I N NOVATI N G WH I LE DR I LLI N G
Above: The Automated Metrology Laboratory (AML) puts
every drill bit that Taurex runs through an automated 3D
robotic scanning procedure.

Right: Data from the initial AML analysis on each drill bit is
pushed into a database containing other data sets to help
“paint a picture about what type of drilling dysfunction
occurred, or what was the driving factor behind the wear and
tear seen on the drill bit,” said Dustin Lyles, Vice President of
Technology for Taurex Drill Bits.

made relative to necessary actions to improve performance with-
in that narrow scope. Taurex, however, believes that understand-
ing the correlative relationship among drill bit design, wear and
application is critical to making more holistic design decisions.

To accomplish this, the company produced a digital dull analysis
model/workflow, which leads into forensic analysis and root
cause failure analysis on a large-scale basis.

The Automated Metrology Laboratory (AML) is the company’s
innovation in automated digital dull grading. Deployed at the
company’s central repair and maintenance facility, every drill bit
that it runs goes through an automated, 3D, robotic scanning pro-
cedure. Within three to four minutes, Mr Lyles said, that scan is
pushed to a remote server, allowing engineers to access and quan-
tify the amount of diamond loss on every individual cutter on that
bit. “Data from the initial AML analysis on each drill bit is pushed
into a relational database to tether dull trends with application,
design, electronic drilling recorder (EDR) and other relevant data
sets necessary to put the pieces of the puzzle together,” he noted.

“Then, we can paint a picture about what type of drilling dysfunc-
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