Directional Drilling Survey Calculations PDF

Interim Data
CL = 155.00’
Average Angle Exercise
Ī = 19.80° MD Inc Az TVD N E VS DLS
Ā = 74.95° Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90
• Step 1
– Calculate the Course Length, Average Inclination, and
Average Azimuth (use vector averaging if necessary)
Course Length Average Inclination Average Azimuth
I1+ I A=
A1 + A 2
CL = MD 2 − MD1 I =
2
2
2
CL = 4942.00 − 4787.00 I = 19.30° + 20.30° 72 .00 + 77 .90
A=
2 2
CL = 155.00' I = 19.80° A = 74.95°
16
© 2008 Baker Hughes Incorporated. All rights reserved.

• Now from a different perspective . . . North
East
North
106.25
East
90.84
8
Interim Data
CL = 155.00’
Ī = 19.80°
MD Inc Az TVD N E VS DLS
Ā = 74.95°
Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
• Step 2 Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89
– Calculate the change in True Vertical Depth
ΔTVD = CL × cos I ()
ΔTVD = 155'× cos(19.80°)
Ī
CL ΔTVD = 155×
' (0.9409)
ΔTVD
145.84’
145.84’
ΔTVD = 145 .84 '
TVD11
4909.89’
4909.89’ TVD11 = TVD10 + ΔTVD
TVD11 = 4764.05'+145.84'
Make a Triangle! TVD 11 = 4909 .89 '
Interim Data
CL = 155.00’
Ī = 19.80° MD Inc Az TVD N E VS DLS
Ā = 74.95° Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89
• Step 3
– Calculate the Horizontal Deviation
HD = CL × sin I ()
Ī HD = 155'× sin(19.80°)
CL
HD = 155'× (0.3387 )
HD = 52 .50 '
HD
52.50’
52.50’
9
• Back to Horizontal Plane
North
106.25
HD
52.50’
52.50’
East
90.84
Interim Data
CL = 155.00’
HD = 52.50’ MD Inc Az TVD N E VS DLS
Ā = 74.95° Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89
• Step 4
– Calculate the change in rectangular coordinates (ΔN, ΔE)
Make another Triangle! ΔN = HD × cos( A)

North
North ΔN = 52.50'× cos(74.95°)
ΔN = 52.50'×(0.2597)
ΔN = 13.63'
106.25
ΔE = HD × sin( A)
ΔE 50.70’
50.70’
ΔN
ΔE = 52.50' × sin(74.95°)
13.63’
13.63’ Ā
HD ΔE = 52.50' × (0.9657)
East
ΔE = 50.70'
90.84
21
10
Interim Data
CL = 155.00’
ΔN = 13.63’ MD Inc Az TVD N E VS DLS
ΔE = 50.70’ Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89 119.88 141.54
• Step 4 (Cont.)
– Calculate the rectangular coordinates (Total)
From Tie In Survey: N10 = 106.25
North
From Previous Calculation: ΔN = 13.63
Add to obtain Survey 11 N
119.88’
119.88’
From Tie In Survey: E10 = 90.84

From Previous Calculation: ΔE = 50.70
50.70’
50.70’
Add to obtain Survey 11 E
13.63’
13.63’
141.54’
141.54’
East
22
Vertical Section
• Sometimes called:
– VSA = 83° North
– Vertical Section Azimuth Closure Distance
– Target Direction
– Proposed Direction
– Vertical Section Plane
Azimuth Target
Location
East
Total Vertical
Section
23
11
Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89 119.88 141.54
• Step 5
– Calculate Closure Distance (calculated from last survey)
North
Closure Distance Closure Distance
Closure Azimuth
CD = ( N ) 2 + ( E ) 2
CD = (119 .88) 2 + (141 .54 ) 2
CD = 185.49 ft
East
24
Be Careful with Closure Azimuth…

CLOSURE AZIMUTH = DIRECTION OF
CLOSURE DISTANCE ⎛E⎞
CA = tan -1 ⎜ ⎟
⎝N⎠
North ⎛ 30.0 ⎞
CA = tan -1 ⎜ ⎟
⎝ 40.0 ⎠ 36.87°
36.87°
1
CA = 36.87
1
⎛ 25.0 ⎞ 180+(-
180+(-39.81)=
CA = tan -1 ⎜ ⎟
4 ⎝ − 30.0 ⎠
2
CA = −39.81 140.19°
140.19°
East ⎛ − 35.0 ⎞
CA = tan -1 ⎜ ⎟ 180+(34.99)=
⎝ − 50.0 ⎠
3
CA = 34.99 214.99°
214.99°
2 ⎛ − 50.0 ⎞
CA = tan -1 ⎜ ⎟ 360+(-
360+(-68.20)=
⎝ 20.0 ⎠
3 4
CA = −68.20 291.80°
291.80°
25
12
Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
• Step 6 Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89 119.88 141.54
– Calculate Closure Azimuth (direction of closure distance)
North
Closure Distance
Closure Azimuth Closure Azimuth
⎛E⎞
CA = tan-1 ⎜ ⎟
⎝N⎠
⎛ 141.54 ⎞
CA = tan -1 ⎜ ⎟
⎝ 119.88 ⎠
CA = 49.74°
East
26
Interim Data
CD = 185.49’
CA = 49.74° MD Inc Az TVD N E VS DLS
VSA = 83.00° Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
• Step 7 Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89 119.88 141.54
– Calculate Vertical Section (total—not incremental)
North DD = VSA − CA
Closure Distance
Closure Azimuth DD = 83° − 49.74°
DD = 33.26°
9’
5.4
18 Target
155.10’
155.10’
Location VS = CD × cos(DD)
33.26°
33.26°
VS = 185.49'× cos(33.26°)
East
VS = 155.10'
Target Direction
27
13
• Dogleg
– The change in inclination and azimuth between two points
– Measured in degrees
• Dogleg Severity
– The dogleg over a defined distance
– Measured in degrees /100 ft
• Severe dogleg severity may produce
– ‘Keyseats’
– Problems with running casing
– Stuck pipe
– Drill pipe wear
28

Survey 10 4787.00 19.30 72.00 4764.05 106.25 90.84 125.14 1.13
Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89 119.88 141.54 155.10 1.44

• Step 8
– Calculate Dogleg and Dogleg Severity
Dogleg
DL = cos−1[sin(I 1)sin(I 2 ) cos( A2 − A1) + cos(I 1) cos(I 2 )]
DL = cos −1[sin( 19 .3) sin( 20 .3) cos( 77 .9 − 72 ) + cos(19 .3) cos( 20 .3)]
DL = cos −1[0.99924]
Dogleg Severity
DL = 2.23°
DL × Interval
DLS =
CL
2.23° × (100) ft
DLS =
155'
DLS = 11.44
.44° / 100'
29
14
Survey Calculations
Dogleg and Dogleg Severity
Closure and Vertical Section
Objectives
• The student will be able to
- demonstrate proficiency with their hand calculator.

- list the main types of survey calculation.
- perform average angle hand calculations.
- explain what is meant by the terms “Dogleg” and “Dogleg Severity”.
- hand calculate DL and DLS.
- describe what these calculations indicate re Directional Drilling .
- calculate closure.
- calculate vertical section.
- explain what the resulting calculation indicates.
- list the information available from a standard drilling plot.
1
Calculating The Wellbore Position
• When we survey a wellbore, we typically have MD, Inc and Az

measurements at specific points along the wellbore
• To plot/calculate the position of the wellbore, we need to somehow

“join-the-dots”
• There are many different mathematical ways to join the dots
• Each method makes assumptions about the path between the survey
stations
• The most common survey calculation methods used in the drilling

industry are
– Minimum curvature
– Radius of curvature
– Average angle
Survey Calculation Methods
• Minimum curvature
– Is generally recognised as the most appropriate survey calculation
method in most circumstances
– Is the most commonly used survey calculation method
– Most of our customers worldwide use this (and want us to use this)
– Assumes the line joining any two successive survey stations is a 3D
curve (with curvature in 3 dimensions i.e. the wellpath lies on the
surface of a sphere)
• Radius of curvature
– Used to be more common than it is now
– Rarely used nowadays in the drilling industry
– Assumes the line joining any two successive survey stations is a 3D
curve (with curvature in 2 dimensions i.e. the wellpath lies on the
surface of a cylinder)
2
Survey Calculation Methods
• Both minimum curvature and radius of curvature calculations are

computationally complex
• They are therefore typically done only with the aid of a computer
program (e.g. WellArchitect, Advantage) or with a programmable
calculator (with appropriately validated program)
• Average Angle is a calculation method which is less computationally

complex and can be hand calculated on a basic scientific calculator
• The average angle method is adequate for field calculations, but would
only be used in situations where for some reason a minimum
curvature calculation is not available
Average Angle Survey Calculations
• We know the MD, Inc, and Az values at each survey station
• The average angle method assumes that the path between any two
survey stations is a straight line
• This straight line will have an inclination and a direction
• The inclination of the straight line is the average of the inclinations of

the survey stations at each end of the straight line
• The direction of the straight line is the average of the directions of the
survey stations at each end of the straight line
• The TVD, N and E coordinates can then be calculated using the

properties of the right-angled triangle and basic trigonometry
3
• For the straight line joining any two survey stations
– Denote the average azimuth of this straight line by Az

– Denote the average inclination of this straight line by I
• Then, for the straight line between any two survey stations
Az = Az + Az 1 2
2
• And
I = I + I 1 2
2
• So we have, looking from the side
MD1, I1, Az1

I
ΔTVD = CL × CosI
CL HD = CL × Sin I
ΔTVD
MD2, I2, Az2

HD
4
• And looking from above
ΔE
ΔN = HD × Cos Az
ΔN
ΔE = HD × Sin Az
HD
Az
• So we have the average angle formulae
ΔTVD = CL × CosI
HD = CL × Sin I
ΔN = HD × Cos Az
ΔE = HD × Sin Az
5
• Note that the calculated values of ΔTVD, ΔN and ΔE are changes in

these parameters from one survey station to the next
• Therefore each of these Δ values needs to be added on to the

appropriate absolute values on the previous line
• Thus the survey calculation is an incremental calculation and a

mistake in any line of the calculation will mean all subsequent
calculations of that parameter will also be incorrect
• Clearly, to start off we need to have a tie-on line with the TVD, N, and E
coordinates specified – this is usually, but not always, ultimately a tie-
on line at surface
• Note that you can usually spot gross errors if you pay a little attention
to the numbers e.g. if the course length is 100 ft, then ΔN cannot be
300 ft
• The direction of the average azimuth will tell you whether

– N and E should be increasing or decreasing
– ΔN should be bigger or smaller than the ΔE
• ΔTVD may be a negative number

– This means that the inclination is above 90°
• ΔN and/or ΔE may be a negative number

– This means the wellbore is going south and/or west
6
Average Angle Calculation Exercise
• Note that it is typically better to do the calculation by line rather than

by column
• Typically, these calculated values are quoted to 2 decimal places
• You can either store previous line values on your calculator, or hand-
enter them as appropriate
• Depending on which you do, over multiple lines you’ll get very slight
differences in your answers
• Calculate TVD, N, and E for the first few lines on Exercise 1
Dogleg and Dogleg Severity
7
Dogleg
• Dogleg (DL) is a measure of the 3 dimensional change in trajectory

(inclination and direction) of a bore-hole between two survey stations,
expressed as a 3D angle.
• DL = Cos-1 [ Sin I1 Sin I2 Cos (A2 - A1) + Cos I1 Cos I2 ]
• With the same change in inclination and azimuth between two survey
stations, the dogleg will be higher at higher inclinations.
• The same amount of turn in the hole will produce a higher dogleg at
higher inclinations.
• 1 degree of inclination change will give a 1 degree dogleg. This is NOT

the case with azimuth change except for when the hole is horizontal.
Dogleg changing with inclination

Inclination Azimuth Dogleg
1 0
1 180 2.00
5 20
7 20 2.00
5 20
7 24 2.04
10 20
12 24 2.14
20 20
22 24 2.46
30 20
32 24 2.87
45 20
47 24 3.50
60 20
62 24 4.03
90 20
92 24 4.47
90 20
90 24 4.00
8
Dogleg Severity
• The dogleg calculation is a function of inclination and azimuth values at

each of two survey points
• As such, it has limited practical value
• It is much more useful to have a measure which takes account of course

length (CL)
• Dogleg severity is dogleg expressed over a particular interval (usually

100ft or 30m)
DLS = DL × Interval
CL
• Dogleg and Dogleg Severity are NOT the same thing although the terms
are often used interchangeably
• A very short course length may give misleading DLS values
DLS Calculation Exercise
• Once again, DLS values are usually quoted to 2 decimal places
• Set your calculator to display 2 decimal places
• What is Cos 1°, Cos 2°, Cos 3°, Cos 4° … (to 2 decimal places)?
• This means if you are hand-entering intermediate values, you need to

record 6 decimal places
• If you are storing intermediate values in your calculator, you will

automatically be using sufficient precision
• Calculate DLS for the first few lines of the given survey in Exercise 1
9
Drilling Map
Drilling Map
• What information might be displayed on a drilling map?
– Location information
– Well information
– Slot information (particularly slot coordinates)
– Target information
– Surface information (north reference, spheroid model, depth offsets, depth
units)
– Tie-on information
– Logo
– Wellplan
– North arrow (correction to TN/GN, Dip, Bt)
– Approval box
– Plan view (wellpath map)
– Etc.
10
Drilling Map
• When we plot a survey on the plan view, what does that tell us?
• It is a projection on a horizontal plane
• It lets us know whether the drilled well is left or right of the plan (on the
projection)
• It doesn’t tell us how far off the line we are
• It doesn’t always tell us if we need to steer right or left – we need more

information than just one survey tell us this
• More on the drilling map later
• Later on we’ll talk about why we calculate VS and what it indicates
• We’ll start by covering how to calculate Vertical Section

– Most people do not find this a particularly easy calculation
– As with most of the other survey calculations, it is very rarely done
manually
– Before you can calculate VS, you first have to do a calculation to find
something we call closure
– Calculating closure involves calculating two values
• Closure distance
• Closure direction
– You need both of these values in order to calculate VS
– Both closure and VS are calculated for a specific point on the wellbore,
usually every survey station
11
Closure
• Is the distance and direction on a horizontal projection to a given
point P on an actual wellpath
• Closure distance is typically measured from the slot (assume the
slot has coordinates (0,0)
• Closure direction is typically given as an azimuth, which like all
azimuths is measured clockwise from N
N
1600
P
ce
t an
e Di s
sur
Closure Direction Cl o
E
2250
Closure Distance
N Closure Distance = 1600 2 + 2250 2 = 2760.89
1600
ce
s t an
i
eD
s ur
C lo
2250
E
12
Closure Direction
2250
N Closure Direction = tan -1 = 54.58 °
1600
1600
2250
E
Closure Calculation
• On a vertical well, there is no VS azimuth and hence no VS calculation
• On a vertical well, therefore, closure parameters are typically of some

interest
• Closure information is not typically that useful for practical purposes on

a directional well
• It does not typically determine our future steering behaviour, for

example
• It is however necessary for calculating vertical section, which may be

used to determine steering behaviour
13
Directional Difference
• We have calculated the closure direction
• We define the VS azimuth (more on this later)
• In our example we define the VS azimuth to be 60°
• The difference between these two values is the Directional Difference (DD)
• Thus, in our example, the DD = 60 – 54.58 = 5.42°
2250
Closure Direction = tan -1 = 54.58°
N 1600
VS Azimuth = 60°
So the Directional Difference = 60 - 54.58 = 5.42°
1600
VS Azimuth
E
Closure Direction 2250
14
Vertical Section The VS at point P is the length of the green line
i.e. cos DD x closure distance
= cos 5.42 x 2760.89
N
= 0.996 x 2760.89
= 2749.85
1600
P
9
.8
60
27
°
42
5.
2250
E
Vertical Section
• Mathematically, VS = Cos DD x Closure distance
• VS is a distance
• It is the distance drilled (from some defined VS origin) projected onto a

vertical plane oriented at a particular azimuth
• The particular azimuth is called the VS azimuth (or plane, or direction)
• Both the VS origin and the VS azimuth are defined (by a well-planner or
the customer) and will be found on the drilling plot
• For any particular point on the wellpath, VS is plotted against TVD on

the section view of a drilling map
• VS is used to give a visual indication of where a drilled wellpath is

compared to where it should be (“above or below the line”)
15
Drilling Map
• So we can add some additional information to the list we saw previously
– Location information
– Well information
– Slot information (particularly slot coordinates)
– Target information
– Surface information (north reference, spheroid model, depth offsets, depth
units)
– Tie-on information
– Logo
– Wellplan
– North arrow (correction to TN/GN, Dip, Bt)
– Approval box
– Plan view (wellpath map)
– VS view (cross-section view)
– VS azimuth
– VS origin
Drilling Map
• When we plot a survey on the section view, what does that tell us?
• It is a projection on a vertical plane
• This vertical plane is oriented at some azimuth (the vertical section azimuth)
• It gives us an indication of whether the drilled well is above or below the

plan (on the projection)
• Strictly speaking, this is only true if we are drilling in a direction close to the
VS azimuth
• It doesn’t tell us how far off the line we are
• It doesn’t always tell us if we need to steer up or down – we need more

information than just one survey tell us this
16
Vertical Section Calculation (summary)
• To calculate the VS at point P, you need to know

– The VS azimuth (aka VS plane or VS direction)
– The VS origin
– The local N and E coordinates of point P
• Calculate the closure of point P, both

– The closure distance
– The closure direction
• Calculate the difference between the VS azimuth and the closure

direction (this is the directional difference, DD)
• Calculate the VS for point P

– VS = Cos DD x Closure distance
Vertical Section Calculation
• If you’re doing this calculation manually, it’s always good to draw a

diagram
• If you’re drilling in a direction other than N and E, the formulae will take
care of the different quadrants, as long as the directions are azimuths
measured clockwise from N
• If you’re using any right-angled triangles to calculate distances and

angles, be careful to label accordingly and correct to azimuths as
appropriate
• When calculating the DD, just subtract the smaller number from the
bigger for ease of calculation
17
Choice of Vertical Section Origin
• The vertical section origin is usually, but not always, the slot
• The customer may specify a point for VS origin that is not the slot
• If the slot coordinates are not (0,0), you may have to correct
appropriately when calculating the closure distance i.e. subtract the ΔN
and ΔE of the slot coordinates from the coordinates of the point on the
wellpath
• When drilling a sidetrack, the sidetrack point may be the VS origin, with
coordinates referenced to platform centre
Choice of Vertical Section Azimuth
• The vertical section azimuth is typically chosen to give the most useful
view of the wellpath on the section view of the drilling plot
• For a 2D wellplan, the vertical section azimuth will usually be the

direction of a straight line drawn from the slot to the end of the wellpath
• This gives the most useful view of the drilled versus planned wellpaths
• The least useful view would be a vertical section azimuth perpendicular

to this
• For a 3D wellplan the choice of vertical section azimuth is a less

obvious process
18
Choice of Vertical Section Azimuth
• The choice of vertical section azimuth will usually be up to us
• Sometimes for a 3D plan it will be the same as for a 2D wellplan, i.e. the
direction of a straight line drawn from the slot to the end of the wellpath
• Or it could be the direction of a straight line from the origin to the end of
the wellpath
• Or it could be the direction of a straight line from any point on any

azimuth
• Sometimes it will be chosen to give a better view of the more critical part
of the wellpath
• Sometimes there will be multiple plots created, for different sections of

the well, each with different vertical section azimuths
Vertical Section Calculation
• If the calculated VS is exactly the same as the closure distance, this

means the point lies on the VS azimuth i.e. precisely on the line (of the
plan view) for a simple 2D plan
• If the calculated VS is 0, this means the point lies on a line

perpendicular to the VS azimuth (in the plan view)
• If the calculated VS is negative, this means the drilled well has gone
“backwards” with respect to the VS azimuth and origin
• This is fairly common in some types of hole
• The plotted drilled versus proposed section view will only truly tell you
if you’re above or below the line if you’re drilling in a direction close to
the VS azimuth
19
Curtain Section
• In the MWD world, there has historically been something called

Incremental Section
• This is not the same as VS, is now history, and can safely be forgotten
about
• There is however another type of cross section calculation referred to

as Curtain Section, in which a 3D wellpath is “flattened out” along a
straight plane
• Both types of cross-section (VS and Curtain Section) can be generated

in WellArchitect
• Curtain section may be useful for visualisation of wellpaths in relation to

earth models (formations)
VS Calculation Exercise
• Calculate VS for a few lines of the given survey in Exercise 1
• Note that the VS Origin is the slot with coordinates (0 N, 0 E)
• Check your answers
20
Projecting Ahead
Objectives
The student will be able to
• explain what is meant by “Projecting Ahead”
• explain why we might project from the last survey to the bottom of the hole
• do simple hand calculation projections to

– Calculate Inc and Az at BOH for a given build & turn
– Calculate TVD for a projected Inc at a specified BUR
– Calculate BUR required for a given TVD
1
Projecting Ahead
• Is the process of calculating, one way or another, where we think the

wellbore may be after a certain amount of drilling which we haven’t done yet
• As such, it always involves some guesswork on our part as to what will

happen to the wellbore over this as yet undrilled section
• For example, it may build or turn at a relatively predictable rate
• And if it does, then we may be interested in calculating various things:

– The current inclination and/or direction at the bottom of the hole
– The bottom hole location after a specified additional MD has been drilled
– What inclination we will have at a certain TVD
– Whether we will hit a specified target
– etc
Projecting Ahead
• It is common for a DD to project ahead, often after every survey

– To estimate where the wellbore will be compared to the plan
– To monitor potential collision issues
– To find out if he needs to take remedial action
• Projecting ahead may be something the DD does as an integral part of his

own routine, or it may be laid down in procedures, either from INTEQ or
from the customer
• Either way, it is a useful, and often necessary, thing to do
• Sometimes multiple projections are done using different parameters, so

that the DD will have a good idea what he hopes to get in advance of the
survey being taken
• In collision-critical situations, there may be a designated hand, either at

the rigsite or in town, dedicated to doing projection calculations
2
Projecting Ahead
• For any specific BHA, the survey sensor is some fixed distance behind the
bit
• Surveys are almost always taken with the BHA off bottom
• Therefore we never have definitive surveys of the bottom of the wellbore

while drilling
• It is usually good practice to project ahead from the last survey station to
the bottom of the hole, and then to do any further projection from the
bottom of the hole
Projecting Ahead
• Simple projections can be done on a hand-calculator, but can also be

done with WA (“Projection To Bit”)
• More complicated projections are usually done with WA (“Project Ahead”)
• We will do some of the simpler hand-calculations now
• We will do projections using WA later
3
Projecting Ahead
• There are various formulae that can be used when projecting ahead
• These formulae are typically developed from the geometry of the circle
and of the right-angled triangle
• For most people, the derivation of these formulae is not a great matter
of interest
• What is important is how to use them to get the information you want
• However, if you are interested …
Derivation of formulae
• Any curved section in the wellbore can be regarded as an arc of a

circle with a specific radius, rc, the radius of curvature
• The circumference, C, of this circle is 2πrc
• Since there is no exact value of π, any calculations using π will depend

on the precision with which it is defined
• If doing manual calculations, use the π button on your calculator
• There is a fixed ratio between any arc length (AL) and the angle angle
(AA) by that arc
• Let’s assume we’re drilling in feet, so a typical arc length would be 100
• So AL/AA = 100/BUR
4
Arc Length and Arc Angle
Arc angle
Arc length
Derivation of formulae
• In the limiting case of the entire circle the expression above would
equal C/360
• So 100/BUR = 2πrc/360
• Rearranging this gives

rc = 360 x 100 / (2π x BUR) = 5729.58/BUR
• If we’re using metres, the BUR is usually expressed in °/30 m
• So the expression becomes

rc = 360 x 30 / (2π x BUR) = 1718.87/BUR
• So if you’re using these formulae, the first thing you need to check is
whether the BUR is expressed per 100, per 30, or whatever
5
Projecting Ahead
• Some of the abbreviations used are
– I = inclination (degrees)
– CL = course length (feet or metres)
– MD = measured depth (feet or metres)
– TVD = true vertical depth (feet or metres)
– Az = azimuth (hole direction) (degrees)
– VS = vertical section (feet or metres)
– BUR = build up rate (º/interval) e.g. a BUR of 12º/100ft would
be input into the formulas as 12
– rc = radius of curvature (feet or metres)
– TF = toolface (degrees from highside)
– DL = dogleg (degrees)
– DLS = dogleg severity (degrees/100 ft or degrees/30m)
– BOH = bottom of hole
– LSS = last survey station
Calculating Inc and Az at BOH for given build & turn

• Assume we have taken two successive surveys at different depths
• If we assume that the hole curvature between these two surveys

continues to the bottom of the hole, then we can easily calculate first
the BUR, then the inc and az at the bottom of the hole
• Remember that the interval (for BUR) is typically 100 if using feet, and
30 for m
• To determine the inclination and direction at the bottom of the hole:

– Formulae
I 2 - I1 Az 2 - Az1
BUR = ( ) × Interval Turn Rate = ( ) × Interval
MD 2 - MD1 MD 2 - MD1
BUR Turn Rate

I BOH = ( CL LSS -BOH × ) + I2 Az BOH = ( CL LSS -BOH × ) + Az 2
Interval Interval
6
Example
• The following are the last two surveys a directional driller obtained (depths in
ft):
– MD Inc Az TVD
– 4653 30 15 4643.99
– 4713 39 18 4693.38
• The bit to sensor distance is 33 ft and surveys are taken 5 ft off of bottom
• Assume the curvature between the last two survey stations will accurately
reflect the build rate to the bottom of the hole
• What is the projected inclination and direction at the bottom of the hole?
• We first need to calculate the build rate and turn rate achieved between the last
two survey stations using the appropriate formula
• Then we need to project the inclination and direction at the bottom of the hole
based on the calculated build rate and the distance from the survey sensor to
the bottom of the hole
Example
I 2 - I1 Az 2 - Az 1
BUR = ( ) × Interval Turn Rate = ( ) × Interval
MD 2 - MD1 MD 2 - MD1
39 - 30 18 - 15
BUR = ( ) × 100 Turn Rate = ( ) × 100
4713 - 4653 4713 - 4653
BUR = 15° /100ft Turn Rate = 5°/100 ft
Turn Rate
BUR Az BOH = (CL × ) + Az 2
I BOH = (CL × ) + I2 Interval
Interval
15
5
I BOH = (38 × ) + 39 Az BOH = (38 × ) + 18
100 100
I BOH = 44.70° Az BOH = 19.9°
7
Exercise
• Do Ex 1 to find the inclination and direction at the bottom of the

hole given the last two surveys
Calculating TVD for a projected Inc at a specified BUR

• Assume that the DD now wants to know what the TVD will be (at a given
inc) if he continues to build at the rate defined by the last two surveys
rc
I1 TVD1 = rc × sinI 1
I2
TVD1
TVD 2 = rc × sinI 2
TVD2
So ΔTVD = TVD 2 – TVD1
ΔTVD
= rcsinI 2 – rcsinI 1
= rc (sinI 2 – sinI 1 )
8
Calculating TVD for a projected Inc at a specified BUR
Example
• Using the same data as in the previous example, let’s assume that the
build rate between the last two survey stations is continued to the BOH
• So, we can calculate what the TVD will be at the bottom of the hole
BUR = 15° /100 ft.
5729.58 5729.58
rc = = = 381.97 ft
BUR 15
ΔTVD LSS -BOH = rc × (sinI BOH – sinI LSS ) = 381.97 × (sin 44.7 – sin 39) = 28.29
TVD BOH = TVD LSS + ΔTVD BOH -LSS = 4693.38 + 28.29 = 4721.67 ft
Exercise
• Do Ex 2 to find the TVD at a projected inclination
9
Calculating BUR required for a given TVD
• We may wish to do the previous calculation the other way round – for a
given TVD (e.g. target TVD) and inclination, what is the required BUR?
• From a previous slide, we have
ΔTVD = rc (sin I 2 – sinI 1 )
ΔTVD (TVD2 – TVD1 )

So rc = =
(sin I 2 – sinI 1 ) (sin I 2 – sinI 1 )
5729.58
Since BUR =
rc
(sin I 2 – sinI 1 )
Then BURRequired = 5729.58 ×
(TVD2 – TVD1 )
• So if we wish to calculate the BUR from the BOH to the target, then
(sin I 2 – sin I1 )
BURRequired = 5729.58 ×
(TVD 2 – TVD1 )
becomes
(sin I target – sin I BOH )

(TVD target – TVDBOH )
10
• So, again using the same example data, if we wish to calculate the
BUR from the BOH to the target, then
(sin I target – sin I BOH )

(TVD target – TVD BOH )
becomes
(sin 89 – sin 44.7)

(4930 – 4721.67 )
= 8.15°/100 ft
• This 8.15°/100 ft BUR can then be compared against the calculated
BUR when the next survey is taken
Exercise
• Do Ex 3 to find the BUR required to hit a particular TVD at a given

inclination
11
Miscellaneous
• Remember if the units are metres, use 1718.87 instead of 5729.58
• These calculations have been concentrating on projections in the build

plane i.e. inclinations
• Similar formulae can be derived and applied to the turn plane i.e.
azimuths
• In practice, once the calculations become moderately complex, it is rare

to do them by hand
• Typically, WA is used if calculations are required to estimate

– what’s required to hit the target (build, turn, front, back, top, bottom)
– what’s required to get back on the line (profile, DLS, by a given TVD) at a
given inc and az
– etc.
12

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Interim Data

Course Length Average Inclination Average Azimuth

Average Angle Exercise

• Step 2 Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89

– Calculate the change in True Vertical Depth

• Back to Horizontal Plane

Make another Triangle! ΔN = HD × cos( A)

From Tie In Survey: E10 = 90.84

CD = (119 .88) 2 + (141 .54 ) 2

Be Careful with Closure Azimuth…

• Step 6 Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89 119.88 141.54

– Calculate Closure Azimuth (direction of closure distance)

• Step 7 Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89 119.88 141.54

– Calculate Vertical Section (total—not incremental)

Average Angle Exercise

Survey 11 4942.00 20.30 77.90 4909.89 119.88 141.54 155.10 1.44

© 2008 Baker Hughes Incorporated. All rights reserved.

• The student will be able to

- demonstrate proficiency with their hand calculator.

© 2008 Baker Hughes Incorporated. All rights reserved.

• When we survey a wellbore, we typically have MD, Inc and Az

• To plot/calculate the position of the wellbore, we need to somehow

• There are many different mathematical ways to join the dots

• The most common survey calculation methods used in the drilling

© 2008 Baker Hughes Incorporated. All rights reserved.

Survey Calculation Methods

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• Both minimum curvature and radius of curvature calculations are

• Average Angle is a calculation method which is less computationally

© 2008 Baker Hughes Incorporated. All rights reserved.

Average Angle Survey Calculations

• We know the MD, Inc, and Az values at each survey station

• This straight line will have an inclination and a direction

• The inclination of the straight line is the average of the inclinations of

• The TVD, N and E coordinates can then be calculated using the

© 2008 Baker Hughes Incorporated. All rights reserved.

• For the straight line joining any two survey stations

– Denote the average azimuth of this straight line by Az

Average Angle Survey Calculations

• So we have, looking from the side

MD1, I1, Az1

MD2, I2, Az2

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• And looking from above

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Average Angle Survey Calculations

• So we have the average angle formulae

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• Note that the calculated values of ΔTVD, ΔN and ΔE are changes in

• Therefore each of these Δ values needs to be added on to the

• Thus the survey calculation is an incremental calculation and a

© 2008 Baker Hughes Incorporated. All rights reserved.

Average Angle Survey Calculations

• The direction of the average azimuth will tell you whether

• ΔTVD may be a negative number

• ΔN and/or ΔE may be a negative number

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• Note that it is typically better to do the calculation by line rather than

• Typically, these calculated values are quoted to 2 decimal places

• Calculate TVD, N, and E for the first few lines on Exercise 1

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Dogleg and Dogleg Severity

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