Quantum Core™ is the firmware framework powering our MWD — MESH™, Pulse-only, and EM-only configurations. We wrote the downhole code AND the surface decoder, so updates ship on both ends in lockstep. Released on a versioned cadence codenamed after quantum-physics phenomena, starting with Core 1.0 — AETHER™ (pronounced EE-thər).
Independent Quantum platforms (Leap™, others) run their own firmware lines, on their own release cadences.
New release
Most DD providers buy their downhole and surface gear off the shelf, then sell the pairing as the differentiator: “we picked the best components and integrated them our way.” The problem is they don’t actually control either side. When the downhole supplier ships an update — or gets acquired, which is happening more and more as the industry consolidates — the surface decoder falls behind. Mature code works. Acquisitions and supplier updates break it.
Quantum wrote the code top to bottom. Downhole tools. Surface decoder. One signal chain, one platform, one team that ships changes simultaneously across both ends. Producers don’t wait for a middleman to negotiate a vendor update — they talk to the OEM directly. Because we are the OEM.
Same firmware family runs the downhole tools and the surface decoder. Updates ship in lockstep. No vendor mismatch when one side pushes a release.
When a supplier gets acquired or ships an incompatible update, that’s the bundled provider’s problem. Not ours. We own the code.
Producer asks for high-density shock & vibe logs packaged post-well? Done. No vendor escalation. No quarterly roadmap meeting. We ship the build.
Quantum Core™ runs natively with Quantum hardware and on several third-party LWD and RSS tools. For the rest, we built translators for RS-485, CAN Bus, and Q-Bus. Once a third-party tool’s data hits our bus, we can compress the packets, prioritize what gets to surface first, and — because we wrote the surface decoder too — unpack and display the data however the operator wants it. Custom workflows, custom displays, no vendor roadmap meetings.
We could have been one of the OEMs for a DD provider. As our own service company, we control our own destiny on the core code — hence why we call it CORE.
Quantum Core™ 1.0 — AETHER™ releases this week alongside the site launch. The headline capabilities tackle two of the biggest below-motor pain points operators have been asking us to solve.
AETHER ties Quantum MESH™ to SLB’s Orbit and NeoSteer rotary steerables in a below-motor application, with a 98% comms success rate through our Babelfish™ tie-in.
Other providers run dual telemetry with a Babelfish tie-in too. None of them can run below motor. We can. The Vanguard Isolator™ is the reason — the only isolator strong enough to be doubled and run below the motor without compromising the string.
AETHER unlocks Quantum Direct™ EM downlinks to Halliburton’s iCruise rotary steerable — change iCruise commands and protocols without using their RPM downlink method. No flow change, no RPM cycle, no mechanical stress — just drill-baby-drill. Fleet expansion across our core customer base rolls out over the coming months.
Azimuthal gamma + Quantum Direct™ EM downlink to iCruise — a leaner BHA, sensors closer to the bit, and EM downlinking to provide superior drill-ahead performance without changing operating parameters.
MESH™ + azimuthal gamma running with SLB Orbit / NeoSteer in a below-motor package — sensors closer to the bit, on the rotary steerable nobody else can pair with that low in the string.
Improved on-the-fly measurements in this release: running inclination, running azimuth, and running shock & vibe. Real-time, not post-run.
Every Quantum Core™ release is documented like the software it is — versioned, dated, scoped, and tested before it goes into the field. No silent firmware drops. No mystery patches. Codenames step alphabetically through quantum-physics phenomena. The next is queued the day a release ships — and we keep the lineup quiet until launch.
