Oilfield Automation

The oil and gas industry is loosely divided into three segments. The upstream segment finds and recovers crude oil and natural gas; this includes anything from seismic exploration to well completions. The midstream segment deals with the transport of those products after recovery to processing, distribution, or storage. The downstream segment refines and distributes oil and gas products to end users. Robotics and automation have made inroads into each of these segments in varying degrees. This chapter will report on the introduction and integration of these technologies into the upstream and midstream businesses.