JP2005087664A - Rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a rice cooker in which the possibility of deformation of a steam generating means by temperature rise when the steam generating means turns empty of water during cooking rice is reduced. <P>SOLUTION: A temperature detecting means 24 is equipped at an upper part of a water container heating means 23 to sense whether the water exists or not in the steam generating means 5, and when no water is detected, the heating operation of the steam generating means 5 is stopped so that the possibility of the temperature rise or the deformation of the steam generating means 5 itself or its surrounding parts can be reduced. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a rice cooker that uses steam to cook rice.

  Conventionally, this kind of rice cooker already exists (for example, refer patent document 1).

This is because the rice cooker body is provided with a steam generation means comprising a water tank and a water tank heating means, and the water tank heating means is driven by a predetermined program during rice cooking to heat the water tank. Water in the tank is evaporated by heating, and steam is supplied into the pan.
JP 2003-144308 A

  However, in the conventional configuration, if the user does not accidentally supply sufficient water to the water tank of the steam generating means, and there is only a small amount of water in the water tank, the water in the water tank is not in the middle of cooking rice. There is a risk that the water tank itself and its surroundings will rise in temperature, causing deformation or failure.

  The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and even when the water of the steam generating means is exhausted during rice cooking, the steam generating means itself and its surroundings are heated and deformed or broken due to heating. The object is to provide a rice cooker that eliminates this problem.

  In order to solve the conventional problems, the rice cooker of the present invention has an empty detection means for detecting the presence or absence of water in the steam generation means, and stops the operation of the steam generation means by detecting the absence of water in the empty detection means. It is made to let you.

  As a result, even if the steam generating means runs out of water during rice cooking, the operation of the steam generating means is stopped, so that the steam generating means itself and its surroundings are heated and deformed or broken due to heating. And a more reliable rice cooker can be provided.

  In the rice cooker of the present invention, even when the water of the steam generating means is lost during cooking, the temperature of the steam generating means itself and its peripheral part is not increased due to heating and is not deformed or broken down. A high-quality rice cooker can be provided.

  1st invention is equipped with the detachable pan, the cover which covers the opening part of the said pan, the heating means which heats the said pan, and the steam generation means which supplies a vapor | steam to the said pan, The said steam generation means A water container for storing water, a water container heating means for heating the water container, and an empty detection means positioned above the water container heating means and in contact with a side surface of the water container, the empty detection means By using a rice cooker that stops the operation of the steam generating means by detecting the absence of water, it is possible to detect the temperature rise more sensitively even when the steam generating means runs out of water during rice cooking. The operation of the means is stopped, and the steam generating means itself and its peripheral part are not heated and deformed or failed due to heating, and a more reliable rice cooker can be provided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
1 and 2 show a rice cooker and steam generating means in Embodiment 1 as a reference example of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, a rice cooker body 1 includes a pan 2 for storing rice and water, a heating means 3 for induction heating the pan 2, a lid 4 for closing the opening of the pan 2, and a steam generating means 5 for generating steam. (Details are shown in FIG. 2). The lid 4 is provided with an inner lid 6 for sealing the upper opening of the pan 2, and an inner lid heating means 7 for heating the inner lid 6 is provided. A steam path 8 for guiding the steam generated from the steam generating means 5 into the pot 2 is provided in the lid 4, and the steam path 8 connects the steam generating means 5 and the pot 2 in communication. The control unit 9 controls the heating unit 3, the inner lid heating unit 7, and the steam generation unit 5. In addition, lid opening / closing detection means 20 for detecting opening / closing of the lid 4 is provided.

  In FIG. 2, the steam generating means 5 is detachable and has a substantially transparent bottomed water storage tank 10, an evaporation unit 11 that accumulates and evaporates water dropped from the water storage tank 10, and detects the amount of water in the water storage tank 10 with light. It is comprised by the sky detection means 12 to do. The water storage tank 10 is provided with a drip hole 14 with a stopper 13 at the bottom. The stopper 13 of the water storage tank 10 is pressed against the drip hole 14 by gravity or water pressure while the water storage tank 10 is detached from the water storage tank 15 to close the drip hole 14, and the water storage tank 10 is stored in the water storage tank storage 15. When set to, the stopper 13 is pushed up by a part of the water storage unit 15 and the dripping hole 14 is opened (state shown in the figure).

  The evaporation unit 11 stores water dripped from the water storage tank 10 through the water supply valve 16 and heats the evaporation unit 11 itself by the evaporation heating means 17 including a heater to evaporate the accumulated water. The evaporation unit 11 is supported by the evaporation unit support unit 18, the water tank storage unit 15, and the steam path 8. The control means 9 (FIG. 1) opens and closes the water supply valve 16 by operating the solenoid which is the water supply valve drive means 19, and performs and stops water supply. Water vapor generated by evaporation of water is supplied to the pan 2 through the steam path 8.

  The operation of the above configuration will be described. When the user prepares rice and water in the pan 2 and a predetermined amount of water in the water storage tank 8 and sets it in the rice cooker body 1, the user turns on the rice cooker and presses the rice cooker start button (not shown). The cooking process begins. When the rice cooking process starts, heating is performed by the heating means 3, the inner lid heating means 7, and the evaporation heating means 17 according to a predetermined program. When sufficient water is prepared in the water storage tank 8 before cooking rice, the heating steam generated by the steam generating means 5 at the optimal timing (for example, the unevenness process) is transferred into the pot 2 through the steam path 8 according to a predetermined program. To supply the necessary amount of heat to the rice. A sufficient amount of heat is given to the rice by the heating means 3 and the heating steam, so that delicious rice can be obtained. When the cooking process is completed, the process automatically shifts to a heat-retaining process, and the user can always obtain warm rice.

  When steam is generated by the steam generating means 5, the control means 9 first operates the water supply valve driving means 19 to open the water supply valve 16. When the water supply valve 16 is opened, water is dripped from the water storage tank 10. The control means 9 heats the evaporation heating means 17 to heat and evaporate the water supplied from the water storage tank 10. The water storage tank 10 is replenished with the same amount of water as the amount of evaporation. The steam generated in the evaporator 11 is further heated in the evaporator 11 to become heated steam, and the heated steam is supplied to the pan 2 through the steam path 8. When stopping the generation of steam, the control means 9 closes the water supply valve 16 and stops the operation of the evaporation heating means 17.

  The sky detection means 12 detects whether or not the light from the light emitting unit reaches the light receiving unit using the fact that the light is refracted by water, and determines the presence or absence of water in the water storage tank 10. The sky detection means 12 determines that there is water because light does not reach the light receiving part because the light is refracted if there is water in the water storage tank 10 up to the height at which the sky detection means 12 is installed. When there is only the following water level, it is determined that there is no water (empty). When there is water, the sky detection means 12 determines that there is water, and the steam generation means 5 generates steam. However, when there is little or no water in the water storage tank 10 in the initial stage, the empty detection means 12 determines that there is no water during rice cooking, and the control means 9 stops the generation of steam and during subsequent rice cooking Do not generate steam again. Therefore, an excessive temperature rise of the evaporation unit 11 can be reduced.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when the steam generation means 5 has the empty detection means 12 and the empty detection means 12 determines that there is no water, the operation of the evaporation heating means 17 is stopped, thereby 11 can be reduced, so that the temperature rise of the evaporation portion support portion 18 where the heat of the evaporation portion 11 is easily transferred to contact the evaporation portion 11 is reduced, and the evaporation portion support portion 18 rises in temperature. The risk of deformation can be reduced.

  Further, even when the sky detection means 12 determines that there is no water and the steam generation is stopped, when the lid opening / closing detection means 20 detects the opening / closing of the lid 4, steam generation is enabled again.

  Thereby, it is possible to cook rice using steam even when water is supplied in the middle, such as when the user does not supply water to the water storage tank 10 during rice cooking, when the lid 2 is opened and water is supplied. Usability can be improved.

  Further, the sky detection means 12 may be arranged at other locations as long as it can detect the presence or absence of water, such as by arranging the sky detection means 12 above the water storage tank 10 and utilizing reflection of light on the water surface in the water storage tank 10. Even if the sky detecting means 12 does not use light, and other means such as an infrared type, an electrode type, or a float type can be used, the same effect can be obtained if waterless detection is possible. Further, only a part of the water storage tank 10 may be substantially transparent. When light is not used as the sky detection means 12, it is not necessary to be substantially transparent.

  The evaporative heating means 17 may use induction heating or other means as long as it can heat the evaporation section and evaporate water.

  Further, the steam generating means 5 may be configured to heat the water storage tank 10 itself for storing water and generate steam or to recover and further heat steam generated during rice cooking.

  Further, the water supply valve driving means 19 may not be a solenoid but a motor or a buoyancy of water.

(Embodiment 2)
3-5 shows the steam generation means and display part of the rice cooker in Embodiment 2 of this invention. The same parts as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, description thereof is omitted, and only differences are described.

  In FIG. 3, the steam generating means 5 includes a water container 21 that is a detachable and substantially bottomed cylindrical container, a water container storage portion 22 that stores the water container 21, and a coil that induction-heats the water container 21. The water container heating means 23 and the empty detection means 12 are configured. The water container 21 is made of a magnetic metal such as iron, and the water container storage portion 22 is made of a resin component. There is a gap between the water container 21 and the water container storage unit 22. The heating coil which is the water container heating means 23 is fixed to the outside of the water container storage portion 22 and is arranged from the substantially same height as the bottom of the water container 21 to the middle height of the water container 21. The empty detection means 12 is disposed on the upper side of the water container heating means 23 so as to be in contact with the side surface of the water container 21 and is fixed to the water container storage portion 22. The sky detection means 12 includes a temperature detection means 24, a water container contact portion 25 disposed outside the temperature detection means 24, and a spring 26 that biases the temperature detection means 24 and the water container contact portion 25 toward the water container 21. Has been. The temperature detection means 24 is biased by a spring 26, so that even if the water container 21 is stored with a slight inclination, it contacts the side wall surface of the water container 21 in the same manner, and the detection sensitivity of the temperature detection means 24 is unlikely to become dull. doing.

  The operation of the above configuration will be described. When the user sets rice and water in the pan 2 and a predetermined amount of water in the water container 21, turns on the rice cooker, and presses a rice cooking start button (not shown), the rice cooking process is started. When the rice cooking process starts, the heating means 3, the inner lid heating means 7, and the water container heating means 23 are heated according to a predetermined program. When water is sufficiently supplied before cooking rice, the water in the water container 21 is evaporated by the water container heating means 23 according to a predetermined program as in the first embodiment to become heated steam. It is fed into the pan 2 and gives the necessary amount of heat to the rice. A sufficient amount of heat is given to the rice by the heating means 3 and the heating steam, so that delicious rice can be obtained. When the cooking process is completed, the process automatically shifts to a heat-retaining process, and the user can always obtain warm rice.

  If only a small amount of water is not supplied to the water container 21 before cooking, or if there is no water in the water container 21, the water container heating means 23 is operated according to a predetermined program during rice cooking. When the container 21 is heated, the water container 21 becomes waterless during cooking. When there is even a small amount of water, the amount of heat in the heated water container 21 is used for heating and evaporation of the water, so the temperature of the water container 21 itself does not increase, and is the boiling temperature of water. Although the temperature is about 100 ° C., when the amount of water becomes very small, the temperature of the water container 21 itself begins to gradually increase. Furthermore, when the water runs out, the amount of heat in the water container 21 loses its place, and the temperature of the water container 21 itself rises rapidly. However, by providing the empty detection means 12, the temperature detection means 24 urged by the water container 21 detects the temperature of the water container 21 via the water container contact portion 25, and a temperature above a certain level (for example, 120). When the temperature exceeds (° C.), it is determined that the water has run out, and the control means 9 stops the operation of the water container heating means 23 and reduces the temperature rise of the water container 21 beyond that. Therefore, the amount of heat transmitted to the water container storage unit 22 is also reduced.

  Moreover, in order to throw steam into the pan 2 at a predetermined timing during cooking, the temperature of water needs to be an appropriate temperature (for example, 95 ° C.) immediately before. Since the wall surface temperature of the water container 21 is nearly close to the water in the water container 21 by giving heat, the temperature detection unit 24 is used as the empty detection unit 12 to detect the wall surface temperature of the water container 21. The temperature of the water in the water container 21 can be detected. Therefore, steam can be reliably generated at a predetermined timing, for example, by gradually heating the water container 21 by the timing of steam input.

  As described above, by using the temperature detection means 24 as the sky detection means 12, it becomes possible to detect the temperature of water in addition to the sky detection, and it becomes possible to reliably control the timing of the introduction of steam. , Can improve the taste.

  The water container heating means 23 may be another heating means such as a heater, or may be disposed at the bottom of the water container storage portion 22. When not heating by induction heating, the material of the water container 21 may not be a magnetic metal.

  Further, when the water in the water container 21 becomes very small, the amount of heat that the water container 21 gives to the water gradually decreases, and the wall surface temperature that is not in contact with the water in the water container 21 gradually increases due to the surplus heat quantity. . However, since water still exists, the rise in the wall surface temperature of the water container 21 is relatively gradual unlike when there is no water. Further, the temperature at the bottom of the water container 21 still in contact with water does not rise. For this reason, the temperature detection means 24 which is the empty detection means 12 is configured on the upper side of the water container heating means 23 so as to be in contact with the side surface of the water container 21, so that the gradual temperature rise of the wall surface of the water container 21 as described above is achieved. The water container heating means 23 can be stopped before the water is completely detected. By stopping the heating with water remaining, the amount of heat stored in the water container 21 is quickly absorbed by the water, and the temperature rise of the water container 21 can be greatly reduced.

  As described above, by providing the temperature detecting means 24 as the empty detecting means 12 on the side surface of the water container 21 above the water container heating means 23, the water container heating means 23 is stopped while leaving a small amount of water. Therefore, the amount of heat given to the water container 21 is absorbed by the remaining water, and the temperature rise of the water container 21 itself can be reduced. Therefore, the temperature rise of the water container 21 can be further reduced, and the temperature rise and deformation of the water container storage portion 22 can be further reduced.

  In addition, by providing the empty detection means 12 on the side surface of the water container 21, foreign substances such as rice and rice are less likely to be caught between the water container 21 and the water container contact portion 25, and the detection sensitivity is not easily lowered. Furthermore, since the water container 21 is stored while being rubbed against the water container contact part 25 when stored in the water container storage part 22, it is possible to further prevent foreign matter from being caught.

  Further, the temperature detecting means 24 which is the empty detecting means 12 is arranged so as to be in contact with the heated portion 21a of the water container 21 in FIG. The heated portion 21a that does not receive can sensitively detect the temperature rise, so that the empty detection means 12 can more quickly detect that there is no water.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG. 4, when the water container 21 has a stepped shape in which the lower part is narrower than the part that contacts the water container contact part 25 during storage, Friction between the wall surface of the water container 21 and the water container contact portion 25 can be reduced. Therefore, the wall surface of the water container 21 and the water container contact part 25 can be uneven | corrugated and a damage | wound by friction, and it can reduce that detection sensitivity deteriorates and can provide a more reliable rice cooker.

  Moreover, by making the water container 21 into a stepped shape in which the entire circumference of the heated part 21a is narrowed, a wide distance between the heated part 21a and the water container storage part 22 can be secured, and there is no water and the covered part is covered. Even when the heating unit 21a is heated, the movement of the amount of heat to the water container storage unit 22 can be reduced, and the temperature rise and deformation of the water container storage unit 22 can be reduced.

  In addition, in order to make it difficult for the heat quantity of the water container 21 to move to the water container storage part 22, the part corresponding to the heated part 21 a of the water container storage part 22 is expanded to the outside, for example. The distance of the container storage part 22 may be ensured.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the water container storage portion 22 includes a passage 27 connected to the outside at the bottom so that air between the water container 21 and the water container storage portion 22 circulates with the outside air. For this reason, even when the temperature of the water container 21 rises, it becomes difficult for heat to be transmitted to the water container housing part 22, and the temperature rise and deformation of the water container housing part 22 can be reduced.

  In addition, when a foreign substance such as rice or rice enters the water container storage part 22, the foreign substance is easily discharged to the outside of the rice cooker main body 1 by the passage 27, and the foreign substance is removed from the water container 21 and the water container storage part 22. It is possible to easily transfer the heat quantity of the water container 21 to the water container storage unit 22 between the two, and to reduce the possibility of foreign matter adhering to the surface of the water container 21 and scorching. In addition, even if the channel | path 27 is provided in the diagonal direction or the horizontal direction, the inside of the water container storage part 22 should just be connected with external air.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the notifying means 28 includes an LCD 29. The LCD 29 also has a function of displaying information related to rice cooking such as the remaining rice cooking time. When the empty detection means 12 detects that there is no water during cooking, the LCD 29 turns on the display of “water container water shortage” so that the user does not sufficiently supply water to the water container 21 before cooking. This can be notified, and it can be urged to supply water to the water container 21 in advance in the next rice cooking. Thereby, the opportunity that the predetermined amount of water is not supplied to the water container 21 before rice cooking can be reduced.

  The notification means 28 may be displayed using other words, pictures, etc., or other means such as sound, voice, light, etc., or other methods such as blinking may indicate that water is insufficient. It only needs to be notified. Moreover, the alerting | reporting means 28 may be provided independently separately from the display means of the information regarding rice cooking, and may be integrated with some display means.

  In addition, when the lid opening / closing detection unit 20 detects the opening / closing of the lid 4, the notification unit 28 blinks the indication “Confirm water container” after the lid 4 is closed, and whether or not the user has put water into the water container 21. The chance that a predetermined amount of water is not supplied to the water container 21 can be reduced.

  As mentioned above, since the rice cooker concerning this invention can reduce the temperature rise and deformation | transformation of a steam generation part, it can be applied also to the other instrument using heating steam.

Sectional drawing of the rice cooker in Embodiment 1 of this invention. Cross section of the steam generator of the rice cooker Sectional drawing of the steam generation part of the rice cooker in Embodiment 2 of this invention. Sectional drawing which shows another example of the steam generation part in the rice cooker Top view of the display unit of the rice cooker

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Rice cooker body 2 Pan 3 Heating means 4 Lid 5 Steam generation means 12 Empty detection means 20 Lid opening / closing detection means 21 Water container 21a Heated part 22 Water container storage part 23 Water container heating means 24 Temperature detection means 27 Passage 28 Notification means

Claims (1)

A detachable pan, a lid covering the opening of the pan, a heating means for heating the pan, and a steam generating means for supplying steam to the pan, the steam generating means comprising: a water container for storing water; A water container heating means for heating the water container; and an empty detection means located on the upper side of the water container heating means and in contact with a side surface of the water container. A rice cooker that stops the operation of the steam generating means.

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