The oil and gas industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation, with activity driven by the need for increased oilfield recovery, profitability and productivity, and the growing importance of technologies such as AI, IoT and machine learning. In the last three years alone, there have been over 534,000 patents filed and granted in the oil and gas industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Internet of Things in Oil & Gas: Wellbore drilling optimization. Buy the report here.
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However, not all innovations are equal and nor do they follow a constant upward trend. Instead, their evolution takes the form of an S-shaped curve that reflects their typical lifecycle from early emergence to accelerating adoption, before finally stabilising and reaching maturity.
Identifying where a particular innovation is on this journey, especially those that are in the emerging and accelerating stages, is essential for understanding their current level of adoption and the likely future trajectory and impact they will have.
150+ innovations will shape the oil & gas industry
According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the oil & gas industry using innovation intensity models built on over 256,000 patents, there are 40+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Within the emerging innovation stage, robotic drilling machines and digital twins are disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. Wellbore drilling optimisation, automated drilling tools, and pressure sensing flow actuator are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are combined cycle power plants and smart climate control systems, which are now well established in the industry.
Innovation S-curve for Internet of Things in the oil & gas industry
Wellbore drilling optimisation is a key innovation area in Internet of Things
Wellbore drilling optimisation generally involves reducing drilling cost, improving drill bit's rotation speed for improving drill rate, and optimising bit weight.
GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 60+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established oil & gas companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of wellbore drilling optimisation.
Key players in wellbore drilling optimisation – a disruptive innovation in the oil and gas industry
‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent and broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.
‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in and reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.
Patent volumes related to wellbore drilling optimisation
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
Schlumberger, a leading patent filer, has a partnership with AVEVA to offer solutions that integrate cloud, IoT and AI-based solutions for companies involved in oil and gas production. The partnership helps to combine cloud and IoT capabilities of both companies integrating DELFI, AVEVA PI System, and Schlumberger's Agora edge AI and IoT solutions to process well data and improve efficiency and performance.
Wellbore drilling optimisation through IoT will potentially become the favoured approach by many oil and gas companies. Use of IoT helps to generate data-driven insights in real-time to optimise wellbore drilling. Companies are looking to automate as many processes as possible to mitigate operational risks as well as labour risks, potentially leading to cost savings in the long term.
To further understand how Internet of Things is disrupting the oil & gas industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Internet of Things in Oil & Gas (2021).
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GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.
GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
