Cypress man succeeds in patenting vessel design for offshore drilling

A man from the Cy-Fair area recently received a U.S. patent for the design of a vessel that could make offshore drilling operations easier.

According to the patent, the new design obviates the need for a component called a riser centralizer in some drilling operations. Instead, it created stabilization through a conductor that transfers tension from the cylinders to the riser. The inventors also claim its design protects the riser from potentially harmful impacts and provides shelter from waves.

The team credited by the patent consists of Robert Magee Shivers III of Memorial-area Houston, David Trent of Cypress and Daniel H. Longwell, also from the Memorial area. The patent was originally filed on Sept. 2, 2008, and was approved on Feb. 15 of this year. Its official number is 7,886,828. The filers were represented by Wendy Buskop of the Houston-based Buskop Law Group. The group's offices are located at 4511 Dacoma St.

The owner of the patent is listed at ATP Oil & Gas Corp., a Houston-based company that specializes in the development of offshore reserves in the Gulf of Mexico and North Sea. ATP's American offices are located at 4600 Post Oak Place, Suite 100.