JP2001025670A - Apparatus for brown rice storage at low temperature and equipped with rich milling machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To suppress propagation of mold and harmful insects in milled rice, and rice bran even if a rice milling machine is left for a long time after rice milling, to suppress adhesion of rice bran to a container and change of rice bran to a scarce level, and make maintenance of the rice milling machine easy. SOLUTION: An upper side storage hopper 2 and a rice milling machine 13A for receiving brown rice supplied from the discharge outlet 26 in the lower part of the storage hopper 2 and milling the brown rice and equipped with a container for storing milled rice and rice bran are installed in a heat insulating box 4. An opening part 14 enabled to be closed by an opening and closing door 15 is formed in the heat insulating box 4 and the rice milling machine 13A is enabled to be taken out through the opening part 14 from the lower side of the storage hopper 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a brown rice cold storage device equipped with a rice mill, which stores brown rice for a long period of time and is capable of polishing rice.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In order to maintain the taste of brown rice and prevent the occurrence of mold and pests, the whole rice, including the hopper, is made into a box with an insulated structure and is kept and cooled by a cooling unit. A rice cooler integrated with a cooler or, conversely, a brown rice cooler with a rice mill has been developed. For example, as a brown rice cooler with a rice mill (a brown rice cold storage device with a rice mill), there is one disclosed in Registered Utility Model No. 2559823,
In this cool box, a brown rice tank and a rice milling machine are installed in a cooling room surrounded by heat insulating walls,
We want the outlet of the brown rice tank to be the feed hopper of the rice mill.

The milled rice tank and a part of the cooling unit (compressor) are arranged outside the cooling room, and the evaporator and the blowing fan are arranged inside the cooling room, and the air in the cooling room is circulated up and down to cool the brown rice tank. are doing.

[0004]

In the above-mentioned prior art, since the polished rice tank is arranged outside the cooling room, if it is left for a long time after the polished rice, mold and pests may be generated on the polished rice and rice bran. Because rice bran is exposed to a high-temperature and high-humidity atmosphere, it easily adheres to and deteriorates in a container.In addition, since a rice mill and a part of a cooling unit such as an evaporator and a blowing fan are arranged in a cooling room. When inspecting the rice-milling parts, the evaporator, the blower fan, etc., there is a problem that the working space is narrow, the disassembly of the heat insulation box is required, and the maintenance is very difficult.

[0005] It is an object of the present invention to provide a brown rice cold storage device equipped with a rice mill that can solve such problems of the prior art. The present invention enables a rice mill having a container for storing white rice and bran to be taken out from the bottom of the storage hopper into an opening, so that even if the rice is left for a long time after milling, it is possible to remove mold and pests from white rice and rice bran. It is an object of the present invention to provide a brown rice low-temperature storage device with a rice mill, which is less likely to be generated, has little adhesion of rice bran to the container and deteriorates, and can easily maintain the rice mill.

[0006]

A first concrete means for solving the problem in the present invention is to supply a heat from an upper storage hopper 2 and a lower outlet 26 of the storage hopper 2 into a heat insulating box 4. A rice mill 13 having containers 32 and 37 for receiving the brown rice to be milled and milling and storing white rice and bran is arranged, and an opening 14 opened and closed by an opening / closing door 15 is formed in the heat insulating box 4. The machine 13 can be taken out from the storage hopper 2 to the opening 14 from below.

[0007] As a result, the white rice and bran after milling are stored in the heat insulating box 4 and stored at a low temperature even after being left for a long time after milling, and the opening 14 is opened by the door 15 to store the milling machine 13. When taken out from below the hopper 2, maintenance becomes easy and the containers 32 and 37 for storing white rice and bran can be taken out. A second specific means for solving the problem in the present invention is the rice mill 1 in addition to the first specific means.
3 is provided on a movable table 41 movable to the opening 14 side, and containers 32 and 37 for storing white rice and bran can be taken out from the rice mill 13 to the opening 14 side.

As a result, the removal of the rice mill 13 is facilitated, and when the opening 14 is opened by the opening / closing door 15, white rice
Only the containers 32 and 37 for storing the bran can be taken out. A third specific means for solving the problem in the present invention is, in addition to the first or second specific means, a weighing device for measuring the amount of brown rice supplied to the rice polishing machine 13 to the discharge port 26 of the storage hopper 2. That is, a shutter means 45 for opening and closing the means 20 or the discharge port 26 is provided. This makes it possible to measure the amount of brown rice to be milled or to open and close the outlet 26.

A fourth specific means for solving the problem in the present invention is that, in addition to any one of the first to third specific means, a peripheral gap 3 is provided between the storage hopper 2 and the heat insulating box 4. Guide means 2A, 8 and 12 are provided to allow the cool air supplied into the heat insulation box 4 from the cooling unit 5 formed and arranged outside the heat insulation box 4 to flow relatively to the upper side of the peripheral gap 3. It is. This keeps the brown rice in an appropriate state without cooling unevenness, and reduces the relative humidity of the rice bran in the container 3
2. Makes it difficult to adhere to 37.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, reference numeral 1A denotes a brown rice low-temperature storage device equipped with a rice mill suitable for storing brown rice. The brown rice low-temperature storage device 1A is substantially a cube, and is roughly divided into a storage hopper. 2 and rice mill 13A
And a heat insulating box 4 that covers them, and a cooling unit 5 disposed outside the heat insulating box 4. The storage hopper 2
For example, a brown rice storage bag (30 kg) is stored therein, and the size of the brown rice low-temperature storage device 1A is set to a size that can be easily set in a corner of a general home kitchen.

The heat insulating box 4 has a front wall 4A, left and right side walls, a bottom wall, a back wall, a ceiling wall, a rear middle wall 4B, and the like. An iron plate is fixed to a metal frame, and an insulating plate is attached to the inner surface thereof. It is constructed by attaching a heat insulating plate to a frame or assembling a heat insulating plate or a superposed plate of a heat insulating plate and an iron plate to form a box shape. A substantially lower half of the front wall 4A of the heat insulating box 4 is open, and its opening 14 is openable and closable by a double-opening door 15 pivotally supported on a vertical axis via a pivotal support. The opening and closing door 15 may be of a single-door type or a sliding door type.

An upper opening 10 is formed in the ceiling of the heat insulating box 4, and is closed by a lid 11. This lid 11
By opening the storage hopper 2 from the upper opening 10.
It can supply grains such as brown rice. The lid 11 serves both to open and close the upper opening 10 and to open and close the storage hopper 2. The heat-insulating box 4 has an outwardly open concave portion 18 at the lower rear portion. That is, the lower half of the back wall of the heat-insulating box 4 is located on the front side of the upper half, and the middle rear wall 4B is formed between the upper and lower back walls. The cooling unit 5 is arranged in the recess 18. The cooling unit 5 is not exposed to the outside, but falls within the entire outer dimensions of the heat insulating box 4 and is surrounded by a cover through which air can flow.

The cooling unit 5 is of a separate type, having a compressor and a condenser, etc., a first part 5A corresponding to an outdoor unit, and a second part 5B having an evaporator, a blower, etc. and corresponding to an indoor unit. The cooling unit 5 may be an integrated type in which the first part 5A and the second part 5B are accommodated in one case. The second part 5B is a heat insulating box 4
Is installed outside the rear middle step wall 4B, and communicates with the inside of the heat insulating box 4 through a blowing port 6 and a suction port 7 formed in the rear middle step wall 4B.

The storage hopper 2 has a discharge port 26 formed at a position eccentric to the front side from the center of the heat insulating box 4, and a bottom wall inclined downward from the surrounding side wall to the discharge port 26. The rear inclined bottom wall 2A, which is long, is substantially opposed to the rear middle step wall 4B. Conversely, by forming the inclined bottom wall 2A, a large space (dead space) is formed below it. Therefore, the cooling unit 5 is arranged by utilizing the space, so that the cooling unit 5 can be compactly stored within the entire outer dimensions of the apparatus. A triangular space in side view is formed between the inclined bottom wall 2A and the rear middle step wall 4B,
This space communicates with the outlet 6 and the suction port 7, and a partition wall 8 that divides the space into two right and left sections and separates the space between the outlet 6 and the suction port 7 is provided.

The partition wall 8 stands upright from the rear middle step wall 4B or is fixed to the storage hopper 2, and cuts off the peripheral gap 3 between the storage hopper 2 and the heat insulating box 4. The cool air blown out of the storage hopper is restricted from flowing into the suction port 7 in a short-circuit manner, so that the cool air flows around the storage hopper 2 in a substantially circumferential direction and flows to the suction port 7 after flowing. A heat insulating member 12 is attached to the surface of the inclined bottom wall 2A on the side of the outlet 6 to prevent cold air from directly hitting the inclined bottom wall 2A to locally cool. The heat insulating member 12, the inclined bottom wall 2 </ b> A, the partition wall 8, and the like constitute guide means for flowing cool air to a relatively upper portion of the peripheral gap 3.

Therefore, the relatively upper portion of the heat insulating box 4 forms a forced circulation air passage, and the cool air blown out from the outlet 6 is
Once it hits the heat insulating member 12, it is dispersed around, mainly left and right, and upwards, and is drawn around the surrounding gap 3 of the storage hopper 2 at the suction port 7. The relatively upper part of the peripheral gap 3 has the lowest temperature, the cool air descends by natural convection, and the lower part of the heat insulating box 4 is also cooled. The lower part is somewhat hotter, but the relative humidity is lower and the temperature and humidity are stable.

An upper opening 10 of the storage hopper 2 is formed in a ceiling wall of the heat insulating box 4.
Covered with 1. The lid 11 is close to the upper end edge of the opening of the storage hopper 2, and closes the upper part of the storage hopper 2 so that cold air does not enter the storage hopper 2, and even if it enters the storage hopper 2 in a small amount. Although this lid 11 may be screwed to the ceiling wall, it is only placed for easy opening and closing, and it is preferable to provide a handle.
In order to prevent cold air leakage, a sealing means 27 is provided between the upper opening 10 and the periphery.

A measuring means 20 is provided below the lowermost discharge port 26 of the storage hopper 2.
The rice-milling machine 13A can be arranged below the table. The weighing means 20 is, for example, a cylinder 22 having a substantially C-shaped cross section with a slit formed in the cylinder, which is rotatable by a motor 22. The brown rice taken into the cylinder through the slit from the discharge port 26 is converted into a cylinder. By turning it half a turn, it can be dropped downward, and it is possible to take out a required amount of brown rice by turning it one or several times. The weighing unit 20 itself has a shutter function, and a dedicated shutter does not have to be provided. However, a shutter may be provided instead of the weighing unit 20.

The rice mill (milling machine) 13A for milling brown rice is exemplified by a stirring type. A rice bran receiving container 37 is attached to a driving unit 36, and a rice polishing net 38 and a stirring blade 39 are placed in the rice bran receiving container 37. The drive shaft 40 which is disposed and protrudes from the drive unit 36
To drive the stirring blade 39. This rice milling machine 13A is not connected to the weighing means 20, but receives the weighed brown rice from the weighing means 20 into the bran receiving container 37, and mills the rice by rotation of the stirring blades 39.
As indicated by the dotted line, the bran receiving container 37 and the rice milling net 38
Then, the stirring blade 39 is removed, the white rice is taken out by the milling net 38, and the rice bran is taken out by the bran receiving container 37. The bran receiving container 37 is a container that also stores white rice.

The driving unit 36 of the rice milling machine 13A includes a moving table 4
1. The moving table 41 is guided by a rail 42 in the heat insulating box 4 via a roller 42a so as to be able to move back and forth, and a moving roller 43 is provided at a front portion.
By opening the opening 14 in step 5, it moves from the inside of the heat insulating box 4 to the outside of the opening 14, so that the bran receiving container 37, the rice milling net 38 and the stirring blade 39 can be removed. The rice-milling machine 13A performs maintenance while being moved to the outside of the opening 14, and in this state, maintenance of the measuring means 20 and the like can be performed. In addition, cleaning of the bran receiving container 37, the rice-milling net 38, and the stirring blade 39 can be performed. it can.

By setting the gap between the bran receiving container 37 and the measuring means 20 longer than the projecting length of the drive shaft 40, the bran receiving container 37 can be moved without moving the moving table 41.
Can be separated from the driving unit 36 and taken out from the opening 14. The movable table 41 can adopt a one-stage or two-stage drawer structure like an inner box of a cabinet. When the opening and closing door 15 is closed in a state where the rice polishing machine 13A is stored in the heat-insulating box 4, heat insulation is achieved. There is no obstacle to sealing the box 4. The lower part of the front of the insulation box 4 is a rice mill 13
An opening 14 is formed to enable the A to be taken out, and a double door 1 that opens and closes the opening 14.
5 is pivotally supported via a vertical pivotal support.

Although not shown, an operation panel is provided on the front surface of the heat insulating box 4, and the operation panel has a remaining amount display unit,
Operation units such as a whiteness adjustment unit and an operation timer setting unit of the rice polishing machine 13A are centrally arranged. This operation unit is also provided with a control unit for the cooling unit 5. Based on information from a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, and the like provided in the heat insulating box 4, the storage hopper 2, and the like, a temperature suitable for keeping brown rice cool is provided.・ Humidity management is available. The temperature inside the heat insulation box 4 is 8-20 °
C, preferably about 12 to 14 ° C., or about 10 ° C., and the humidity is 50 to 70 ° C., preferably 60 to 70%. The temperature near the bran receiving container 37 is higher by 1 to 2 ° C. than the inside of the storage hopper 2, so that the relative humidity is kept lower by 10 to 15%.

In the brown rice low-temperature storage device 1 configured as described above, the lid 11 is opened, the brown rice is thrown in from the upper opening 10, and stored in the storage hopper 2. The cool air cooled by the second part 5B of the cooling unit 5 is supplied from the outlet 6 into the heat insulating box 4 and collides with the heat insulating member 12 provided on the inclined bottom wall 2A of the storage hopper 2 and scatters. Since the heat insulating member 12 is inclined rearward and upward, a small amount of the cool air after the collision flows downward, flows sideways and upwards, and is prevented from flowing toward the suction port 7 by the partition wall 8.

Then, the cool air flows through the surrounding gap 3 from the rear part of the storage hopper 2 to the front part between the front wall 4A through one side, and further through the other side of the storage hopper 2 to the rear part. , And is returned from the suction port 7 to the second part 5B of the cooling unit 5 outside. The cold air flows around the upper part or the entire periphery of the storage hopper 2 without flowing into the suction port 7 in a short circuit, and cools the inside of the storage hopper 2 effectively. During the flow, the cool air descends due to natural convection. Thus, the air below the storage hopper 2 in the heat insulating box 4 is also cooled.

It is rare that the cool air supplied from the outlet 6 directly reaches the rice mill 13A.
A is cooled by being surrounded by an atmosphere that is slightly higher than the inside of the storage hopper 2 but sufficiently low in temperature. Since the vicinity of the bran receiving container 37 at the lower part of the heat insulating box 4 is slightly higher than the inside of the storage hopper 2, the relative humidity is low. When white rice is needed at home, the weighing means 20 is operated to supply the brown rice in the storage hopper 2 to the bran receiving container 37 while being weighed from the discharge port 26, and the rice mill 13A
Is operated to mill rice, and after milling, the rice mill 13
A is extracted, and the milled rice net 38 is taken out from the bran receiving container 37. The removal of rice bran may be performed every time white rice is taken out or several times.

Even if the white rice and the rice bran are left for a long time immediately after the polishing, the inside of the heat insulating box 4 is sufficiently lower than the outside air (the temperature suitable for storing the rice). Maintains taste retention and prevention of mold and pest outbreaks,
The rice bran is in a low-temperature and low-humidity state, and can be kept in a smooth state to prevent the rice bran from adhering to the bran receiving container 37. FIGS. 5 and 6 show a second embodiment, which differs from the first embodiment only in a rice mill. Rice milling machine 1 of brown rice cold storage device 1B
3B illustrates a cylindrical friction type. The milling machine 13B is placed on the moving table 41, can be taken out from the opening 14, and rotates the milling roll 31 in the milling cylinder 30 by the motor 29 to remove the brown rice fed from the discharge port 26. Transfer with stirring.

Below the discharge port of the polishing cylinder 30 of the rice polishing machine 13B, two containers 32 for receiving white rice and rice bran are arranged. These containers 32 are hand-held containers, and can be taken out even while the rice polishing machine 13B is placed in the heat insulating box 4. FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment. In the brown rice low-temperature storage device 1C, a shutter means 45 is provided instead of the weighing means 20 of the first embodiment, and the opening / closing door 15 is replaced with a double door type. The moving table 41 is attached. A shutter means 45 for opening and closing the discharge port 26 at the lower part of the storage hopper 2 can be driven by a solenoid or the like.

The opening / closing door 15 is connected to the opening 14 of the heat insulating box 4.
And is mounted on the front end of a moving table 41 on which the rice milling machine 13A is mounted.
1 can be moved. Therefore, when removing the white rice from the rice mill 13A or performing maintenance, pulling the opening / closing door 15 toward the front opens the opening 14 and at the same time pulls out the rice mill 13A. Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously modified. For example, although the rice mill 13 is exemplified by a friction system (pressure system), a polishing system (speed system) may be used, and barley such as barley may be put in the storage hopper 2 instead of brown rice, and the rice mill 13 may be used as a rice mill. Often, a rice-milling machine is provided between the rice-milling machine 13 and the container 32, or a storage hopper 2 is provided with its own lid to form a gap between the heat-insulating box 4 and the ceiling wall in which cool air actively flows. You may.

Further, the whole brown rice cold storage device 1 is placed on a device base having wheels at the rear and a stationary device at the front, and the front portion is lifted to tilt the brown rice low temperature storage device 1 while tilting. It may be possible to move and set the stationary device on the ground so that the stationary device can be installed without moving.

[0030]

According to the present invention described above, the milled white rice and bran are stored in the heat insulating box 4 and stored at a low temperature even after being milled for a long time. And take out the rice milling machine 13 from below the storage hopper 2,
Maintenance is easy, and the container for storing white rice and bran can be taken out.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional side view showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional side view showing a state where the rice mill is taken out.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing a state where the door is opened.

FIG. 4 is a rear view of the same.

FIG. 5 is a sectional side view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a sectional side view showing a state where the rice milling machine is taken out.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional side view showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Brown rice low-temperature storage apparatus 2 Storage hopper 2A Inclined bottom wall 3 Peripheral gap 4 Insulation box 5 Cooling unit 6 Outlet 7 Suction port 8 Partition wall 12 Insulation member 13 Rice mill 14 Opening 15 Opening / closing door 20 Metering means 26 Discharge port 36 Drive Part 37 rice bran receiving container 38 rice polishing net 39 stirring blade 41 moving table 45 shutter means

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Hideo Yoshii 64 Ishizukita-cho, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture Inside Kubota Sakai Works Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yoshito 64 Ishizukita-cho, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture Kubota Sakai Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Office F term (reference) 4B069 AA04 CA02 HA18 KD03 4D043 FA10 HA02 HA05 JC10 JD01 JD02 JF02 JF04 JF08 JF09 JF10

Claims (4)

[Claims] An insulated box is provided with an upper storage hopper and a rice mill having a container for receiving brown rice supplied from a lower outlet of the storage hopper and polishing the rice, and for storing white rice and bran. An opening portion that is opened and closed by an opening / closing door is formed in the heat-insulating box, and the rice milling machine can be taken out of the storage hopper into the opening portion from below the storage hopper. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the rice mill is provided on a movable table movable toward the opening, and a container for storing rice and bran is freely taken out from the rice mill toward the opening. A brown rice cold storage device with a rice mill according to item 1. 3. The storage device according to claim 1, wherein a discharge means of the storage hopper is provided with a measuring means for measuring an amount of brown rice supplied to the rice mill, or a shutter means for opening and closing the discharge port. Brown rice cold storage device with rice mill. 4. A peripheral gap is formed between the storage hopper and the heat insulating box, and cool air supplied into the heat insulating box from a cooling unit arranged outside the heat insulating box is directed to a relatively upper side of the peripheral gap. The brown rice cold storage device with a rice mill according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a guide means for flowing.