JP2007244672A - Fryer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fryer for preventing cooking oil temperature from decreasing, which is caused when a basket having food material is carried into an oil vessel. <P>SOLUTION: The fryer 1 has a heater 24 for heating the cooking oil stored in the oil vessel, an automatic lifting mechanism 30 for carrying the basket having food materials into the oil vessel, a detection means 28 for detecting temperature of the cooking oil, and a heater control means 40 for switching the heater on/off according to the temperature of the cooking oil so as to keep the cooking oil at a set temperature. The heater control means 40 retains the on state of the heater in conjunction with carrying operation by the automatic lifting mechanism 30. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fryer that is a dedicated cooking utensil for frying food such as meat, seafood, and vegetables with cooking oil.

  As a fryer for frying various food ingredients for deep-fried food, it has an electric heater that heats cooking oil and an oil temperature sensor that detects the temperature of cooking oil, and an electric heater according to the temperature detected by the oil temperature sensor Conventionally known is one in which the temperature of cooking oil is controlled to a desired set temperature by turning on / off the oil (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Here, as a technique for slowing down the deterioration rate of cooking oil and reducing its replacement frequency, Patent Document 1 discloses that the cooking oil temperature is set to a set temperature by increasing or decreasing the heater capacity in accordance with the cooking oil temperature. A fryer control technique that prevents the size from becoming extremely large beyond the above is disclosed.
JP 2002-320556 A

  However, in the prior art fryer, when the basket containing the ingredients is carried into the oil tank, the temperature of the basket and the ingredients contained therein is lower than that of the cooking oil. There is a problem that the temperature of the cooking oil is drastically reduced due to the food contained in the food.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the subject mentioned above, and aims at providing the fryer which can suppress the temperature fall of the cooking oil which arises when the basket containing a foodstuff is carried in an oil tank. .

  In order to achieve the above-described object, a fryer according to the present invention includes a heater that heats cooking oil stored in an oil tank, and an autolift mechanism that performs an operation of carrying in or out of a storage unit in which food is put into the oil tank. Detecting means for detecting the temperature of the cooking oil; and heater control means for maintaining the cooking oil at a set temperature by switching the heater to an on state or an off state in accordance with the temperature of the cooking oil. The heater is held in the on state in conjunction with the carry-in operation by the autolift mechanism.

  According to the above-described flyer, when the auto lift mechanism is controlled and the basket containing ingredients is carried into the oil tank, the heater is kept on and the cooking oil is heated by the heater. Can be compensated for by heating the heater and the cooking oil temperature is greatly increased when the basket containing the ingredients is carried into the oil tank. It can suppress that it falls.

  In the above-described flyer, the heater control means preferably keeps the heater in an on state for a preset time. According to this configuration, since the heater is kept on for a preset time after controlling the autolift mechanism so as to carry the basket into the oil tank, the cooking oil is heated and the basket containing ingredients is heated. It can suppress that the temperature of cooking oil falls significantly, when it carries in to an oil tank. Furthermore, when the preset time is exceeded, the heater performs on / off operation with respect to the normal set temperature by the control unit, so that the heater is kept on and the temperature of the cooking oil is prevented from significantly increasing. be able to.

  In the above-described fryer, the heater control means preferably cancels the heater on state when the temperature of the cooking oil reaches a predetermined temperature higher than the set temperature during a preset time. According to this configuration, when the temperature of the cooking oil exceeds a predetermined temperature, the heater is turned off and does not heat the cooking oil, so that the temperature of the cooking oil can be prevented from significantly increasing.

  According to the fryer according to the present invention, it is possible to suppress a significant temperature drop of cooking oil that occurs when a basket containing ingredients is carried into an oil tank.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a fryer according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a fryer 1 according to an embodiment includes a box-shaped cabinet 10 having an operation panel 14 on the front surface, an oil tank 12 housed in the cabinet 10, and an edible food stored in the oil tank 12. The heating unit 20 for heating the cooking oil to a temperature of about 150 to 180 ° C. and the auto lift mechanism 30 for taking in and out the basket 50 containing the food in and out of the oil tank 12 are provided.

  The operation panel 14 of the cabinet 10 is provided with a display 16 for displaying cooking oil temperature, error messages, and the like. The operation panel 14 is provided with a temperature raising button SW1, a temperature lowering button SW2, and a setting button SW3 for arbitrarily raising and lowering the temperature of the cooking oil. The operation panel 14 is also provided with a cooking start button SW4 and a cooking end button SW5 for putting the basket 50 into and out of the oil tank 12.

  The heater unit 20 heats the cooking oil in the oil tank 12 by extending from the electrical box 22 near the bottom of the oil tank 12 by being electrically supported at both ends of the oil tank 12 at both ends. The electric heater 24 and a swing handle 26 extending substantially horizontally from one end of the electrical box 22 to the operation panel 14 side are provided. When cleaning the oil tank 12, the user grips the swing handle 26 and tilts upward, whereby the electrical box 22 is rotated together with the electric heater 24, and the electric heater 24 can be swung up from the oil tank 12. An oil temperature sensor 28 made up of a thermistor for detecting the temperature of cooking oil is disposed near the base end of the electric heater 24.

  The auto lift mechanism 30 is provided to automatically carry the basket 50 into the oil tank 12 at the start of cooking of the food and automatically carry out the basket 50 from the oil tank 12 at the end of cooking of the food. The autolift mechanism 30 includes a movable member 32 disposed over the oil tank 12 from the back side of the electrical box 22, and a motor 34 (see FIG. 2) disposed inside the cabinet 10. . The movable member 32 has two support columns 32a erected from the inside of the cabinet 10 on the back side of the electrical box 22, and a frame member 32c is suspended forward from a plate member 32b fixed to the upper ends of the two support columns 32a. Configured. When the claw portion 52 provided at the tip of the basket 50 is hooked on the frame member 32c, the basket 50 is hooked on the frame member 32c. The movable member 32 is arranged to be movable up and down, and its vertical position is adjusted by a motor 34 inside the cabinet 10.

  In the fryer 1 having the above-described structure, a control unit 40 for controlling the operation of the fryer 1 is provided inside the cabinet 10. The control executed by the control unit 40 will be described with reference to a schematic circuit diagram shown in FIG.

  The control unit 40 is connected to the buttons SW1 to SW5 on the operation panel 14, and recognizes whether or not the buttons SW1 to SW5 are pressed by the user. The control unit 40 causes the display 16 to display the temperature specified by the user operating the temperature increase button SW1 or the temperature decrease button SW2, and the user presses the setting button SW3 while the temperature is displayed on the display 16. When this is done, the displayed temperature is set as the set temperature which is the control target for the cooking oil. More specifically, the displayed temperature is set as a set upper limit temperature that is a switching temperature for switching the electric heater 24 from the on state to the off state, and a temperature lower by 1 ° C. than the temperature is set to the electric heater 24. It is set as a set lower limit temperature that is a switching temperature for switching from the off state to the on state.

  An oil temperature sensor 28 is connected to the control unit 40, and the control unit 40 takes in the detection output of the oil temperature sensor 28 and recognizes the temperature of the cooking oil. Further, the control unit 40 is driven by a heater relay 42 that opens and closes the energization circuit of the electric heater 24 in accordance with the temperature detected by the oil temperature sensor 28 in order to adjust the temperature of the cooking oil to a set temperature set by the user. Output a signal. Here, when the heater relay 42 is opened by the drive signal from the control unit 40, the electric heater 24 is turned off and is not energized. Conversely, when the heater relay 42 is closed by the drive signal from the control unit 40, the electric heater 24 is turned on.

  The oil temperature adjustment process performed by the control unit 40 includes a normal oil temperature adjustment process that is normally performed and an oil temperature adjustment that is performed when the basket 50 containing the food is carried into the oil tank 12. There is processing. In the normal oil temperature adjustment process, when the temperature of the cooking oil rises to the set upper limit temperature set by the user, the control unit 40 switches the electric heater 24 from the on state to the off state. Moreover, the control part 40 will switch the electric heater 24 from an OFF state to an ON state, if the temperature of cooking oil falls to the setting minimum temperature set by the user. By performing such an oil temperature adjustment process, the temperature of the cooking oil is adjusted to around the set temperature set by the user. In addition, the oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket will be described later.

  When the cooking start button SW <b> 4 is pressed by the user, the control unit 40 gives a control current to the autolift motor 34 to drive the autolift motor 34 so that the basket 50 containing ingredients is carried into the oil tank 12. Here, when the cooking oil is not at a temperature suitable for cooking, the control unit 40 waits until the cooking oil is heated to a temperature suitable for cooking, and carries the basket 50 containing ingredients into the oil tank 12. The autolift motor 34 is driven. Further, when the cooking end button SW5 is pressed by the user, the control unit 40 gives a control current to the autolift motor 34 and drives the autolift motor 34 so that the basket 50 containing ingredients is carried out from the oil tank 12. Let In addition, the cooking time of the food may be set, and the time from the loading of the food may be measured with a timer, and the basket 50 may be automatically carried out when the set cooking time has elapsed.

  The control unit 40 is configured using microcomputer hardware and software. In addition to the input / output interface I / O and the A / D converter, a ROM (Read Only Memory) storing a program and data, A RAM (Random Access Memory) that temporarily stores input data and the like, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that executes programs, and the like are provided as hardware. The control unit 40 includes an oil temperature control means for turning on / off the electric heater 24 in accordance with the temperature detected by the oil temperature sensor 28, and an autolift mechanism control means for controlling the operation of the autolift mechanism 30. It is configured as.

  Next, an oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket executed by the control unit 40 when the basket 50 containing ingredients is carried into the oil tank 12 will be described. FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of the oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket.

  When the control unit 40 starts driving the autolift motor 34 in response to the pressing of the cooking start button SW4 by the user, the control unit 40 grasps that the car 50 is carried into the oil tank 12, and carries the car into the car. Start the oil temperature adjustment process for the hour. Here, when the controller 40 waits until the cooking oil is heated to a temperature suitable for cooking and drives the autolift motor 34, at the timing when the autolift motor 34 is driven, the car is loaded. Start the oil temperature adjustment process.

  First, when the electric heater 24 is in the off state, the control unit 40 switches to the on state, controls the auto lift mechanism so that the basket is carried into the oil tank, and simultaneously heats the cooking oil. At the same time, the control unit 40 sets a temperature obtained by adding α ° C. (3 ° C. in the present embodiment) to the set upper limit temperature set by the user as a switching temperature for switching the electric heater 24 from the on state to the off state. . At the same time, the control unit 40 starts measuring a timer that measures a predetermined time (S301).

  Next, the control part 40 determines whether the temperature of cooking oil is more than said switching temperature (S302). Here, when it is determined that the temperature of the cooking oil is not equal to or higher than the switching temperature, the control unit 40 subsequently determines whether or not the measurement time of the timer has reached a predetermined time (S305). Here, when it is determined that the timer measurement time is not the predetermined time, the control unit 40 returns to the process of step 302. As long as either of the conditions in step 302 or step 305 is not satisfied, the oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket is continued, and the electric heater 24 is forcibly kept on.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step 302 that the temperature of the cooking oil is equal to or higher than the switching temperature, the control unit 40 switches the electric heater 24 to the off state, stops heating the cooking oil, and is used for carrying in the basket. Is finished (S303). In this way, even in the oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket, the upper limit is set for the cooking oil temperature, so that the cooking oil is not heated to a higher temperature than necessary, and the cooking oil temperature is greatly increased. Can be prevented from rising. Thereafter, the control unit 40 starts a normal oil temperature adjustment process (S304). Here, the control unit 40 resets the set upper limit temperature set by the user as the switching temperature for switching the electric heater 24 from the on state to the off state with the start of the normal oil temperature adjustment process.

  In Step 305, when it is determined that the timer measurement time is the predetermined time, the control unit 40 ends the oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket. Thus, since the time for which the electric heater 24 is forcibly kept on is set to the predetermined time after the basket 50 is carried into the oil tank 12, the cooking oil is heated for a longer time than necessary. And the temperature of the cooking oil can be prevented from significantly increasing. Thereafter, the control unit 40 starts a normal oil temperature adjustment process (S304). Here, the control unit 40 resets the set upper limit temperature set by the user as the switching temperature for switching the electric heater 24 from the on state to the off state with the start of the normal oil temperature adjustment process.

  Next, the effect of the above-described oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket will be described in comparison with the prior art. FIG. 4 shows a timing chart when the food basket 50 is carried into the oil tank 12.

  When the cooking start button SW4 is operated by the user and the basket 50 containing ingredients is carried into the oil tank 12 by the auto lift mechanism 30, the temperature of the cooking oil starts to decrease. Here, when the normal oil temperature adjustment process according to the prior art is performed, the control unit 40 switches the electric heater 24 to the ON state when the temperature of the cooking oil has dropped by 1 ° C. from the set temperature. The result of this processing is indicated by a solid line in FIG. In the normal oil temperature adjustment process according to the prior art, there is a time lag until the electric heater 24 is switched to the on state after the basket 50 containing the food is carried into the oil tank 12, so the basket 50 containing the food is added to the oil tank 12. A sudden temperature drop of the cooking oil when it is carried in cannot be suppressed, and the temperature of the cooking oil is greatly reduced.

  On the other hand, when the oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket according to the above-described embodiment is performed, the control unit 40 forcibly turns on the electric heater 24 at the timing when the autolift motor 34 starts driving. Switch to the state, and then keep the on state. The result of this processing is indicated by a broken line in FIG. As soon as the autolift motor 34 starts driving, the heater is turned on, so that the temperature of the cooking oil decreases due to the heat of the cooking oil being taken away by the basket 50 and the food contained therein. The temperature of the cooking oil does not drop significantly when the basket 50 containing ingredients is carried into the oil tank 12 by supplementing with a typical heating. Thus, by suppressing that the temperature of cooking oil falls significantly, cooking time can be shortened and frying shortage can be prevented within a short cooking time.

  Moreover, in the oil temperature adjustment process for the time of carrying in the basket mentioned above, since there are few foodstuffs put into the basket 50, it suppresses that the temperature of cooking oil rises significantly. When the food material put into the basket 50 is small, the electric heater 24 is forcibly turned on, so that the amount of heat supplied by the electric heater 24 to the basket 50 and the food material put therein is excessive. As a result, the temperature of the cooking oil rises significantly. On the other hand, in the oil temperature adjusting process for carrying in the basket, as shown in FIG. 5, the switching temperature for switching the electric heater 24 from the on state to the off state is 3 ° C. higher than the set temperature set by the user. Since it is still set only by raising it, when the temperature of the cooking oil exceeds the switching temperature, the electric heater 24 is turned off and does not heat the cooking oil. Therefore, it can suppress that the temperature of cooking oil rises significantly.

  In addition, since the heating capacity | capacitance of the electric heater 24 is constant, it is especially preferable that the fryer 1 which concerns on embodiment mentioned above performs the said oil temperature adjustment process at the time of carrying in a basket. For example, if it is a gas type fryer 1, it can cope with the big change of the temperature of cooking oil by adjusting the strength of a thermal power. On the other hand, the fryer 1 according to the above-described embodiment cannot adjust the heating capacity of the electric heater 24 because the heating capacity of the electric heater 24 is constant. Therefore, it is particularly effective to execute the oil temperature adjustment process for carrying in the basket as described above.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the heater is forcibly turned on by raising the off temperature and outputting an on signal to the heater. However, both the off temperature and the on temperature are not forced to turn on the heater. May be increased (set upper limit temperature + α, set lower limit temperature + α). Since the heater is automatically turned on by raising the set temperature in this way, the same control as when the heater is forcibly turned on is obtained. As a result, it is not necessary to issue a special on / off signal to the heater, and it is only necessary to change the set temperature, thereby simplifying the control configuration.

It is a perspective view which shows the whole fryer structure which concerns on embodiment. It is a circuit diagram which shows roughly the internal circuit of a fryer. It is a flowchart which shows the oil temperature adjustment process at the time of basket carrying in. It is a timing chart which shows oil temperature change at the time of basket carrying-in. It is another timing chart which shows the oil temperature change at the time of basket carrying-in.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Flyer, 10 ... Cabinet, 12 ... Oil tank, 14 ... Operation panel, 16 ... Display, SW1 ... Temperature increase button, SW2 ... Temperature decrease button, SW3 ... Setting button, SW4 ... Cooking start button, SW5 ... Cooking end button, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 ... Heater unit, 22 ... Electrical equipment box, 24 ... Electric heater, 26 ... Swing handle, 28 ... Oil temperature sensor (detection means), 30 ... Auto lift mechanism, 32 ... Movable member, 32a ... Strut, 32b ... Plate member, 32c ... Frame member, 34 ... Auto lift motor, 40 ... Control part (heater control means), 42 ... Heater relay, 50 ... Cage, 52 ... Claw part.

Claims (3)

A heater for heating cooking oil stored in the oil tank;
An auto-lift mechanism that performs an operation to carry in or out a storage portion into which the food material is put into the oil tank;
Detecting means for detecting the temperature of the cooking oil;
Heater control means for maintaining cooking oil at a set temperature by switching the heater to an on state or an off state according to the temperature of the cooking oil;
With
The fryer characterized in that the heater control means holds the heater in an on state in conjunction with a carry-in operation by the autolift mechanism.   The fryer according to claim 1, wherein the heater control means holds the heater in an on state for a preset time. The heater control unit releases the heater on state when the temperature of the cooking oil reaches a predetermined temperature higher than the set temperature during the preset time measurement. 2. The flyer according to 2.

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