Monitoring of a pipeline pig using external acoustic sensors

摘要

A sensor carrier with acoustic sensors locatable along a pipeline for receiving acoustic signals from a pig moving through the pipeline for determining the pig location. The carrier may be a cable located in the backfill of a pipeline, and the pig speed and progress through the pipe may be determined. The pipe condition may be determined and the pig may transmit signals to help determine its location. The acoustic signals may be linked time-wise with an on-board pig logging system. The sensors may be optical fibre sensors in a distributed acoustic sensor array.