Rock core orientation method by image analysis

Possible to orientate rock core objectively and automatically

Overview

　Cylindrical rock sample (rock core) taken from a well is analyzed for underground resources exploitation. Analysis of rock core can be used to estimate subsurface material and to measure physical property of formation in a simple way at low cost. Moreover, if the orientation of rock core at in-situ status is known, it is expected to estimate information on the formation, such as the direction of crustal stress, the anisotropy of permeability and the direction of subsurface fault.　
　There is a conventional method to orientate rock core by tracing the borehole image taken by logging and matching it with the surface image of the rock core. This method takes a long time and leads to a subjective conclusion since the orientation is determined visually.
　This invention is about a method to orientate rock core by image analysis, which enables orientation in a shorter time with an objective process than conventional method.

Experimental result

Product Application

The orientation of rock core is an important element that allows following analyses:　
・Direction of crustal stress
・Direction of anisotropy in permeability
・Direction of faults

IP Data

IP No.　 ：PCT/JP2021/032993　　　
Inventor ：KAMATA Yusuke, MUKUHIRA Yusuke, ITO Takatoshi,ANZAI Hitomi
keyword ：rock core, logging, resources exploitation, borehole image