In many cases, engine and pump assemblies are mounted on skids that enable the engine and pump assemblies to be easily transported to a desired location and placed into operation with a minimum of labor. Typically, the engines and pumps of a skid mounted engine and pump assembly are fixed relative to skid structure that forms a supporting base therefor. In cases where space for such engine and pump assemblies is critical, for example in the case of oil well drilling rigs and offshore drilling rigs in particular, it is especially desirable to achieve optimum positioning of the engines and pumps on a skid of limited size. It is also considered especially desirable to mount two engines and two pumps on a skid structure where the pumps are to be utilized for the purpose of pumping drilling mud to thus insure that complete circulation of drilling mud will not be lost in the event one of the pumps should fail during service due to malfunction of either the engine or the pump mechanism.
Most pumps that are utilized for the purpose of pumping drilling fluid, typically referred to as mud pumps, are piston energized pump mechanisms incorporating gear driven crank shafts and piston rods that are operative to impart reciprocating movement of the pistons of the pump mechanism. The drive shafts of piston type pump mechanisms are typically oriented transversely to the longitudinal axis of such pump mechanisms and the drive shafts of the mud pumps are oriented in parallel relation with the rotary output shafts of the engines. This allows a direct coupling relationship to be established between the output and drive shafts of the respective pumps and engines.
One arrangement for engine and pump assemblies has been to locate the engines in closely spaced side by side relationship and to reverse one of the pumps relative to the other in order that a directly coupled relationship may be established between the output shafts of each of the engines and the drive shafts of the respective pumps. This manner of engine and pump orientation is not satisfactory because it places the fluid ends of the pumps at opposing sides of the skid and, therefore, it is not possible for personnel to simultaneously inspect the fluid ends of both pumps. Moreover, unless suitable gearing arrangement is provided, the drive shafts of one of the pumps must rotate in opposite direction to the drive shaft of the other pump. In this case, the power stroke of the crank shaft and connecting rod interconnection with the pump piston system may be oriented upwardly in one of the pumps. It is considered disadvantageous to orient the power stroke other than downwardly from the standpoint of operational service life of the pump mechanism.
In some cases, it is necessary to elevate one of the pumps relative to the other in order that an output shaftdrive shaft interconnection may pass beneath the first of the mud pumps in order to achieve operation of the second one of the mud pumps. In this case, one of the engines may also require elevation in order that the output shaft thereof may be properly oriented with respect to the drive shaft of the pump to be connected thereto. Elevation of the engines and pumps on the skid obviously requires the skid structure to be of complex nature, thus increasing the cost of the engine and pump assembly to the point that cost becomes adverse to the commercial feasability of the pumping operation. Another disadvantage that is created when engines and pumps are elevated relative to the skid structure is the overall increase in height of the engine and pump assembly. Obviously, in many cases the overall height of the engine and pump assembly becomes quite critical because of the limited vertical space that is allowable for engine and pump installation.
In many cases, it becomes desirable to move engine and pump assemblies through restricted openings or to place the same in locations where it may not be possible to introduce an entire dual engine and dual pump skid assembly without removing other structure. It is desirable, therefore, to provide a skid mounted engine and pump assembly that may be transported in modular components to a desirable location and may be moved through openings of restricted dimension, after which the modules of the system may be simply interconnected, thereby placing the engine and pump assembly in operation without undue delay.
It is therefore a primary feature of the present invention to provide an engine and pump assembly that incorporates a pair of engines that are interconnected in driving relation with a pair of piston type fluid pumps with the engines and pumps being arranged in efficient, compact relationship on a single level skid structure.
It is also a feature of the present invention to provide a novel engine and pump assembly incorporating a pair of engines and first and second pump mechanisms with the drive shaft of the second one of the pumps being interconnected to one of the engines by means of a drive shaft extending through the first one of the pumps.
It is another feature of the present invention to provide a novel engine and pump assembly wherein each of the pumps is formed to define a pair of drive shaft receptacles and with the first one of the pumps incorporating a pair of drive shafts received within the receptacles while the second pump incorporates a single shaft received within one of the drive shaft receptacles thereof and with the shaft of the second pump adapted for interconnection with one of the drive shafts of the first pump.
It is an even further feature of the present invention to provide a novel engine and pump assembly wherein the drive shaft or shafts of each of the pumps are selectively positionable within selected ones of a pair of drive shaft receptacles provided for each of the pumps.
Among the several features of the present invention is noted the contemplation of a novel pump and engine assembly wherein a pair of piston type fluid pumps are positioned in side by side relationship, each pump incorporating a drive shaft supported pinion gear in driving interconnection with a primary gear of the pump and with the drive shaft supporting the pinion gear being selectively positionable within one of a pair of drive shaft receptacles provided in the pump mechanism.
It is an even further feature of the present invention to provide a novel skid mounted engine and pump assembly whereby each engine and each pump of the skid assembly is mounted on a skid module and the various skid modules may be individually transported to an installation site and subsequently assembled to define an integrated engine and pump assembly.
Other and further objects, advantages and features of the invention will become obvious to one skilled in the art upon an understanding of the illustrative embodiment about to be described and various advantages, not referred to herein, will occur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice.