JP2006158802A - Rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To evenly and tastefully cook rice, to keep the cooked rice warm as it remains close almost fresh, and to preserve the cooked rice to be tasteful. <P>SOLUTION: An external pan 2 is provided while keeping a space section 3 on the outside of an internal pan 1, and the upper end section 4a of the internal pan 1 is combined and integrated with the upper end section 5b of the external pan 2 to constitute an internal pan unit 6. At the same time, a communicating section 7 which communicates with the inside of the internal pan 1 and the space section 3 is provided on the bottom section of the internal pan 1. In addition, the rice cooker is equipped with a water feeding means 17 which feeds water in the space section 3 when a lid unit 12 is closed by inserting the internal pan unit 6 in a main body 9, and a compressed air feeding means 18 which feeds compressed air. A heating means 10, the water feeding means 17 and the compressed air feeding means 18 are properly controlled by a control section 11 in response to a series of processes of rice cooking and heat-keeping. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a rice cooker aimed at finishing and preserving rice deliciously.

In rice cooker, in order to finish the rice deliciously and store it in good condition, (a) activation of water absorption by stirring in the inner pot during soaking and prevention of sedimentation of broken rice (b) inner by stirring during rice cooking Uniform temperature in the pan (c) Formation of crab holes that pass hot water when boiling (d) Maintaining high temperature of rice during steaming (e) Expelling surplus steam (f) Quickly lowering to warm temperature (g) Moisture (H) Heat the cooked rice quickly to a temperature around eating.
That is important.

  Most of the conventional rice cookers cook rice by heating the bottom of the inner pot, but the techniques shown in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 have been proposed for finishing rice with good taste and storing it with good taste.

  In the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, a container having a hole with a size that does not allow rice to pass through is provided in the inner pot, and in addition to heating the inner pot, steam is discharged into the inner pot, thereby filling the rice with steam. It is the structure which cooks rice in the atmosphere to do.

  Moreover, what is shown to patent document 2 is a structure which provides a net | network in an inner pot and throws the superheated steam into the space of the inner pot bottom part produced by this net | network. Further, although not shown in the drawing in Patent Document 2, the specification also describes a configuration that promotes the introduction of superheated steam by a blowing means.

JP 2004-57546 A

JP 2003-250700 A

  The patent document 1 is configured to place rice in a space filled with steam, and aims to uniformly apply the steam to the rice. Therefore, although it is suitable for the above-mentioned (d) high temperature maintenance of the rice at the time of steaming, it has no other effects and functions.

  Moreover, although patent document 2 is a structure which throws superheated steam into the space of the inner pot bottom part partitioned off with the net | network, the effect is the same as that of the said patent document 1, As mentioned above, (d) Rice at the time of steaming There is no effect other than maintaining the high temperature.

  (A) Activation of water absorption by stirring in the inner pot during soaking and prevention of sedimentation of broken rice is achieved by stirring the rice in the inner pot from the bottom during soaking, so that the broken rice concentrates on the bottom. And, while preventing the convection at the time of cooking from getting worse, it has the effect of activating the water absorption of rice.

  (B) The homogenization of the temperature in the inner pot by the stirring during cooking of rice has the effect of heating each part uniformly by stirring the inside of the pot during cooking and suppressing cooking unevenness and obtaining a uniform cooking of each part. is there.

  (C) The crab hole that becomes the passage of hot water at the time of boiling maintains the subsequent boiling by creating the crab hole that becomes the passage of hot water before the rice sticks out and cannot move freely. Hot water easily reaches the top in the process and has the effect of cooking evenly.

  (D) Maintaining the high temperature of the rice during steaming has the effect of promoting the alpha starching of the rice by maintaining the high temperature during steaming after the water is exhausted.

  (E) Expulsion of surplus steam blows surplus steam to prevent the surplus steam remaining between rice grains from being absorbed and sticky after the steaming is finished, and has the same effect as loosening with rice scoop .

  (F) Quickly lowering the temperature to the heat retention temperature has an effect of suppressing the quality change of the heat retaining rice by cooling the high temperature region where the rice is likely to be deteriorated and passing it quickly.

  (G) Keeping warm while supplementing moisture has an effect of supplementing steam evaporated from rice during the warming.

  (H) Heating the heated rice quickly to a temperature that can be eaten quickly has the effect of raising the heated rice to a temperature that can be eaten quickly.

  However, the conventional techniques shown in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 have a problem that all of these effects cannot be obtained.

  The present invention was made to solve the above-described conventional problems, specifically, an inner pot that is detachably inserted into the main body, an openable / closable lid unit that covers the upper surface opening of the inner pot, In a rice cooker provided with a heating means for heating the inner pot and a control unit for controlling the heating means, provided at the bottom of the main body, an outer pot is provided by holding a space outside the inner pot, The pan and outer pan are combined and integrated to form an inner pan unit, and a communication portion is provided at the bottom of the inner pan to communicate the interior and space of the inner pan, and the inner pan unit is inserted into the main body. When the lid unit is closed, water supply means for supplying water into the space and compressed air supply means for supplying compressed air are provided.

  According to the configuration of the present invention, when rice and water are put into the inner pot, the space portion communicates with the inside of the inner pot through the communicating portion, so rice does not enter the space portion, but water fills the space portion. . When the rice cooking soaking process is started, the control unit feeds the compressed air into the space by the compressed air supply unit while slightly heating the space by the heating unit. Since this space part and the inside of the inner pot communicate with each other through the communicating part, compressed air enters the inner pot from the communicating part and escapes to the upper part, so the rice and water in the inner pot are stirred, and the effect of (a) The water absorption of rice and the prevention of sedimentation of broken rice are made.

  Eventually, when the process of the rice paddy in the cooked rice starts, the control unit heats the water in the space with the heating means. As the temperature difference between the water in the space and the water in the inner pot increases, the exchange of water is promoted in the communicating portion, and the water temperature in the inner pot also rises. When the water in the space part eventually boils and the pressure in the space part increases, hot water spouts from the communicating part into the inner pot at once, and the water temperature in the inner pot also rises rapidly. The controller appropriately supplies the compressed air to the space by the compressed air supply means before and after boiling the water in the space. Thereby, the bubble of compressed air violently generate | occur | produces toward an upper part of an inner pot from a communicating part, and the water and rice in an inner pot which are the effects of (b) are stirred, and temperature is equalize | homogenized.

  Next, when the water in the inner pot boils, the rice becomes sticky and gradually becomes unable to move freely. At this time, the control unit feeds the compressed air into the space by the compressed air supply means. This compressed air pushes the rice out of the communicating portion and escapes to the upper part, and the rice is left as it is, so that the air escape passage remains as a crab hole which is the effect of (c). Thereafter, the crab hole portion has less resistance than the others, and the hot water at the bottom can be convected. Moreover, even if there is no water in the inner pot, water remains in the space portion, but the water in the space portion becomes hot water and passes through the crab hole and eventually disappears.

When there is no water in the space, the steaming process starts. It is necessary to maintain a high temperature for complete alpha starch formation. The control unit heats the space with the heating unit and simultaneously supplies water to the space with the water supply unit. Since the space portion is in an empty cooking state, when a small amount of water is supplied, it boiles and evaporates instantaneously, and the steam is heated to superheated steam at 100 ° C. or higher. The generated superheated steam passes through the crab hole to the upper part of the inner pot by the pressure. Thereby, the whole rice in an inner pot is maintained at high temperature with superheated steam. The control unit automatically performs this operation a plurality of times as appropriate during steaming, so that the effect of (d) maintaining high temperature can be obtained.

  When the steaming is finished, the control unit sends compressed air to the space portion, whereby the compressed air flows into the crab holes, and the effect of expelling excess steam between the rice grains (e) can be obtained.

  Furthermore, by continuing to send this compressed air, the rice can be cooled, it can be quickly lowered to (f) the warming temperature (about 75 ° C.), and further it can be lowered to near room temperature for freezing. it can.

When the temperature is kept at the heat retention temperature, the control unit keeps the inside pan hot and humid through the space part and the communication part by heating the heating means in a timely manner and supplying water to the space part by the water supply means. And can be kept warm while supplementing the water of (g).

Furthermore, by temporarily increasing the heating amount and the water supply amount, a large amount of steam can be generated in the space, and the effect of quickly heating the heated rice in (h) to a temperature around eating can be obtained.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a rice cooker showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a state where the lid unit of the rice cooker is opened and the inner pot unit is extracted for the same explanation.

In the figure, 1 is an inner pot, 2 is an outer pot, 3 is a space part, 4a and 4b are upper end parts, 5a and 5b are joint parts, 6 is an inner pot unit, 7 is a communication part, 8 is an introduction hole, and 9 is Main body, 10 heating means, 11 control unit, 12 lid unit, 13 seal packing, 14 steam hole, 15 water tank, 16 water introduction pipe, 17 water supply means, 18 compressed air supply means , 19 is an air introduction tube, 20 is an introduction hole packing, and 21 is a filter.

  Next, details of the components will be described.

An outer pot 2 is provided outside the inner pot 1 while holding the space portion 3, and the coupling portion 5 a of the upper end portion 4 a is coupled to and integrated with the coupling portion 5 b of the upper end portion 4 b of the outer pot 2. Unit 6 is configured.

  The inner pot 1 is provided with a communication portion 7 composed of a large number of small holes at the bottom thereof, and an introduction hole 8 is provided at the upper end portion 4a. The communication portion 7 and the introduction hole 8 are both space portions 3. It is supposed to communicate with.

  The inner pot unit 6 is detachably inserted into the main body 9, and the heating means 10 that heats the bottom of the outer pot 2 to heat the space 3 at the bottom of the main body 9 and the heating means 10 are controlled. A control unit 11 is provided.

  A lid unit 12 that covers the upper surface opening of the inner pot unit 6 is provided at the top of the main body 9 so as to be openable and closable, and the lower surface of the lid unit 12 abuts on the upper end 4a of the inner pot 1 when closed. 1 is provided with a seal packing 13 for closing the upper surface opening, and further, a steam hole 14 through which the steam in the inner pan unit 6 is extracted to the outside is provided from the lower surface to the upper surface.

  A water tank 15 is provided in the space on the rear side of the upper surface of the lid unit 12, and is connected to the introduction hole 8 of the inner pot unit 6 by a water introduction pipe 16. The water supply means 17 by which the valve | bulb (not shown) operate | moves by 11 is provided. The water tank 15 is not necessarily provided on the lid unit 12 side, and can be appropriately provided using a space in the main body 9.

  A compressed air supply means 18 that is operated by the control unit 11 is provided in the rear side space in the main body 9, and is guided to the introduction hole 8 by an air introduction pipe 19. A filter 21 is provided in the air suction portion of the compressed air supply means 18.

  In addition, an introduction hole packing 20 is provided around a portion of the lid unit 12 facing the introduction hole 8 so that supplied water and compressed air do not leak.

  Next, an actual use procedure will be described.

  The user opens the lid unit 12, takes out the inner pot unit 6 from the main body 9, puts a desired amount of rice into the inner pot 1, puts water in and washes the rice. At this time, rice does not enter the space 3 from the communication portion 7 but water enters.

  The cloudy sharpened soup can be drained from the upper opening by tilting the inner pot 1, and the water accumulated in the space 3 can be drained from the introducing hole 8 by tilting the introducing hole 8 downward. When this operation is performed several times and the washing of the rice is completed, the user adds or subtracts water using a water level line (not shown) printed on the side surface of the inner pot 1 as a guide. This cooked rice water also enters the space part 3 from the communication part 7.

  When the user inserts the inner pot unit 6 into the main body 9 and closes the lid unit 12, the space in the inner pot 1 is closed by the seal packing 13 and at the same time the water introduction pipe 16 and the air are introduced by the introduction hole packing 20. The passage of the introduction pipe 19 and the introduction hole 8 are connected without leakage. Thereafter, the user puts water into the water tank 15 and sets it in the lid unit 12.

Next, when the user operates a rice cooking button (not shown), rice cooking is started by the control unit 11, and the “immersion” step is first executed. Thereafter, the heating unit 10 is operated by the control unit 11, the outer pot 2 is heated, and the water in the space 3 is heated. For example, when the water in the space 3 is heated to 40 ° C., the heat exchange with the inner pot 1 is slight and does not increase so much from the initial water temperature. At this time, the control unit 11 operates the compressed air supply means 18.

  As a result, the outside air from which dust has been removed via the filter 21 is taken into the compressed air supply means 18, compressed and sent to the air introduction pipe 19. Thereafter, the pressure continuously supplied from the compressed air supply means 18 passes through the air introduction pipe 19 and is led to the space portion 3 through the introduction hole 8.

  The periphery of the introduction hole 8 is kept airtight by the introduction hole packing 20, and the path for the reverse flow of the water introduction pipe 16 from the introduction hole 8 is also closed by the valve of the water supply means 17. The only escape route is to push back the cooked water accumulated in the space 3 and pass through the space 7 between the rice in the inner pot 1 and the water.

  As a result, 40 ° C. hot water in the space 3 is exchanged with air in the inner pot 1 together with air, and the water absorption of the rice is promoted, and the broken rice and starch powder that easily settles at the bottom with vigorous bubbles are stirred. Is done. It is important to prevent precipitation because broken rice and rice starch are dissolved in water at the beginning of cooking to inhibit convection. The air that has passed between the rice and water escapes from the steam hole 14 to the outside air.

When the “immersion” process is finished, a process for heating to boiling starts. Control unit 11
Is heated strongly by the heating means 10 to heat the water in the space 3. The amount of water in the space 3 is small compared to the water in the inner pot 1 and becomes hot at once. For example, every time the water in the space 3 reaches 80 ° C., the compressed air supply means 18 is operated for a short time to exchange 80 ° C. hot water and water in the inner pot 1. At this time, since the inside of the inner pot 1 is agitated with bubbles, each part can be brought to a uniform temperature.

  Eventually, when the water in the space portion 3 boils, the pressure in the space portion 3 rises due to the steam, and the water is ejected from the communicating portion 7 into the inner pot 1, and the temperature in the inner pot 1 rises to boiling at once.

At this time, the rice has become sticky and has changed to a state in which it cannot move freely, and the control unit 11 operates the compressed air supply means 18 for a short time. The pressure supplied from the compressed air supply means 18 passes through the air introduction pipe 19, is introduced to the space portion 3 through the introduction hole 8, flows into the inner pot 1 from the communication portion 7, and pushes the rice upward. Exit. At this time, the rice is becoming more sticky, so that the air escape path is maintained as it is, and a crab hole-like hole remains.

  Moreover, the water in the space part 3 is heated and becomes hot water, reaches the upper part of the inner pot 1 through the communication part 7 and the crab hole, and is finished into a good cooked rice that is uniformly heated up to the upper part.

Eventually, when the water in the space part 3 is exhausted, the “steaming” process is started. Control unit 11
Heats the outer pot 2 in an empty cooking state by the heating means 10, for example, 150 ° C. At this time, the inner pot 1 does not reach a high temperature, so rice cannot be cooked. A small amount of water in the water tank 15 is supplied thereto by the water supply means 17. Then, it boils instantaneously and becomes steam, and the steam is further heated to become superheated steam at 130 ° C., for example.

The rice already has a “crab hole” that is a passage, so there is little resistance and the steam pressure in the space part 3 passes through the rice. By repeating this operation several times, for example, the rice can be maintained at a high temperature of 105 ° C., and can be finished deliciously.

  This completes cooking. Normally, the lid unit 12 is opened here for a meal with rice. However, if the lid unit 12 cannot be opened immediately according to a course preset by the user, the control unit 11 automatically opens it. The excess steam expelling process is carried out. In this step, the control unit 11 operates the compressed air supply means 18 for several minutes, and purges excess steam between the grains by flowing air between the grains of the cooked rice. This prevents the steam from sticking or sticking to the surplus steam and sticking.

  If you want to eat immediately, it is necessary to keep it at around 85 ° C, but if you want to keep it as it is, lower the temperature to 75 ° C. The rice can also be cooled by operating the compressed air supply means 18 by operating a not shown).

  In addition, when the temperature is kept, the control unit 11 performs timely heating by the heating unit 10 and water supply to the space unit 3 by the water supply unit 17, so that the inside of the inner pot 1 is heated and humid through the space unit 3. It is possible to keep warm while preventing moisture drying while supplementing moisture.

  Furthermore, by temporarily increasing the amount of heating and the amount of water supplied, a large amount of steam can be generated in the space 3 to quickly heat the heated rice to a temperature around which it can be eaten.

  As described above, in the present invention, the outer pot 2 is provided while holding the space portion 3 outside the inner pot 1, and the inner pot 4 and the outer pot 2 are combined and integrated to constitute the inner pot unit 6. In addition, when the communication potion 7 is provided at the bottom of the inner pot 1 to communicate the inside of the inner pot 1 and the space 3, and the inner pot unit 6 is inserted into the main body 9 and the lid unit 12 is closed, the space The water supply means 17 which supplies water in the part 3 and the compressed air supply means 18 which supplies compressed air are provided, and the heating means 10 and the water supply means are appropriately selected according to a series of steps of rice cooking and heat insulation by the control unit 11. 17 and the compressed air supply means 18 are controlled. (A) Activation of water absorption by stirring in the inner pot during soaking and prevention of crushed rice precipitation (b) Temperature in the inner pot by stirring during rice cooking (C) Formation of crab holes that serve as hot water passages during boiling (d) Steaming Maintaining high temperature (e) Expelling excess steam (f) Quickly lowering to warmer temperature (g) Keeping warm while supplementing moisture (h) You can get the effect of quickly heating warmed rice to a temperature around eating, The rice can be cooked uniformly and deliciously and kept warm in a state close to freshly prepared.

It is sectional drawing of the rice cooker which shows one Example of this invention. It is sectional drawing of the state which opened the lid unit of the rice cooker and extracted the inner pot unit.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inner pan 2 Outer pan 3 Space part 4a Upper end part 4b Upper end part 5a Coupling part 5b Coupling part 6 Inner pan unit 7 Communication part 8 Introduction hole 9 Main body 10 Heating means 11 Control part 12 Lid unit 13 Seal packing 14 Steam hole 15 Water Tank 16 Water introduction pipe 17 Water supply means 18 Compressed air supply means 19 Air introduction pipe 20 Introduction hole packing 21 Filter

Claims (1)

An inner pan (1) that is detachably inserted into the main body (9), an openable / closable lid unit (12) that covers the upper surface opening of the inner pan (1), and a bottom portion within the main body (9). In the rice cooker provided with the heating means (10) for heating the inner pot (1) and the control unit (11) for controlling the heating means (10), the space (3) is provided outside the inner pot (1). The outer pot (2) is provided and the inner pot (1) and the outer pot (2) are combined and integrated to form the inner pot unit (6), and the bottom of the inner pot (1) Is provided with a communicating part (7) for communicating the inside of the inner pot (1) with the space part (3), and the inner pot unit (6) is inserted into the main body (9) to close the lid unit (12). A water supply means (17) for supplying water into the space (3) and a compressed air supply means (18) for supplying compressed air. Rice cooker to be.

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