor power proximate to a surface facility providing the surface motor power.
17. The method of claim 13, wherein the transmitting comprises:
periodically transmitting mud cell information and long waveform information as a measure of quality associated with the acquiring.
18. The method of claim 13, wherein the transmitting comprises:
transmitting different portions of a substantially complete ultrasonic waveform as part of different helical borehole scans.
19. The method of claim 13, comprising:
controlling a motor coupled to an ultrasound sensor by driving the transducer along a helical scan path with a speed determined in part by pulse-width modulation of the surface motor power, and in part by measured back-electromotive force associated with non-powered windings of the motor to determine a winding excitation sequence.
20. The method of claim 13, wherein the monoconductor comprises one of a monocable and an insulated slick line.
21. The method of claim 13, wherein the processed data comprises self-calibrating transducer information associated with time-windowed ultrasonic signal resonance information forming a portion of the downhole data.
22. The method of claim 13, wherein the surface motor power comprises substantially regular discontinuous direct current.
23. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a method comprising:
acquiring downhole data associated with a borehole casing;
processing a portion of the downhole data at a downhole location to provide processed data;
regulating surface motor power received at a motor downhole;
filtering the surface motor power; and
transmitting the processed data to a surface location on a monoconductor that carries the surface motor power.
24. The computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the processed data comprises at least one of well casing thickness information and transducer signature information.
25. The computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the instructions, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform the method, comprising:
sequencing connection of the surface motor power to the motor according to a measured back-electromotive force associated with non-powered windings of the motor.
26. The computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the instructions, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform the method, comprising:
formatting the processed data into frames having a one-to-one correspondence with individual helical scan operations associated with the acquiring.
27. The computer-readable medium of claim 23, wherein the instructions, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform the method, comprising:
transmitting, as a part of the processed data, a summed version of time-windowed ultrasonic signal resonance information included in the downhole data.