CN116326981A - Cooking apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cooking apparatus having a steam operation function, which is mainly aimed at solving the following problems: if an attempt is made to achieve a stable high-temperature state in the heating chamber with only the steam generator, the capacity of the water supply tank will be increased, and in the case where a heat source for heating the heating chamber is provided outside the steam generator, the temperature in the heating chamber will be unstable with the timing of steam generation. According to one embodiment, a control unit is provided to control driving and stopping of the 1 st heat source of the heating steam generating container and driving and stopping of the 2 nd heat source of heating the heating chamber according to a detection result of the in-house temperature by the temperature detection unit, and to drive the 2 nd heat source after the 1 st heat source is stopped, and to determine a driving time of the 2 nd heat source according to a detection result of the temperature detection unit. This can stabilize the temperature in the heating chamber while maintaining the steam generation amount within a certain range.

Description

Cooking apparatus

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the technical field of cooking apparatuses, and more particularly, to an apparatus for performing steam cooking in which steam is applied to a cooking object.

Background

In a device for producing steam in a steam microwave oven or the like and applying the steam to a cooking object to perform cooking such as fermentation, it is sometimes necessary to produce heating steam and discharge the heating steam into a heating chamber to stabilize the inside of the heating chamber in a high-temperature state.

In such a case, if it is desired to achieve a stable high temperature state by only the steam generator, it is necessary to increase the amount of steam generated per unit time. In this case, the water consumption increases, and thus the cooking time may be limited. In order to ensure sufficient cooking time, it is necessary to increase the capacity of the tank to which water is supplied, but this is contrary to the general requirement of saving space.

On the other hand, in order to reduce the water consumption, a heat source for heating the heating chamber is required in addition to the steam generator, but the steam generator is controlled to be on/off (on/off FF) according to the detected temperature of the thermistor, so that when the heating chamber is brought into a high temperature state by the heat source other than the steam generator, the on FF state is continued, and the steam generator is not operated, and thus there is a problem that the required steam cannot be stably supplied.

Prior art literature

Patent literature

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 2005-308315

Patent document 2: japanese patent application laid-open No. 2012-241942.

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a main object thereof is to provide a cooking apparatus capable of stabilizing the temperature in a heating chamber and reducing the amount of water required for steam generation without reducing the stability of steam generation.

Means for solving the problems

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cooking apparatus including: a heating chamber for accommodating food; a steam generating container; a 1 st heat source; a 2 nd heat source; a water supply device; a temperature detection unit; and a control unit.

The steam generating container has a steam generating chamber for generating steam and discharging the steam to the heating chamber, the 1 st heat source heats the steam generating container, the water supply device supplies water to the steam generating chamber, the 2 nd heat source heats the heating chamber, and the temperature detecting unit detects the temperature in the reservoir.

The control unit controls the driving and stopping of the 1 st heat source and the 2 nd heat source according to the detection result of the temperature detection unit.

The control unit drives the 2 nd heat source after the 1 st heat source stops, and determines the driving time of the 2 nd heat source according to the detection result of the temperature detection unit.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, since the control unit is provided to control the driving and stopping of the 1 st heat source and the 2 nd heat source according to the detection result of the temperature detection unit, the 2 nd heat source is driven after the 1 st heat source is stopped, and the driving time of the 2 nd heat source is determined according to the detection result of the temperature detection unit, it is possible to provide a cooking apparatus capable of stabilizing the temperature in the heating chamber while maintaining the supply amount of water for generating steam within a certain range of values.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a schematic structure of a cooking apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an example of an external shape of a state in which a door is opened in the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a right side view illustrating an example of a state in which a right side wall of the outer case is removed in the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a partially exploded perspective view of an example of the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a right side view showing an example of a state in which the respective right side walls of the outer case and the inner case are removed in the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a left side view illustrating an example of a state in which a left side wall of the outer case is removed in the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is an illustration showing a schematic structure of a steam generating container provided in the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is a block diagram showing an example of a main structure of the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 9 is a time chart showing an example of the operation of the main components of the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Detailed Description

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The same or corresponding elements/components in the drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repetitive description thereof will be omitted as appropriate. For convenience of explanation, the shapes and sizes of the respective members in the drawings may be appropriately enlarged, reduced, or omitted so as not to match the actual scale.

The terms used below for ordinal numbers such as 1 and 2 are merely identification symbols for distinguishing the same or corresponding components, and the same or corresponding components are not limited by these terms.

In the present specification, the term "connected" or "coupled" refers to a concept including not only a case where each of the constituent elements is in direct physical contact with each other in a contact relationship between the constituent elements, but also a case where other structures are interposed between the constituent elements and the constituent elements are in contact with each other through the other structures interposed therebetween. Furthermore, the term "substantially" is used in a manner that also includes the gist of measuring an error.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a schematic structure of a cooking apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 2 is another example of a perspective view showing a schematic structure of the cooking apparatus of the present embodiment, and shows a state in which a door is opened. Fig. 3 is a right side view showing an example of the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1 in which the right side wall of the outer case is removed.

As shown in fig. 1 to 3, a cooking apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes: an outer case 100 and an inner case 150 each having an open front surface; a door 300 mounted on the front side of the outer case 100; a circuit substrate 190 on which the microcomputer 90 is assembled; an operation panel 400 for a user or the like to send a command signal for cooking operation to the cooking apparatus 1; and a speaker 500 that emits a sound to transmit a cooking state or the like to a user. The space defined by the inner housing 150 constitutes a heating chamber 200 for accommodating food and cooking by steam heating. As will be described in detail later with reference to fig. 8, the microcomputer 90 is electrically connected to and controls various electrical components within the cooking apparatus 1. The microcomputer 90 reads a program stored in a memory (not shown) and generates a command signal to maintain the heating chamber 200 at a stable temperature while maintaining the amount of water supplied for generating steam within a certain range of values, and directs the command signal to a steam generator, convection heater 50, and the like, which will be described later. The operation panel 400 is configured by, for example, a touch panel system, and a user selects and sets a cooking menu, a heating time, a heating temperature, and the like, and is provided with a liquid crystal screen for displaying the set cooking time, cooking temperature, and the like, in addition to an operation key for instructing the start or stop of steam cooking.

Fig. 4 is a partially exploded perspective view of an example of the cooking apparatus 1, and fig. 5 is a right side view of the cooking apparatus shown in fig. 1, showing a state in which the respective right side walls of the outer case and the inner case are removed. As shown in fig. 4 and 5, the cooking apparatus 1 has a hot air circulation function, and includes a convection heater 50, a convection fan 60, a convection fan motor CM, and a convection thermistor 70 in addition to the above-described components. As will be described later with the block diagram of fig. 8, the convection heater 50 is turned on (on) by a driving signal transmitted from the convection heater driving circuit 550 and heats the ambient air of the convection fan 60. In the present embodiment, the convection fan 60 is directly mounted on the central shaft of the convection fan motor CM. Accordingly, when a drive signal is sent from the convection fan motor drive circuit 560 and the center axis of the convection fan motor CM rotates, the convection fan 60 rotates, and thereby the ambient air heated by the convection heater 50 circulates in the interior of the cooking apparatus 1, and heating is started from the surroundings of the heating chamber 200. In the present embodiment, the convection heater 50 corresponds to, for example, "the 2 nd heat source" defined in the claims, and the convection fan motor driving circuit 560, the convection fan motor M, and the convection fan 60 correspond to, for example, "the circulation unit" defined in the claims.

Fig. 6 illustrates a main structure of the steam generating device exposed in a state that the left side cover of the outside case 100 is removed in the cooking apparatus 1 shown in fig. 1. The steam generating device provided in the cooking apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes a water supply tank 13, a water supply pump 21, a pump motor PM, a steam generating container 20, and a steam generating container thermistor 80. In the present embodiment, at the bottom of the outer case 100, the water supply tank 13 is disposed below the bottom surface of the heating chamber 200 together with the pump motor PM, and is connected to the water supply port WP of the steam generation container 20 via the water supply pump 21 through the water supply pipe 14. The steam generating container thermistor 80 is provided inside the steam generating container 20 to detect the temperature of the steam generating chamber inside the steam generating container 20, and transmits a detection signal to the microcomputer 90 (refer to fig. 3). In the present embodiment, the water supply tank 13, the water supply pump 21, and the pump motor PM correspond to, for example, a "water supply device" defined in the claims.

Fig. 7 is a view showing an external appearance of the steam generating container 20 shown in fig. 6, in which (a) is a front view, (b) is a left side view, (c) is a right side view, (d) is a bottom view, (e) is a rear view, and (f) is a perspective view. As shown in fig. 7 (a) to (f), the steam generating vessel 20 has a hollow substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape in which the vessel body H and the vessel cover C are screwed together at a plurality of places. The space divided by the container body H and the container cover C constitutes a steam generating chamber. The steam generating vessel heater 16 is fusion-cast to the vicinity of the middle layer portion and the lower layer portion inside the vessel body H, and terminal portions at both ends thereof protrude from the side surface of the vessel body H. A water supply port WP for receiving water supplied from the water supply pump 21 is provided in the upper side surface of the container body H.

As shown in fig. 7 (e), steam vents 18a, 18b, 18c for discharging the generated steam to the heating chamber 200 are provided at substantially equal intervals in the horizontal direction in the upper portion of the rear surface of the steam generation container 20. In correspondence with the positions of the steam vents 18a, 18b, and 18c, steam vents 28a, 28b, and 28c are provided in the left side wall of the heating chamber 200 at substantially equal intervals in the horizontal direction as shown in fig. 5.

Next, the main electrical structure of the cooking apparatus 1 will be described with reference to the block diagram of fig. 8.

The cooking device 1 includes: a microcomputer 90; an operation input circuit 140 electrically connected to the microcomputer 90; a steam generating vessel thermistor 80; a convection thermistor 70; a door detection switch 130; a convection heater drive circuit 550; convection fan motor drive circuit 560; a steam generating vessel heater driving circuit 260; a water supply pump motor driving circuit 250; heating relay 160; a display 170 and a speaker 500; and a convection heater 50, a convection fan motor CM, a steam generating vessel heater 16, and a pump motor PM electrically connected to the convection heater driving circuit 550, the convection fan motor driving circuit 560, the steam generating vessel heater driving circuit 260, and the water supply pump motor driving circuit 250, respectively.

The operation input circuit 140 transmits data based on various instructions of the user input from the operation panel 400 to the microcomputer 90.

The steam generating container thermistor 80 detects the temperature of the steam generating chamber inside the steam generating container 20 and sends a detection signal to the microcomputer 90.

The convection thermistor 70 detects the temperature in the reservoir around the heating chamber 200 and sends a detection signal to the microcomputer 90.

The door detection switch 130 detects the opening/closing of the door 300 by the user and transmits detection data to the microcomputer 90.

The display 170 displays the result of the user's operation on the operation panel 400 or the notice/report information generated by the microcomputer 90 to the user on the operation panel 400 using characters or illustrations.

The speaker 500 converts the notice/report information to the user generated by the microcomputer 90 into (including voice) sound data, and delivers the sound to the user together with the display 170 or independently of the display 170.

The heating relay 160 is connected to an external commercial power supply (not shown), and operates under temperature control of the microcomputer 90 to perform on/off control of the convection heater driving circuit 550 and the steam generation container heater driving circuit 260.

The steam generating container heater 16 is electrically connected to the steam generating container heater driving circuit 260, and repeats on/OFF of the heating operation according to the on/OFF control of the microcomputer 90 via the heating relay 160, thereby maintaining the temperature of the steam generating chamber of the steam generating container 20 in a target temperature range during steam cooking and turning OFF (OFF) after the steam cooking is finished. In the present embodiment, the steam generating vessel heater 16 corresponds to, for example, "the 1 st heat source" defined in the claims.

The pump motor PM is electrically connected to the water supply pump motor driving circuit 250, and drives the water supply pump 21 under the control of the microcomputer 90 to supply water in the water supply tank 13 to the steam generation container 20.

In the cooking apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, in addition to heating the heating chamber 200 by using the steam discharged from the steam generating container 20, the convection heater 50 heats the air in the warehouse around the heating chamber 200, and the heating chamber 200 is also heated by the heat heated by the circulation of hot air. Specifically, first, the microcomputer 90 turns ON (ON) the convection fan motor drive circuit 560 to start the convection fan motor M, and rotates the convection fan 60. The microcomputer 90 then supplies a command signal to the heating relay 160 to short-circuit the electrical connection with the convection heater driving circuit 550, thereby the convection heater driving circuit 550 turns on the convection heater 50. The air heated by the convection heater 50 is turned into hot air, and is supplied to the heating chamber 200 through a vent (not shown) provided on the rear surface or the like of the heating chamber 200 by the rotation of the convection fan 60, for example, and then returned to the convection heater 50. In this way, the hot air circulates inside the cooking apparatus 1.

The basic operation of the cooking apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is as follows. First, a user puts food to be cooked into heating chamber 200 and closes door 300, sets heating conditions such as a cooking menu and temperature/time by operation of operation panel 400, and starts steam cooking when a start switch is pressed. Specifically, based on the set cooking menu and heating conditions, the microcomputer 90 drives the steam generator and the like according to a control program installed in advance, and performs steam cooking. Further, based on the detection signal from the convection thermistor 70 or the like, the microcomputer 90 determines whether or not the heating chamber 200 has reached the set food heating temperature and heating time, and when it is determined that the heating temperature and heating time have reached the set food heating temperature and heating time, stops driving of the steam generator, the convection heater driving circuit 550, the convection fan motor driving circuit 560, and the like, thereby ending the steam cooking operation.

One of the operational features of the cooking apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is that the microcomputer 90 generates a command signal so that the amount of steam generated falls within a certain range of values and supplies the command signal to the water supply pump motor driving circuit 250, and on the other hand, on/off control is performed on the steam generation container heater 16 based on the detection result of the steam generation container thermistor 80, and after the steam generation container heater 16 is turned off (on FF), a control signal is generated based on the detection result of the in-house temperature so that the heating chamber 200 is maintained at a stable temperature and the control signal is supplied to the convection heater driving circuit 550. In this regard, description will be made with reference to fig. 9 showing more specific operations of the main components of the cooking apparatus 1. As shown in fig. 9, the steam cooking of the cooking apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is performed in five stages, i.e., stages 1 to 5.

(1) Stage 1 (Water supply confirmation)

When the user selects steam cooking and transmits a command signal to the microcomputer 90 through the operation of the operation panel 400, steam operation is started. The microcomputer 90 first generates a start signal and transmits the start signal to the convection thermistor 70 and the steam generating tank thermistor 80, and turns on (on) these thermistors. The target temperature of the steam generating vessel 20 is set in advance to a temperature range between the 1 st set value (lower limit) and the 2 nd set value (upper limit), and the microcomputer 90 receives a detection signal of the temperature of the steam generating vessel 20 from the steam generating vessel thermistor 80 and compares the detection signal with the 1 st set value. In this stage, since the detected temperature is lower than the 1 st set value, the microcomputer 90 turns on the heating relay 160, supplies a driving signal to the steam generating vessel heater driving circuit 260 via it and turns on the steam generating vessel heater 16 to start heating, and simultaneously supplies a driving signal to the convection fan motor driving circuit 560 to operate the convection fan motor CM to rotate the convection fan 60. In the present embodiment, the convection fan motor CM is kept on (on) during steam cooking. When the detected temperature of the steam generating vessel 20 by the steam generating vessel thermistor 80 exceeds the 1 st set value and reaches the 2 nd set value, the microcomputer 90 turns off the steam generating vessel heater 16 via the heating relay 160, supplies a driving signal to the water supply pump motor driving circuit 250, thereby driving the pump motor PM, and starts water supply to the steam generating vessel 20.

In this way, in the stage 1, in addition to the start-up main constituent elements, a stage of confirming the supply of water to the steam generating vessel 20 is also performed. That is, the microcomputer 90 supplies a driving signal to the water supply pump motor driving circuit 250, thereby driving the pump motor PM. In the present embodiment, the water supply amount is controlled by the driving time of the pump motor PM. In the stage 1, water may be supplied to the steam generating vessel 20 for the first time, and in this case, since water does not enter the path from the water supply tank 13 to the water supply port WP of the steam generating vessel 20, it is necessary to determine the water supply amount in consideration of this. On the other hand, there is a case where water has already entered the path from the water supply tank 13 to the water supply port WP of the steam generating container 20, and in this case, it is necessary to determine the water supply amount so that water does not overflow from the discharge port 18 of the steam generating container. Therefore, as shown in fig. 9, the driving time of the pump motor PM is set to 2500ms, for example. At a timing substantially simultaneous with the command signal for the water supply, the microcomputer 90 supplies a drive signal to the convection heater drive circuit 550, and heats the convection heater 50 in order to assist the heating of the steam generation container heater 16. In the example shown in fig. 9, the heating time is 20 seconds at maximum.

Next, the microcomputer 90 performs on/off control of the steam generating vessel heater 16 based on the detected temperature of the steam generating vessel 20 by the steam generating vessel thermistor 80. More specifically, if the detected temperature of the steam generating container thermistor 80 becomes equal to or lower than the 1 st set value, the microcomputer 90 supplies a drive signal to the steam generating container heater drive circuit 260 to turn on (on) the steam generating container heater 16, thereby heating the steam generating chamber. When the temperature of the steam generating container thermistor 80 reaches the 2 nd set value, the steam generating container heater 16 is turned OFF (OFF), a driving signal is supplied to the water supply pump motor driving circuit 250, and the water is supplied to the steam generating container 20 by the driving of the pump motor PM, so that steam is generated and ejected to the heating chamber 200.

When the transition time to stage 2 has elapsed with the steam generating vessel heater 16 turned ON (ON) due to the time setting selected by the user, the steam generating vessel thermistor 80 detects a temperature reaching the 2 nd set value, and transitions to stage 2 when the steam generating vessel heater 16 is turned OFF (OFF). Here, in the case where the driving signal is supplied from the microcomputer 90 to the water supply pump motor driving circuit 250 to start the driving of the pump motor PM, since the driving of the pump motor PM is not used for the first water supply at this time, the driving time is 1000ms in the example shown in fig. 9.

The reason why the steam generating vessel heater 16 does not shift to stage 2 in the middle of turning ON (ON) is as follows. That is, when the steam generating vessel heater 16 is turned ON (ON) in a stage where the steam generating vessel 20 is not sufficiently supplied with water, in other words, in an idle state, a period for supplying water to the steam generating vessel 20 will be required as one cycle. In the present embodiment, when the steam generating vessel heater 16 is turned OFF, the pump motor PM is turned ON (ON) to supply water to the steam generating apparatus, and when water is supplied, steam is generated, and the detected temperature of the steam generating vessel thermistor 80 is gradually lowered to reach the 1 st set temperature, so that the steam generating vessel heater 16 can be turned ON (ON). That is, by supplying water to the steam generating tank 20, the temperature of the steam generating chamber is lowered and the detected temperature of the steam generating tank thermistor 80 is brought to the 1 st set value. In the case where water supply is not performed, it takes a considerable time for the detected temperature of the steam generating container thermistor 80 to reach the 1 st set temperature, and thus steam generation is almost impossible.

In the above manner, steam cooking of the food product is started. When the steam generating vessel heater 16 becomes off (off FF) for the first time, the operation of the cooking apparatus 1 shifts to phase 2.

2) Stage 2 (in-store warming)

In the stage 2, the temperature in the oven of the cooking apparatus 1 is raised to the set temperature. However, the stage 2 is not an essential stage, and cooking may be performed at a state close to normal temperature depending on a menu such as fermentation, and in this case, the step of the stage 2 is not required.

In the stage 2, unlike the other stages, the convection heater 50 is preferentially used for heating in order to rapidly raise the temperature. Specifically, the convection heater 50 is turned on for a long time after the first turn-off (off FF) of the steam generating vessel heater 16 to raise the in-tank temperature to the set temperature at once. Further, at the beginning of stage 2, water is replenished from water supply tank 13 by water supply pump 21. In the example shown in fig. 9, the replenishment time is 1000ms.

If the microcomputer 90 determines that the temperature of the heating chamber 200 exceeds the set temperature based on the detection signal from the convection thermistor 70, the convection heater 50 is turned off (off FF) once, and the operation of the cooking apparatus 1 is shifted to the next stage 3. In the example shown in fig. 9, the convection heater 50 is kept on for about 3 minutes, and as a result, the temperature of the heating chamber 200 reaches the set temperature.

3) Stage 3 (steam operation)

In stage 3, the in-house temperature is maintained within a certain range by the on/off control of the convection heater 50 based on the detection result of the convection thermistor 70, and in this state, the operation of the water supply pump 21 immediately after the steam-generating container heater 16 based on the on/off of the steam-generating container thermistor 80 is repeated at a predetermined interval, thereby maintaining the steam generation amount to the heating chamber 200 at a value within a certain range. More specifically, the microcomputer 90 detects the temperature of the steam generating vessel 20 based ON a signal supplied from the steam generating vessel thermistor 80, turns ON the steam generating vessel heater 16 if the detected temperature is equal to or lower than the 1 st set value, turns off the steam generating vessel heater 16 if the detected temperature reaches the 2 nd set value, turns ON the water supply pump 21 (ON) at the same timing as the off (ON FF), and supplies a predetermined amount of water. After turning OFF (OFF) the steam generating vessel heater 16, the microcomputer 90 controls ON/OFF (ON/OFF) of the convection heater 50 according to a detection signal from the convection thermistor 70. If the detected temperature of the steam generating vessel 20 by the steam generating vessel thermistor 80 becomes equal to or lower than the 1 st set value, the microcomputer 90 turns OFF (OFF) the convection heater 50 and turns ON (ON) the steam generating vessel heater 16. In the example shown in fig. 9, the steam generating vessel heater 16 is turned off (on FF) after 20 seconds of being turned on, and water is supplied from the water supply tank 13 for 1000ms by the on (on) of the water supply pump 21.

4) Stage 4 (energy saving mode)

If the state where both the temperature of heating chamber 200 and the steam generation amount are stable continues for a predetermined time, cooking apparatus 1 shifts to the energy saving mode of stage 4, and the water supply amount of water supply pump 21 is slightly reduced. In the example shown in fig. 9, the water supply time is shortened from 1000ms to 800ms.

5) Stage 5 (ready to end steam operation)

When the temperature and time set by the selected cooking menu are close to the end of the steam cooking, the microcomputer 90 stops generating drive signals to the convection heater drive circuit 550, the steam generation container heater drive circuit 260, and the water supply pump motor drive circuit 250, waits for the temperature of the heating chamber 200 to be a temperature safe for the user, and turns off (on FF) the heating relay 160, the convection thermistor 70, and the steam generation container thermistor 80. Thereby, the steam operation is ended.

Here, for example, it is desirable to directly detect the temperature near the food in the heating chamber 200 in terms of temperature detection, but this is not realistic in view of the arrangement place, performance, cost, and the like of the thermistor for convenience of the consumer. Thus, as in the case of the convection thermistor 70 of the present embodiment, the following control method is adopted: the ambient temperature of heating chamber 200 is detected, a correction value is predicted and set based ON data of a temperature difference between the temperature of the place and heating chamber 200 collected in advance by experiments or the like, and ON/OFF (ON/OFF) control of the heat source is performed in combination with the correction value, so that the target set temperature is quickly reached. Since this control method can be easily implemented by known techniques, a description thereof is omitted in this specification.

In the description of the above embodiment, the convection fan motor CM is kept on (on) during the steam operation regardless of the on/off state of the convection heater 50, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the convection fan motor CM may be turned on (on) only when the convection heater 50 is turned on (on).

According to the cooking apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the on/off of the convection heater 50 is controlled according to the detection result of the in-warehouse temperature by the convection thermistor 70, and therefore the temperature in the heating chamber can be stabilized while maintaining the amount of generated steam at a value within a certain range.

In addition, the convection heater 50 is also used as a heat source for heating the heating chamber 200, and since the control is performed based on the detection result of the temperature in the warehouse, overheating is prevented, and as a result, the influence of heat radiation on the food stored in the warehouse can be reduced.

In addition, since the amount of generated steam is kept within a certain range, it is possible to reduce the unevenness of steam in the heating chamber 200 after the steam is ejected, and to stabilize the temperature in the heating chamber 200.

Further, in the above embodiment, the use of both the convection thermistor 70 and the steam generating vessel thermistor 80 is adopted, but these two are not indispensable as the thermistor, and for example, only the convection thermistor 70 may be used, and the use may be made of the operation of the convection heater 50 and the operation of the steam generating vessel heater 16. In this case, since the temperature detection unit can be shared, the reduction in the number of parts can be facilitated.

In the above embodiment, at least one of the convection thermistor 70 and the steam generation container thermistor 80 corresponds to, for example, a "temperature detection means" described in the claims.

Application to microwave ovens

While the present invention has been described as being applied to a steam oven in the above embodiments, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and it is obvious that the present invention can be applied to all cooking devices that can cook steam, such as a microwave oven having a steam cooking function.

While the embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the drawings, these are for the convenience of understanding the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims of the present invention. The numbers of the above embodiments are for convenience of description only, and do not specifically indicate the merits and merits of the embodiments. The installation place of each component or device constituting the cooking apparatus is not limited to the illustrated position, and may be freely arranged without impairing each function.

Various modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Various changes, equivalents, modifications, and the like may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention.

[ description of the reference numerals ]

1 a cooking apparatus; 13 a water supply tank; 16 steam generating vessel heater; 20 steam generating vessel; 21 a water supply pump; 30a, 30b 3 rd thermistor; a 50 convection heater; 60 convection fans; a 70 convection thermistor; 80 a steam generating vessel thermistor; a 90 microcomputer; 160 heating the relay; 200 heating a chamber; 250 a water supply pump motor drive circuit; 260 a steam generating vessel heater drive circuit; 550 convection heater drive circuitry; 560 convection fan motor drive circuitry; CM convection fan motor; PM pump motor.

Claims (4)

1. A cooking device is provided with:

a heating chamber for accommodating food;

a steam generating container having a steam generating chamber for generating steam and ejecting the steam to the heating chamber;

a 1 st heat source for heating the steam generating vessel;

a water supply device for supplying water to the steam generation chamber;

a 2 nd heat source for heating the heating chamber;

a temperature detection unit for detecting a temperature in the warehouse; and

a control unit for controlling the driving and stopping of the 1 st heat source and the 2 nd heat source according to the detection result of the temperature detection unit,

the control unit drives the 2 nd heat source after the 1 st heat source is stopped,

and determining the driving time of the No. 2 heat source according to the detection result of the temperature detection unit.

2. The cooking apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a circulation unit disposed outside the heating chamber and circulating air in the warehouse,

the control unit causes the circulation unit to operate during driving of the 2 nd heat source.

3. The cooking apparatus according to claim 2, wherein,

the control unit causes the circulation unit to operate also during a period other than the driving period of the 2 nd heat source.

4. Cooking apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein,

the temperature detection unit is disposed outside the heating chamber.

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