JP2003242342A - Information board - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the usability of an information board related to a household electrical appliance. <P>SOLUTION: The information board is provided with a transmitting and receiving means 4b having a function for transmitting and receiving information to/from at least one household electrical appliance 3 between a plurality of household electrical appliances 1 and 3, an inputting means 4c for inputting information common to the plurality of household electrical appliances 1 and 3, a displaying means 4e for displaying information related to the plurality of household electrical appliances 1 and 3, and a controlling means 4a. The controlling means 4a has a function for controlling the household electrical appliance 3 that transmits and receives the information by the transmitting and receiving means 4b, and a function for making the displaying means 4e display the information inputted by the inputting means 4c and common to the plurality of household electrical appliances 1 and 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information board, and more particularly to an information board used for controlling home electric appliances.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional liquid crystal display device, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 0-275612 (Prior Art 1), a memory-type liquid crystal display device that can save power can be used as a sub-display of information equipment, and is detachable and is a household electric appliance such as a refrigerator. There is also one that can be used as an information display by attaching to.

On the other hand, as a conventional heating and cooking system, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-296931 (Prior Art 2), a heating cooker body in which a heating means and a heating control unit are installed, and cooking There is a heating and cooking system including a personal computer capable of writing information and information transmitting means capable of transmitting cooking information.

[0004]

However, in the prior art 1, only the information related to one home electric appliance is displayed on the liquid crystal display device, and the information related to two or more home electric appliances is displayed on the liquid crystal display device. There is no description of what to do, and it was desired to improve usability. Further, in the prior art 1, the liquid crystal display device is operated based on the preset input operation information, and the operation information disclosed by the external terminal is obtained through the communication line to perform the input operation. Displaying a plurality of image information from different input sources on a liquid crystal display device is not described, and further improvement in usability has been desired.

On the other hand, in the prior art 2, only the information relating to the cooking equipment is handled by the personal computer,
Displaying information on two or more home appliances on a liquid crystal display device is not described, and further improvement in usability has been desired. Further, in the prior art 2, the personal computer is operated based on the preset input operation information, and the operation information disclosed by the external terminal is obtained via the communication line to perform the input operation or the input operation. There is no description about displaying a plurality of different image information from the original on a liquid crystal display device,
Further improvement in usability has been desired.

An object of the present invention is to provide an information board which is easy to use.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the first feature of the present invention is to provide a transmitting / receiving means having a function of transmitting / receiving information to / from at least one of a plurality of home electric appliances. While having an input means for inputting information common to a plurality of home electric appliances, a display means for displaying information related to the plurality of home electric appliances, and a function for controlling the home electric appliances for transmitting and receiving information by the transmitting and receiving means, The control unit has a function of causing the display unit to display information common to the plurality of home electric appliances input by the input unit.

A second feature of the present invention is a transmitting / receiving means having a function of transmitting / receiving information to / from a home electric appliance by wire or wirelessly, and a function of transmitting / receiving to / from an external terminal through a communication line, and a liquid crystal. In addition to having an input unit capable of performing an input operation based on the operation panel image displayed on the screen and a function of displaying the operation panel image on the liquid crystal screen based on the operation information of the home electric appliance received from the external terminal, It is configured to include a control unit having a function of controlling the home electric appliance based on the input information of the input unit operated by displaying the operation panel.

A third feature of the present invention is to provide a transmitting / receiving means having a function of transmitting / receiving information to / from an electric home appliance, an input means for inputting a plurality of image information from different input sources, and information relating to the electric home appliance. A liquid crystal display unit having a multi-screen for displaying a plurality of images side by side, and a function of controlling the home electric appliance transmitting and receiving information by the transmitting and receiving unit, and a function of associating a plurality of image information of different input sources input by the input unit And a control means having a function of displaying the associated information on the multi-screen, respectively.

A fourth aspect of the present invention is to provide a transmitting / receiving means having a function of transmitting / receiving information to / from a home electric appliance, an input means for inputting information different from an input source common to a plurality of the home electric appliances, A plurality of images having different input sources input by the input means, the display means having a liquid crystal screen for displaying information on the home electric appliances, and the function of controlling the home electric appliances for transmitting and receiving the information by the transmitting and receiving means. The control means has a function of associating information and has a function of displaying the associated information on the liquid crystal screen.

[0011]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First, an outline of an example of a system using the information board of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an information board showing an embodiment of the present invention and an example of a system using the information board.

The refrigerator 1 constituting the first home electric appliance has a plurality of doors 2 which can be opened and closed on the front surface. A mounting portion 4c of the information board 4 is formed on a part of the door 2 located at the most visible position. The mounting portion 4c is formed by having a recess in the center of the front surface of the door 2.
The mounting portion 4c of the information board 4 may be configured as follows. Generally, a refrigerator is composed of several rooms such as a freezer room, a refrigerator room and a vegetable room. In this,
Since the temperature inside the freezing compartment is around -20 ° C, which is lower than that of other rooms, the mounting portion 4c is not provided on the door of the freezing compartment. This is to suppress the heat radiation from the door by providing the mounting portion 4c, and it is preferable that the mounting portion 4c of the information board 4 is provided on the door of the refrigerating room or the vegetable compartment, which has a relatively higher temperature level than the freezing room. .

The cooking appliance constituting the second home electric appliance is shown as an example of the microwave oven 3 in this embodiment. Microwave 3
Is provided with a transparent and openable door 3A on the front side.

The information board 4 is formed of a rectangular parallelepiped whose front and rear are thin, and is equipped with a mounting portion 4c of the door 2 of the refrigerator 1.
Also, it can be attached to and detached from the door 3A of the microwave oven 3.
Therefore, the information board 4 can be detached from the refrigerator 1 and attached to the door 3A of the microwave oven 3,
The reverse operation is also possible. The information board 4 may be placed in the upper surface space 4a or the side surface space 4b of the microwave oven 3. Here, the information shared by the two home appliances of the refrigerator 1 and the microwave oven 3 is “information about food or foodstuff”.
Is. Of course, the information board 4 can be freely carried and installed in a place other than the refrigerator 1 or the microwave oven 3.

Next, a specific configuration of the above system will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a configuration block diagram in the system example of FIG.

The system using the information board 4 shown in FIG. 2 basically comprises a refrigerator 1, a microwave oven 3 and an information board 4, and a transmitting / receiving means 1 provided in these.
Information is transmitted and received via b, 3b and 4b.

The refrigerator 1 includes a control means 1a and a transmission / reception means 1
b, input means 1c, storage means 1d and display means 1e. The control means 1a can send and receive information to and from the information board 4, and can also send and receive information to and from devices other than the information board 4. Therefore, information can be obtained from other than the information board 4. The control means 1a not only controls the operation of the refrigerator 1 but also controls the present system. The input unit 1c can input the settings for the operation control of the refrigerator 1 as well as the settings related to the present system. The storage unit 1d can store information related to the operation of the refrigerator 1 and also information related to the present system. The display unit 1e displays the contents transmitted / received by the transmission / reception unit 1b, the set value of the input unit 1c, the control result of the control unit 1a, and the like.

The microwave oven 3 has a control means 3a, a transmission / reception means 3b, an input means 3c, a storage means 3d and a display means 3e.
It is configured with. The control means 3a is the information board 4
It is possible to send and receive information to and from the device and the devices other than the information board 4. Therefore, information can be obtained from other than the information board 4. The control means 3a controls the operation of the microwave oven 3 and also controls the present system. The input unit 3c can input settings for controlling the operation of the microwave oven 3 and also input settings related to the present system. The storage unit 3d can store information related to the operation of the microwave oven 3 and also information related to the present system. The display means 3e is the transmission / reception means 3b.
Contents transmitted and received by the user, set values of the input means 3c, and control means 3
The control result of a is displayed.

The information board 4 comprises a control means 4a, a transmission / reception means 4b, an input means 4c, a storage means 4d, a display means 4e and a built-in battery 4f. Transmission / reception means 4
b can send and receive information to and from the refrigerator 1 and the microwave oven 3, and can also send and receive information to and from devices other than the refrigerator 1 and the microwave oven 3. Therefore, information can be obtained from other than the information board 4. In particular, the control means 4a is also connected to an external terminal 31 via a communication line 30 such as the Internet. The control means 4a controls the present system, and the input / output information in the information board 4 is collected in the control means 4a and controls each means of the information board 4a, home electric appliances and the external terminal 31.
The input means 4c inputs the settings relating to the present system. The storage unit 4d also stores information related to this system. The display means 4e displays information related to this system. Built-in battery 4f
Supplies electric power to each part of the information board 4.

Next, a specific configuration of the information board 4 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.
3 is a front perspective view of the information board of FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the information board.

A large liquid crystal screen 5 for displaying characters, images (still images) and video (moving images) constitutes the external appearance of the display means 4e. The camera 9, the microphone 8 and the scanner 11, which are means for inputting information to the information board 4, are input means 4.
It constitutes a part of c. The storage medium 29 constitutes the storage means 4 d, and is inserted / removed via the slot 10. The wireless transmission / reception means 6 and 6b constitute the transmission / reception means 4b. The operation button 7 and the input terminal 26a constitute the input means 4c.

A liquid crystal screen 5, a transmitting / receiving means 6, an operation button 7 and a microphone 8 are provided on the front surface of the information board 4, a slot 10 is provided on the side surface, a scanner 11 is provided on the bottom surface, and a rear surface is provided on the back surface. Transmission / reception means 6b, camera 9, power supply terminal 25, input / output terminal 26, information terminal 27
Is provided, and a storage medium 29 is provided inside.

The liquid crystal screen 5 is of a touch panel type which can be touched while being colored. The size of the screen combines the operability and installability of the information board 4, consideration from the side of size and weight, the size and amount of display characters, and the viewability of display images / videos. And 5 inches to 1
The size is preferably about 4 inches, and more preferably, about 8 to 12 inches.

A bar code reader, a magnetic / IC card reader or the like may be further provided as the information input means. Further, although the information input means may be provided with all, at least any one may be provided.

Information storage medium 2 to be installed in the slot 10
As the medium 9, a medium having a large storage capacity and a compact size / light weight is desirable, and for example, a DVD, a CD, an MD, an MO, a hard disk, or the like is used.

Here, the use of the information input means provided on the information board 4 will be described by taking the microwave oven 3 as an example.

The camera 9 is a means for capturing information such as necessary food ingredients, cooking procedures and finished products actually made by oneself or another person, images such as recipes and photographs published in magazines and cookbooks, and images. Therefore, it may be a still image or a moving image. The camera 9 is provided on the back surface so that the object can be imaged while looking at the liquid crystal screen 5 on the front surface. Therefore, it is easy to use. Since the camera 9 is provided on the back surface of the information board 4, when the camera 9 is attached to the door 3A of the microwave oven 3, it is possible to take an image of the cooking state inside and display it on the front liquid crystal screen.

Information that can be picked up by the camera 9 is not limited to still images, but moving images can be picked up as described above. The picked-up characters, images, and video information are recorded as recipe information in the storage medium 29 inserted in the slot 10. To be done.

The microphone 8 is a voice input means for a cook to operate the microwave oven by voice. The word (voice) input from the microphone 8 is recognized by the control means (not shown) in the information board 4 and the operation signal of the microwave oven 3 is output, whereby the microwave oven 3 cooks. Information of voice input through the microphone 8 is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5.

The scanner 11 is means for reading information such as recipes published in magazines, newspapers, cookbooks and the like. Information read and input by the scanner 11 is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5.

The transmitting and receiving means 6 and 6b are means for transmitting and receiving bidirectional information from the refrigerator 1 which is the first home electric appliance and the microwave oven 3 which is the second home electric appliance, and the information transmission medium is wireless. LAN or Bluetooth is used. Note that infrared communication may be used. Further, the transmitting / receiving means may be either the transmitting / receiving means 6 provided on the front surface of the microwave oven 3 or the transmitting / receiving means 6b provided on the rear surface, but in consideration of usability, the transmitting / receiving means is provided on both the front surface and the rear surface. Has been.

The power supply terminal 25 and the information terminal 27 are provided on the lower rear portion of the information board 4. The information board 4 has a built-in rechargeable battery and supplies electricity from the power supply terminal 25 to charge the built-in battery 4f.

When the information board 4 is attached to, for example, the refrigerator 1 which is the first home electric appliance of FIG. 1, the built-in battery of the information board 4 is automatically charged via a wire. There is. In general, since the refrigerator 1 is always energized and used, the information board 4 is charged by the refrigerator 1 only.
You can do it unknowingly without turning on the power. When the microwave oven 3 which is the second home electric appliance is attached, the battery of the information board 4 may be automatically charged from the microwave oven 3 via a cable.

Therefore, the charging means of the information board 4 may be provided in at least one of the home electric appliances, but may be provided in both of them. Of course, the home electric appliance having the charging means may be another product.
Here, the built-in battery is composed of a lithium battery, a nickel-cadmium battery, or the like, but it is also possible to use a dry battery.

The information terminal 27 is a wired information terminal (connector) connected to the communication line 30 and information held by the refrigerator 1. Further, the information board 4 sends and receives information to and from the information board 4 and the refrigerator 1 or the microwave oven 3. When it is connected by wire like when it is attached to the refrigerator 1, etc., it is connected by wire through the information terminal 27, and when it is not connected by wire like when it is removed, it is wirelessly through the transmitting / receiving means 6, 6a. You can do it.

The terminal box 28 is provided with input / output terminals 26 such as an input terminal 26a and an output terminal 26b for connecting a cable from an AV device or the like, and recording or radio from a television or the like via the input / output terminal 26. Recipe information such as a cooking program recorded from the etc. is recorded in the storage medium 29 etc.
In this case, the input / output terminals 26a, 26b and the like serve as information input means.

As information input means, a keyboard 13 is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 as shown in FIG.
You may operate with. In this case, the liquid crystal screen 5 is composed of a touch panel.

Next, the information board 4 in the microwave oven 3
The outline of the method of using will be described with reference to FIG.

By removing the information board 4 from the door 2 of the refrigerator 1 and operating the operation button 7, the storage medium 2
The table of contents of the recipe stored and stored in 9 is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5. By selecting a menu for cooking from this table of contents, the recipe information is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 of the information board 4. In this case, the recipe downloaded from the Internet 30 may be directly displayed on the information board 4 by wire or wirelessly.
The above-mentioned work can be performed even with the information board 4 attached to the door 2 of the refrigerator 1.

After that, the information board 4 is placed at a desired place in the kitchen (for example, the vicinity 4a, 4b of the microwave oven 3 or the vicinity of a sink or the like), and necessary foods (food ingredients) are prepared from the displayed recipe information. The food is taken out from the refrigerator 1 and the like, and the food information is managed in the refrigerator, the contents of which will be described later. The foods taken out are washed, cut and the like according to the recipe, and transferred to a container.

A container containing foods to be cooked is put into the microwave oven 3 and cooking is started by operating an operation button of the microwave oven 3. Instead of operating the buttons on the operation panel of the microwave oven 3, the operation buttons 16 displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 of FIG. 7 can also be used. When the operation button 16 displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 is used, it can be operated at a position distant from the microwave oven 3, so that it is easy to use.

Furthermore, if the microwave oven 3 is provided with an image pickup means and a transmission / reception means, the cooking status in the refrigerator of the microwave oven 3 can be transferred to a distant place by radio or the like, so that it is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 of FIG. Compare the sample recipe and the image during cooking,
For example, the progress of cooking can be confirmed on the information board 4 while watching the television. In addition, when the microwave oven 3 is not provided with the imaging means and the transmission / reception means, the information board 4
Is attached to the door 3A of the microwave oven 3, the camera 9 of the information board 4 photographs the cooking situation in the microwave oven 3 and the information board 4 is compared with the sample recipe shown in FIG. You can check the progress of cooking with. In this way, the “Sample Recipe” 19 on the information board 4
Good food cooking can be performed by confirming the cooking status while comparing with a.

When the cooking is completed, the information board 4 may be attached to the door 2 of the refrigerator 1 again, and the charging is performed at the same time. If the main body of the microwave oven 3 is also equipped with a charging means, it may be attached to the microwave oven 3.

Next, a first usage example of the information board 4 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7. FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating a first usage example of the system of FIG. 1, FIG.
5 is a perspective view of a state where a keyboard is displayed on the liquid crystal screen in the first use example of FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a state in which the operation panel of the microwave oven in the first use example of FIG. 5 is displayed on the liquid crystal screen.

The information board 4 is connected to the communication line 30 by wire or wirelessly, and the input means such as the keyboard 13 displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 shown in FIG. A name (microwave oven in this example of description), a manufacturer name (for example, ΔΔ electric), and a model name (for example, AB-XYZ) are input, and provided by the manufacturer of the home electric appliance through the communication line 30. When sending to the external terminal 31 (step 51), the external terminal 3
1, the operation panel 15 of the microwave oven and the operation-related information are output and transmitted to the information board 4 (step 52). As a result, the information board 4 can directly download the necessary information from the external terminal 31. In this way, the information posted on the home page of the external terminal 31 can be downloaded.

Then, the operation panel 1 of the microwave oven 3
5 is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 of the information board 4 as shown in FIG. 7, and the information 14 input to the liquid crystal screen 5 is displayed.
(Device name, manufacturer name, model name) is also displayed (step 53). Thereby, the input method of the microwave oven 3 can be easily confirmed. Further, the operation content 15 of each operation button 16 is also displayed on the operation panel 15 displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 (buttons A, B, X, etc. in the illustrated example), which is easy to use.

Then, the operation content is recognized by touching the displayed operation button 16 of the operation panel 15 with the finger 18 or the like, and the operation signal is transmitted to the microwave oven 3 (step 54. In this case, the liquid crystal screen). Reference numeral 5 constitutes the input means 4c, and the microwave oven 3 is provided in accordance with the contents of the transmitted operation.
Is operated (step 55. Here, it is desirable to input at least three items of maker name, device name, and model name. However, for example, even if only device name and model name are input. It is also possible to easily download the desired operation panel 15 using a search function or the like.

When the household electric appliance is the microwave oven 3, the operation button 16 of the operation panel 15 is a cooking menu selection button,
These include a cooking time setting button, a cooking temperature setting button, an output adjusting button, a start and stop button, and the like.

The household electric appliances to be used may be cooking appliances other than the microwave oven, for example, microwave ovens, ovens, cooking heaters, rice cookers, etc., and other household electric appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, and lighting. It may be a device or an AV device. Further, the downloaded operation panel 15 and its operation-related information can be recorded and saved in the storage medium 29 or the like for future use.

Next, a second usage example of the information board 4 will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. FIG. 8 is a flow chart for explaining a second application example of the system of FIG. 1, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a state in which a multi-screen in the second application example of FIG. 8 is displayed on a liquid crystal screen.

The information board 4 has different information input sources 2
The single image information 5a, 5b is also configured to be displayed on a multi-screen capable of displaying side by side on the liquid crystal screen 5 at the same time. Note that the multi-screen may have a structure of three or more screens instead of the two-screen structure. Further, the microwave oven 3 is provided with an image pickup means, which is a camera such as a CCD or a CMOS, for obtaining image information (still image or moving image) of food to be cooked, as a part of the input means 3c.

When the operation of the microwave oven 3 is started by the operation of the first application example described above (step 61), the food in the microwave oven 3 is imaged by the image pickup means, and the transmitting / receiving means and the transmitting / receiving means 6 of the information board 4 are taken. The imaged food image information is transmitted to the information board 4 via (step 6).
2). When the food image information is received by the information board 4, the food image information "in-cooking image" 19b obtained by the image pickup means is displayed on one screen 5b of the liquid crystal screen 5 (step 63). These steps 61 to 63 are continuously performed during the operation of the microwave oven 3.

Then, the food provision information "sample recipe" 19a which has been previously photographed by the information input means such as the Internet 30 or the camera 9 and stored in the storage means 4d is displayed on the other screen 5a of the liquid crystal screen 5. (Step 6
4). The "sample recipe" 19a and the above-mentioned "in-cooking image" 19b are associated with each other and controlled. Thus, the two food information 19a and 19b are displayed side by side on the liquid crystal screen 5 of the information board 4 at the same time. The information displayed on the multi-screen 5 shown in FIG. 9 may have completely different contents.

In this way, the "sample recipe" 19a and the "in-cooking image" 19b can be arranged side by side and directly compared, and the cooking state of the food, that is, the baking condition of the food, such as cake, cookies, pizza, etc., can be determined. It can be confirmed, and it is possible to easily determine whether or not to continue heating from the comparison of the degree of baking, and it is also possible to make a determination at a place away from the microwave oven 3.

That is, as shown in FIG. 9, the baking condition of the cake being cooked in the oven is displayed on one liquid crystal screen 5b side as a "during cooking image" 19b, and the other liquid crystal screen 5b is displayed.
“Sample recipe” on the a side to show how the cake is baked when cooking is completed.
It is displayed as 19a. Thereby, by comparing both images 19a and 19b, the baking condition (completeness) at the present time of the cake in the middle of cooking can be confirmed from the cake surface color, the brown marks and the uneven baking of the image during cooking 19b.

Further, as shown in FIG. 9, the liquid crystal screen 5a,
The comparison images 19a and 19b are displayed on the screen 5b, and the character information 20 and 21 are also displayed on the lower side thereof (step 6).
5).

The character information 20 on the liquid crystal screen 5a is an electric power display of the microwave oven 3 used (example: 1000 W) and a reference display of cooking time accordingly (example: 01:30: 00).
Here, the electric power of the microwave oven is, for example, the maker name, the device name 14 or the operation button 1 input in the description of FIG.
The standard cooking time is estimated from its power, food type (cake), its weight (number of people), etc.

On the other hand, the character information 21 on the liquid crystal screen 5b is
Current cooking time display in microwave oven 3 used (eg; 01: 1
Display of remaining cooking time expected to be 5:30 (eg; 0)
0:15:00). The current cooking time that has elapsed can be easily measured by the clock function of the microwave oven 3, and the remaining time can be obtained from the difference between the standard time 20 and the elapsed time.

The feature of the present invention is that it is displayed side by side.
Since the information such as the burning condition can be obtained from the comparison of the two screens, the character information 20 and 21 in the lower row may be omitted. Also,
The food is not limited to a single food as shown in FIG. 9, but can be used similarly when several foods are cooked at the same time.

At the end of cooking, the food information 19 on the two screens 19
a and 19b are compared, and when the baking condition of the “image under cooking” 19b does not reach the color tone of the “sample recipe” 19a, an input for changing the setting of the cooking time so as to continue cooking (heating) is made. Microwave 3 to change this setting
(Step 66). To set the extension time and restart the heating, press the operation button 1 on the information board 4.
It is possible to easily operate wirelessly from a place away from the microwave oven 3 by 6, 7, or the like.

Here, the "cooking image" 19b and "sample recipe" 1 displayed on two or more screens using the multi-screen 1
The present invention comparing 9a (each information) can be naturally used even when cooking time is short such as range cooking, but is more effective when cooking time is long like oven cooking. This is because the oven cooking often takes 1 to 2 hours, and the user often leaves the microwave oven 3 to perform another task. In such a case, if the information board 4 is used, another task is performed. On the other hand, it is possible to determine whether or not to continue cooking by confirming the degree of baking of food in the middle of cooking at a place away from the microwave oven 3.

As a place away from the kitchen or the like in which the microwave oven 3 and the refrigerator 1 are placed, there is a separate room such as a living room or a bedroom, or the entrance or the outdoors, and the information board 4 can be used in any place. For example, after starting cooking
You can enter the living room with the information board 4 and put the information board 4 on the side to enjoy TV. Here, the information board 4 may be placed on a sofa, a table or a television. At the end of cooking, it is more preferable to equip the information board 4 with a chime, a buzzer, or the like for notifying the end of cooking.

Next, a fourth usage example of the information board 4 will be described. Obtain recipe information for cooking wirelessly at a certain place (kitchen, living room, etc.), display the recipe information 23 on the liquid crystal screen 5 of the information board 4, and check the food inventory information 24 in the refrigerator 1. To do. After that, it moves to the vicinity of the refrigerator 1 and the information board 4 is attached to the door 2 or placed on the side of the refrigerator 1 to take out and prepare the necessary food. Next, the information board 4 is moved and placed near the sink, and preparation work such as cutting of food is performed while watching the recipe information 23. After that, the information board 4 and the food are brought and placed near the microwave oven 3, the food is put into the microwave oven 3, and the cooking is started by operating the operation panel 15 of the information board 4. The operation may be performed directly with the button of the microwave oven 3. Since the information board 4 can be freely carried in this way, the workability of cooking is greatly improved.

Next, a fifth usage example of the information board 4 will be described.

The use in the refrigerator 1 is used, for example, for food storage / delivery management and inventory management. The management of the entry and exit of food is performed by an information input means of the information board 4, for example, a camera 9 or a bar code reader (not shown) mounted on the information board 4. The food stock management is performed by the control means of the information board 4 based on the food warehousing and management information. In addition, if the refrigerator 1 is equipped with an image pickup means, the information in the refrigerator can be displayed on the information board 4.

Next, a sixth usage example of the information board 4 will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. FIG. 10 is a flow chart for explaining a sixth application example of the system of FIG. 1, and FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a state where the recipe information in the sixth application example of FIG. 10 is displayed on the liquid crystal screen.

This sixth example of use is an example of using the information board 4 to share information between two home electric appliances. Specifically, the first home electric appliance is the refrigerator 1 and the second home electric appliance. Here, the case where the shared information is “information about food or foodstuffs” will be described, where is the microwave oven 3 which is a cooking device.
FIG. 11 is an example of the display screen 5 of the information board 4 used for two home appliances.

A menu for cooking in the microwave oven 3 is specified (step 71). The designation of this menu is
The necessary input such as the number of people is included, and information input means such as the operation button 7 and the microphone 8 is used.

When the menu is designated, it is determined whether the recipe information of the menu exists in the storage medium 29 inserted in the slot 10 of the information board 4 (step 72). If it exists in the storage medium 29, the recipe information 23 is read out and displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5. If it does not exist in the storage medium 29, the information board 4 is immediately connected to the Internet 30, and the recipe information of the menu is output from the website provided by the maker or the like in the external terminal 31 and transmitted to the information board 4. (Step 73). As a result, the information board 4 can directly download the necessary recipe information from the external terminal 31.

Then, the recipe information 23, the inventory information 24 and the finished sample image 22 are displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 (step 74). As shown in FIG. 11, the recipe information 23 (for example, of the food to be cooked in the microwave oven 3 (for example,
1. 3 potatoes, 2. 2 carrots, 3. 30 pork
In addition to the display of 0 g, ..., Food inventory information 24 (for example, with, without, a little, etc.) in the refrigerator 1 of the food 22 required for cooking, and the finished sample 22 are displayed. The recipe information 23, the inventory information 24, and the sample image information are associated and controlled.

Here, the recipe information 23 includes items to be prepared, procedures for making, characters such as the finished sample 22 and image information. Food information (stock status) in the refrigerator 1 is managed by the information input means 2c provided in the refrigerator 1, such as a camera, a microphone, a barcode reader, and manual input. The food information is stored in the storage means 2d and 4d of the refrigerator 2 and the information board 4, and can be displayed on the liquid crystal screen 5 at any time.

Of course, for foods that are not in stock (for example, carrots), it is natural to go out and purchase them, but the information board 4 can automatically place an order at a store or supermarket via the Internet 30, and Food can be exchanged between neighboring households via the Internet 30 or the like. Internet 3
In addition to foods and foodstuffs, food items that can be exchanged between neighboring households via 0 may be cooking equipment, tableware, and the like.

In addition, the information board 4 may provide the menu with cooking instructions and precautions when the food (eg carrot) is not present. For example, there is a method of cooking the menu when there is no food, or provision of another menu which is close to the menu and can be cooked without using food. Of course, it is possible to provide an entirely different menu.

Further, by using the information board 4 of the present invention via the Internet 30, the following can be performed.

The “pride cooking recipes” of each household can be published on the Internet, and the recipe information of the other parties can be freely downloaded. "Latest recipe,""seasonalrecipe," or "special information" distributed by the manufacturer or cooking department
Various information such as can be obtained as needed. You can receive advice such as "calculation and display of calories" and "health / nutrition comments" for the dish you are trying to cook. If you don't know how to use home appliances, you can get advice on how to use them from the manufacturer via the Internet.

Furthermore, while looking at the recipe information, a fun "cooking simulation" can be performed before cooking to make the actual cooking smooth and delicious.

Furthermore, by connecting to the maker or its service station via the Internet 30, it becomes possible to quickly perform automatic maintenance, failure diagnosis, and response in case of failure. For example, each time the microwave oven is used, information on the usage mode (selection menu) is sent to the manufacturer side, and the manufacturer side accumulates the information for each user (apparatus to be used) to predict the failure or life of the microwave oven. , Alert users. Alternatively, the manufacturer can also estimate the failure location from the accumulated data. Furthermore, based on these information, speedy repair is possible.

Next, a seventh usage example of the information board 4 will be described.

Since the information board 4 is equipped with the camera 9 and the microphone 8, the room can be monitored from a remote place. For example, while the information board 4 is placed in the kitchen for cooking, it is also possible to monitor the state of a distant child's room based on video or audio, monitor the elderly, or monitor the outdoors. .

The information board 4 is the Internet 30.
Is connected to the outside by touching any button or the like on the information board 4, the tentacle information is transmitted to the outside, and a person who uses the information board 4 from a distant place, for example, an elderly person living alone You can check the safety of. The acquisition of the tentacle information may be performed by the tentacles of the refrigerator 1 or the microwave oven 3 which is a cooking appliance, or by the tentacles of other home appliances. In this case, the tentacle information may be transmitted from the refrigerator 1 or the microwave oven 3 directly to the outside via the Internet 30, or may be transmitted to the outside after transferring the tentacle information to the information board 4. In this case, daily tentacle information is stored as data on the information board 4 and can also be used to manage elderly people living alone.

Next, the second example of use of the information board 4 is 2
An example of a combination other than a refrigerator and a cooking appliance that allows two home appliances to share information will be described.

For example, if the shared information is "information related to air conditioning (for example, temperature, humidity, etc.)", the information can be shared by home electric appliances such as air conditioners, dehumidifiers, humidifiers, etc. Then, the room can be automatically air-conditioned in a comfortable space. If the shared information is "information on indoor pollution (for example, dust, dust, suspended matter, etc.)", the information can be shared by home appliances such as air cleaners and vacuum cleaners. The cleaner works automatically, and if the floor is contaminated, the cleaner works. The vacuum cleaner in this case is preferably a self-propelled cleaning robot that can automatically operate.

In addition, if the shared information is “information about weather” downloaded from the Internet 30, the information can be shared with home electric appliances such as a washing machine, a dryer and a washer / dryer.

[0085]

As is apparent from the description of the embodiments described above, according to the present invention, an information board having good usability can be obtained.

[0086]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an information board showing an embodiment of the present invention and a system example using the information board.

FIG. 2 is a configuration block diagram in the system example of FIG.

3 is a front perspective view of the information board of FIG. 1. FIG.

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the information board.

5 is a flow chart diagram illustrating a first usage example of the system of FIG. 1. FIG.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state in which a keyboard is displayed on the liquid crystal screen in the first use example of FIG.

7 is a perspective view showing a state where an operation panel of the microwave oven in the operation example of FIG. 5 is displayed on a liquid crystal screen.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating a second usage example of the system of FIG.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a state in which a multi-screen in the second use example of FIG. 8 is displayed on a liquid crystal screen.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart diagram illustrating a sixth application example of the system of FIG.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a state in which recipe information in the sixth use example of FIG. 10 is displayed on a liquid crystal screen.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Refrigerator (first home appliance), 2 ... Door, 3 ... Microwave oven (second home appliance), 4 ... Information board, 5 ... Liquid crystal screen, 6, 6b ... Transmitting / receiving means, 7 ... Operation button, 8 … Microphone, 9… Camera, 10… Slot, 11… Scanner, 1
3 ... Keyboard, 14 ... Input information, 15 ... Operation panel,
16 ... Operation button, 17 ... Operation content, 18 ... Operation hand, 1
9 ... Food information, 20 ... Standard display, 21 ... Current status display, 22
... food, 23 ... recipe information, 24 ... inventory information, 25 ... power supply terminal, 26 ... input / output terminal, 26a ... input terminal, 26b
... output terminal, 27 ... information terminal, 28 ... terminal box, 2
9 ... Storage medium, 30 ... Communication line, 31 ... External terminal.

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Honma Mitsuru             502 Kintatemachi, Tsuchiura City, Ibaraki Japan             Tate Seisakusho Mechanical Research Center

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A transmitting / receiving unit having a function of transmitting / receiving information to / from at least one of a plurality of home electric appliances, an input unit for inputting information common to the plurality of home electric appliances, and the plurality of home electric appliances. And a function of controlling the home electric appliance that transmits and receives information by the transmitting and receiving unit, and displays information common to the plurality of home electric appliances input by the input unit on the display unit. An information board, comprising: a control unit having a display function. 2. The information board according to claim 1, wherein the household electric appliances controlled by the transmitting / receiving means are cooking appliances and the other household electric appliances are refrigerators. 3. A transmission / reception means having a function of transmitting / receiving information to / from a home electric appliance in a wired or wireless manner, and having a function of transmitting / receiving to / from an external terminal through a communication line, and an operation panel image displayed on a liquid crystal screen. And an input means capable of performing an input operation based on, and a function of displaying an operation panel image on the liquid crystal screen based on operation information of the household electric appliance received from the external terminal, and displaying and operating the operation panel. And a control means having a function of controlling the home electric appliance based on the input information of the input means. 4. The information board according to claim 3, wherein the operation panel image is displayed on the liquid crystal screen along with an operation panel and operation explanations of respective parts of the operation panel. 5. A transmission / reception unit having a function of transmitting / receiving information to / from an electric home appliance, an input unit for inputting a plurality of image information from different input sources, and a multi-screen for displaying a plurality of pieces of information related to the electric home appliance side by side. A liquid crystal display unit having, a function of controlling the home electric appliance that transmits and receives information by the transmission and reception unit, and a function of associating a plurality of image information of different input sources input by the input unit,
An information board, comprising: a control unit having a function of displaying the associated information on the multi-screen. 6. The home appliance according to claim 5, wherein the household electric appliance is a cooking appliance, and the plurality of image information of different input sources include image information during cooking and sample recipe image information related to the cooking. Information board. 7. A transmission / reception unit having a function of transmitting / receiving information to / from an electric home appliance, an input unit for inputting information of different input sources common to the plural electric home appliances, and information relating to the plural electric home appliances. It has a display unit having a liquid crystal screen for displaying, a function of controlling the home electric appliance that transmits and receives information by the transmitting and receiving unit, and a function of associating a plurality of image information of different input sources input by the input unit. An information board, comprising: a control unit having a function of displaying the associated information on the liquid crystal screen.