JP2004159790A - Food service cart - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a food service cart capable of serving all foods put on a service tray at respective appropriate temperatures without biasing the arrangement of the foods on the service tray even in the case that there are a lot of foods to be served in a warm state or in the case that there are a lot of foods to be served in a cold state inversely. <P>SOLUTION: The food service cart is provided with a box body 2 having openings 2a and 2b to take the service tray 5 in and out on side faces, and a cooling means 10 for cooling the entire inner side of the box body 2. Inside the box body 2, two or more stages of shelf parts 6 to mount the service tray 5 where dishes 4a-4d capable of being induction heated are put on are provided. On the respective shelf parts 6, a plurality of induction heating coils 7a-7d are provided on respective prescribed positions, and a control means 13 for individually controlling the energizing state of the plurality of induction heating coils 7a-7d is provided. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a serving truck used when serving meals in hospitals, nursing homes, schools, and the like.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, as the serving car, a box having an opening for opening and closing the serving tray on the side and having an opening / closing door for opening and closing the opening is provided, and the inside of the box is vertically partitioned with a warming room and a cold room. 2. Description of the Related Art There is known a serving truck in which serving trays are provided in a plurality of stages that can be freely inserted into and removed from the warming room and the cold room through an opening (for example, see Patent Document 1). In this serving car, the middle part of the serving tray is inserted and engaged with a slit formed in the vertical partition so as to be freely inserted and removed. Thus, the food to be served in a warm state is placed on the storage room side of the serving tray, and the food to be served in the cold state is placed on the cold room side of the serving tray, so that the food to be served in the warm state and the food in the cold state are served. Foods are stored and transported at an appropriate temperature.
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2001-197943 A
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in this conventional catering car, when there are a plurality of foods to be served in a warm state, there is a problem that the warming temperature of each food cannot be set individually, and the food cannot be served at the most delicious temperature for all the foods. .
[0005]
In addition, as a composition of the food to be placed on the serving tray, if there are many foods to be served in a warm state, or conversely, if there are many foods to be served in a cold state, the food should be placed in the storage room side or the cold storage side of the serving tray. There is a problem in that the food is placed unevenly, and when the food is actually served, the center of gravity of the serving tray is biased and the balance is easily broken.
[0006]
Therefore, the present invention can be served at an appropriate temperature for all foods placed on the serving tray, when there are many foods served in a hot state, or conversely, when there are many foods served in a cold state. Even if there is, it is an object to provide a serving truck in which the placement of food on the serving tray is not biased.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a box having an opening on the side surface for taking in and out a serving tray and having an opening / closing door for opening and closing the opening, and a cooling unit for keeping the entire inside of the box cool. Inside, a plurality of mutually identical shelves on which a dish tray on which tableware capable of induction heating is placed is provided, and a plurality of induction heating coils are provided at respective predetermined positions on each shelf. And control means for individually controlling the energization state of the plurality of induction heating coils.
[0008]
According to this, a plurality of induction heating coils for induction heating the tableware are provided, and the energization state of the plurality of induction heating coils is individually controlled, so that the plurality of tablewares are respectively positioned on the plurality of dielectric heating coils. The foods stored in each of the plurality of dishes can be individually heated, that is, at individual temperatures or individual times, and the foods can be served at an appropriate temperature. Further, since the tableware is heated by electromagnetic induction heating to heat the food in the tableware, heat radiation to the surroundings is small, and the ambient temperature inside the box does not rise significantly. Therefore, it is easy to individually control the temperature of a plurality of dishes.
[0009]
In this case, if the plurality of induction heating coils on each shelf are provided corresponding to the number of dishes that may be heated among the dishes placed on the serving tray, all of the dishes placed on the serving tray are arranged. The food in the tableware can be served at the appropriate temperature for each, and even if there are many foods to be served in a warm state or vice versa, even if there are many foods to be served in a cold state, The distribution of food is not biased. At this time, if the energized state of the induction heating coil is controlled to the off state, the food is cooled by the cooling means, and the food in the tableware located on the dielectric heating coil is served in a cold state.
[0010]
In addition, it is preferable that the control unit performs the same energization state control on an induction heating coil provided at a specific position of each shelf among a plurality of induction heating coils provided on each shelf. According to this, when the tableware is placed on the serving tray such that the tableware containing the predetermined food is located on the induction heating coil at the specific position of each shelf, the food in the tableware has the same condition. And the temperature of the same food between the serving trays does not vary.
[0011]
In this case, an induction heating coil having the same inductance is provided at a specific position of each of the shelves, and the induction heating coils having the same inductance are connected in series to form a coil unit. It is preferable to perform the same energization state control on a plurality of induction heating coils constituting the coil unit by performing the energization state control on the other hand.
[0012]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Referring to FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a serving truck, which is used when serving meals in vehicles such as hospitals, nursing homes, schools, aircraft, and trains.
[0013]
The serving car 1 includes a box 2 having openings 2a and 2b on both left and right sides, and the openings 2a and 2b are provided with opening and closing doors 3 for opening and closing the openings 2a and 2b. With the opening and closing doors 3 opened, the serving tray 5 on which the dishes 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d containing the food are placed is taken in and out from the openings 2a and 2b.
[0014]
The inside of the box 2 is divided into two in the front and back and two in the left and right, and is divided into four spaces S1, S2, S3 and S4. Each of the four spaces S1, S2, S3, and S4 is provided with a six-stage shelf 6 having the same shape, and the shelf is provided with a serving tray that is put in and out of the openings 2a and 2b. 5 is placed. Thereby, 24 serving trays 5 can be served at once by the serving truck 1.
[0015]
Each of these shelves 6 is formed of a plate-like body made of an insulating material, and as shown in FIG. 2, both corners on the far side (upper side in FIG. 2) as viewed from the openings 2a and 2b are omitted. At the same time, the center of the front end (the lower side in FIG. 2) when viewed from the openings 2a and 2b is notched. Further, four induction heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d are fixedly provided on the lower surface of each shelf portion 6. An induction heating coil 7a for induction heating the main dish 4a for holding the main dish is provided on the right side on the far side as viewed from the openings 2a and 2b side, and induction heating for induction heating the sub dish 4b for putting the side dish on the left side. A coil 7b is provided. An induction heating coil 7c is provided on the right side of the openings 2a and 2b for inductively heating a soup bowl 4c for containing soup such as miso soup, and an induction heating coil for induction heating a rice bowl 4d for containing rice and the like on the left side. A coil 7d is provided (see FIG. 3).
[0016]
The induction heating coils 7a of the respective shelves 6 have the same inductance, and similarly, the induction heating coils 7b, 7c, and 7d have the same inductance. .
[0017]
In the vicinity of each of the induction heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d, a thermostat (not shown) for detecting heat near the coils is provided, and when the thermostat detects a temperature equal to or higher than a predetermined value, induction heating is performed. It stops to prevent abnormal overheating. Thereby, the tableware 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d and the serving tray due to overheating of the tableware 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d and the conduction of the heat when the food is not stored in the tableware 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d. 5 is prevented from being damaged.
[0018]
Further, a limit switch 9 for detecting whether or not the serving tray 5 is placed on the back side of each shelf 6 is provided, and thereby, how many of the 24 shelves 6 are provided. It can be detected whether the serving tray 5 is placed on the shelf 6.
[0019]
A cooling device 10 is provided at the lowermost portion inside the box 2, and the inside of the box 2 is entirely cooled and kept cool by the cooling device 10. Specifically, the cooling device 10 is of a refrigerant circulation type, and cool air from the cooling device 10 is provided at both corners on the far side and the center on the near side when viewed from the openings 2a and 2b of the respective shelves 6 described above. The entirety of the inside of the box 2 is spread through the notch.
[0020]
Referring to FIG. 4, the serving tray 5 placed on the shelf 6 has a main vegetable bowl 4 a at a position above the induction heating coil 7 a when the tray 5 is placed on the shelf 6. A positioning ridge 5a is provided, and the main dish 4a is positioned by fitting a lower end portion of the main dish 4a inside the positioning ridge 5a. Positioning protrusion 5a for Shunawan 4a includes a protrusion 5a ₁ for circular main dish bowl 4a, it is composed of a protrusion 5a ₂ for main dish bowl 4a rectangle. At the position where the tray 5 is placed on the induction heating coil 7b when the tray 5 is placed on the shelf 6, a positioning ridge 5b for the auxiliary vegetable bowl 4b is provided, and inside the positioning ridge 5b. When the lower end of the side dish 4b is fitted, the side dish 4b is positioned. A positioning ridge 5c for the soup bowl 4c is provided at a position above the induction heating coil 7c when the tray 5 is placed on the shelf 6, and a soup bowl is provided inside the positioning ridge 5c. By fitting the lower end of 4c, the soup bowl 4c is positioned. A positioning ridge 5d for a rice bowl 4d is provided at a position above the induction heating coil 7d when the tray 5 is placed on the shelf 6, and a rice bowl is provided inside the positioning ridge 5d. By fitting the lower end of 4d, the rice bowl 4d is positioned. Positioning protrusion 5d for Meshiwan 4d includes a protrusion 5d ₁ for small Meshiwan 4d, is composed of a protrusion 5d ₂ for Meshiwan 4d Medium.
[0021]
The main vegetable bowl 4a and the auxiliary vegetable bowl 4b placed on the serving tray 5 are configured by attaching a magnetic material capable of induction heating to the lower surface of a ceramic bowl. The soup bowl 4c and the rice bowl 4d have a two-layer structure, of which the inner layer is made of stainless steel which can be induction-heated and has a high thermal conductivity, and the outer layer has high heat resistance and an inner layer. It is formed of a polybutylene terephthalate resin having a lower thermal conductivity than the layer. It should be noted that tableware other than such a configuration can be placed on the serving tray 5 as long as the tableware can be induction-heated.
[0022]
Casters 11 are provided at four corners on the lower surface of the box 2, and handles 12 are provided on the upper surface of the box 2 in front and rear. Thus, the serving car 1 can be moved when the operator presses the serving car 1 while holding the handle 12 by hand.
[0023]
Next, a control system of the serving car 1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, a control unit 13 for performing overall control is provided. The control unit 13 includes a CPU 13a for performing arithmetic processing, a ROM 13b for storing a control program and fixed data read out by the CPU 13a, and a work of the CPU 13a. And a RAM 13c serving as an area. The control unit 13 includes a main dish drive circuit 14a for driving the induction heating coil 7a for the main dish 4a, and a sub-rice bowl drive circuit 14b for driving the induction heating coil 7b for the sub dish 4b. A drive circuit 14c for the soup bowl for driving the induction heating coil 7c for the soup bowl 4c and a drive circuit 14d for the rice bowl for driving the induction heating coil 7d for the soup bowl 4d are connected to each other. Is controlled by Further, the thermostat and the limit switch 9 and an operation unit 15 for an operator to operate are also connected to the control unit 13, and the respective detection result signals and operation signals are sent to the control unit 13.
[0024]
The drive circuit 14a for the main dish is connected to an induction heating coil 7a for the main dish 4a of each shelf 6, a coil unit 16a in which a total of 24 coils are connected in series to each other. By controlling the drive circuit 14a, the same energization state control can be performed on the 24 induction heating coils 7a constituting the coil unit 16a. Similarly, an induction heating coil 7b for the sub-bowl 4b of each shelf 6, a coil unit 16b in which a total of 24 units are connected in series to each other, are connected to the sub-bowl drive circuit 14b. By controlling the main-bowl drive circuit 14b, the same energization state control can be performed on the 24 induction heating coils 7b constituting the coil unit 16b. Similarly, the soup bowl drive circuit 14c is connected to a coil unit 16c in which a total of 24 induction heating coils 7c for soup bowls 4c of each shelf 6 are connected in series to each other. By controlling the bowl drive circuit 14c, the same energization state control can be performed on the 24 induction heating coils 7c constituting the coil unit 16c. Similarly, the rice bowl drive circuit 14d is connected to a coil unit 16d in which a total of 24 induction heating coils 7d for the rice bowl 4d of each shelf 6 are connected in series to each other. By controlling the bowl drive circuit 14d, the same energization state control can be performed on the 24 induction heating coils 7d constituting the coil unit 16d.
[0025]
Next, the operation of the serving truck 1 will be described.
[0026]
First, the main dish, side dish, soup, and rice cooked in advance are rapidly cooled, and are served on the main dish 4a, the side dish 4b, the soup bowl 4c, and the rice bowl 4d, respectively. The main dish 4a, the side dish 4b, the soup bowl 4c, and the rice bowl 4d on which foods are placed are placed at predetermined positions on the serving tray 5. Specifically, the tableware 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d are positioned so that the lower ends of the tableware 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d fit into the positioning ridges 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d of the serving tray 5. A bowl containing food that does not need to be heated, for example, a small bowl containing pickles may be placed between the soup bowl 4c and the rice bowl 4d.
[0027]
The serving tray 5 on which the dishes 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d are placed is placed on the shelf 6 in the box 2 from the openings 2a and 2b with the opening / closing door 3 opened. Subsequently, when the opening / closing door 3 is closed and the operator performs a predetermined operation on the operation unit 15, the cooling device 10 is driven under the control of the control unit 13, and the inside of the box 2 is entirely cooled, and the cold storage state is established. Become.
[0028]
When the serving time approaches, the operator performs a predetermined operation on the operation unit 15 or by a predetermined timer function, under the control of the control unit 13, the drive circuit 14 a for the main vegetable bowl, the drive circuit 14 b for the auxiliary vegetable bowl, The drive circuit 14c for the soup bowl and the drive circuit 14d for the rice bowl are driven, and the energization control for each of the induction heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d is performed. At this time, energization control for each of the induction heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d is individually performed by each of the drive circuits 14a, 14b, 14c, 14d. Therefore, the foods respectively stored in the dishes 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d that are induction-heated by the induction heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, and 7d can be individually heated at different temperatures, and can be heated differently. Can be warmed individually over time. In addition, the energized state of each of the induction heating coils 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d can be individually controlled to an off state. In this case, the food corresponding to the off-state coil is kept cool by the cool air from the cooling device 10. Served in a cold condition. Further, in order to make the heating completion time substantially the same, the heating start time is shifted and the tableware 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d by the induction heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d is shifted in consideration of the difference in the heating time depending on the food. A warming process can also be performed.
[0029]
In the energization control for each of the induction heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d, the number of the serving trays 5 actually loaded on the shelf 6 detected by the limit switch 9 is taken into consideration. The tableware 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d on the tray 5 is set so as not to overheat even when the number of the dishes 5 is small.
[0030]
In this manner, all the foods stored in the tableware 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d on the serving tray 5 are heated to the appropriate temperatures. Then, the opening / closing door 3 is opened, the serving tray 5 is taken out of the box 2, and the serving operation is performed.
[0031]
In the above embodiment, the same energization state control is performed for the induction heating coils provided at the same position on each shelf 6, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a drive circuit is provided for each of the plurality of dielectric heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d of each shelf 6, and the energization control is individually performed for each of the coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d. Is also good.
[0032]
Further, in the above embodiment, the four dielectric heating coils 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d are provided on one shelf, but the present invention is not limited to this, and is placed on the serving tray 5, for example. It is possible to change the number of dielectric heating coils to correspond to the number of dishes that may be heated.
[0033]
It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can be variously modified as needed.
[0034]
【The invention's effect】
As is clear from the above description, the present invention includes a plurality of induction heating coils for induction heating of tableware, and the energization state of the plurality of induction heating coils is individually controlled. , The foods contained in the plurality of dishes can be individually heated, that is, at individual temperatures or individual times, and the foods can be served at an appropriate temperature. Further, since the tableware is heated by electromagnetic induction heating to heat the food in the tableware, heat radiation to the surroundings is small, and the ambient temperature inside the box does not rise significantly. Therefore, it is easy to individually control the temperature of a plurality of dishes.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a serving car according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a top view showing a state where a part of a shelf is removed. FIG. 3 is a top view showing a state where a serving tray is placed on the shelf. 4: Top view of serving tray [Fig. 5] Block diagram showing control system of serving car [Explanation of reference numerals]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Serving car 2 Box 6 Shelf 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d Induction heating coil 10 Cooling device

Claims (4)

A box having an opening for opening and closing the serving tray and having an opening / closing door for opening and closing the opening, and a cooling means for keeping the entire inside of the box cool are provided. A plurality of shelves having the same shape are provided on the placed serving tray, and a plurality of induction heating coils are provided at respective predetermined positions on each shelf, and the energized state of the plurality of induction heating coils is controlled. A serving truck provided with control means for controlling individually. The serving car according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of induction heating coils on each of the shelves are provided corresponding to the number of dishes that may be heated among the dishes placed on the serving tray. . The said control means performs the same electricity supply state control about the induction heating coil provided in the specific position of each shelf among the several induction heating coils provided in each shelf. 2. The serving truck according to 2. An induction heating coil having the same inductance is provided at a specific position on each of the shelves, and the induction heating coils having the same inductance are connected in series to form a coil unit. The serving truck according to claim 3, wherein the same energization state control is performed for a plurality of induction heating coils constituting the coil unit by performing the state control.

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