Abstract
The rapid pace of digitalization of E&P operations is generating a sharp increase in the volume of data being exchanged between different disciplines, departments, partners and vendors. To facilitate the exchange of data across these many entities rapidly and in a uniform manner and with no loss of information, the ETP (Energistics Transfer Protocol) WebSocket-based two-way protocol, originally introduced in 2014 and updated in 2016 (McKenzie 2016) to support streaming of real-time data from drilling rigs to onshore monitors, has been expanded.
The standard ETP data streaming protocol delivers a near-instant streaming of data from rig to onshore centers with the additional ability to entertain multiple connections to perform the streaming to several recipients concurrently. Modes were also present in that version to make use of the protocol for direct application interoperability. However, the latter were not fully developed and as a result saw limited uptake after the publication of the standard. The new version of the protocol aimed at improving the real-time data streaming capabilities based on the experience accrued over 3 years of deployment, as well as completing the interoperability features and adding new sub-protocols to support the interrogation and selective retrieval of data from a server as well as other actions that facilitate direct application interoperability. A data system or application can be set to signal to listening systems instances of a new object or changes to existing objects. Each interoperability connection is initiated by an application acting as a client and connecting to an application that is an active server at that time. Once the connection is in place, the duplex or bi-directional nature of the protocol stack makes it possible for either application to make requests to the other one.
These application interoperability capabilities offer an alternative to the existing data transfer process that uses files as a mechanism to move data from one application to another. The file-based process remains relevant for transmittals that require the creation of a data package that can be loaded into systems not connected to the same network, as well as for archival purposes.