JP2008000393A - Rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an earth-conscious rice cooker capable of cooking rice tastefully as much as possible at a power consumption less than the present one. <P>SOLUTION: This rice cooker has a pot 2, a pot heating means 4, a pot temperature detecting means 5, an openable/closable lid 3, and a heat control means 6 controlling the pot heating means 4; at least one of the face of the lid 3 facing the pot and the inner face of the pot 2 is provided with a far-infrared radiation part 12 applying the far-infrared radiation effect by the temperature rise; and the heating of the pot heating means 4 by the heating control means 6 is controlled to an energy saving mode whose thermal dose is less than that necessary for cooking the rice when applying no far-infrared radiation effect. The far-infrared radiation part 12 thus radiates the far-infrared rays in cooking, the effect improves the heating efficiency of the rice cooking to promote the gelatinization of starch, or the main component of the rice, and lower the power consumption in the rice cooking and cook the tasty boiled rice while taking account of the global environment. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a rice cooker mainly used for home use.

  As traditionally told, to cook rice deliciously, it is recommended to boil it with a strong fire at once, saying “Do not take the lid even if you cry chopping choppa-koko”.

  In the current microcomputer-controlled rice cookers for home use, the microcomputer is equipped with a standard rice cooking sequence that is used to cook white rice into delicious rice. In general, trace the legend of “Introduction Choro Choro ~”, the soaking process of absorbing water into the rice, the cooking process of raising the temperature in the pan at once and boiling, and maintaining the boiling of rice starch It consists of a boiling maintenance process that gelatinizes and cooks rice, and a steaming process that steams the cooked rice and finishes the inside of the pan uniformly. After washing the rice, adding water and pressing the switch, it takes about 30-60 minutes. The rice is cooked automatically.

Here, the stronger the cooking power, the better the taste of the rice. In the cooking process, it is said that the rice is cooked by inputting a stronger heating power (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In addition, there is a configuration in which the amount of radiant heat from the lid heat radiating plate provided with lid heating means is increased so as to positively heat the rice surface portion in order to cook delicious rice (see, for example, Patent Document 2). . In addition, while the taste of rice is demanded in the present age, consideration for the global environment is also demanded. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the amount of power consumption during use and reduce CO ₂ emissions as much as possible. It has become an issue. When it is going to reduce the power consumption at the time of rice cooking, there also exists what carried out heating of each process over a long time with the electric power weaker than usual (for example, refer patent document 3).
JP-A-8-164066 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-257966 Japanese Patent No. 3299919

However, both of the above-mentioned conventional patent documents 1 and 2 try to cook more delicious rice by giving a large amount of energy to starch, which is the main ingredient of rice, to promote gelatinization of starch. There is no consideration for the environment, which increases the amount of power consumed during cooking and increases the amount of CO ₂ emission. Moreover, since the thing of patent document 3 reduces the power consumption at the time of rice cooking, of course, the taste of rice falls and rice cooking time is also extended.

  In this way, in order to cook rice deliciously, it is indispensable to supply enough energy to rice, so reducing power consumption and maintaining and improving the deliciousness of rice are contradictory. It was very difficult to achieve both.

  This invention solves the said conventional subject, and it aims at providing the rice cooker which can cook rice as good as possible with less power consumption than the present condition in consideration of the global environment. It is.

  In order to solve the conventional problems, the rice cooker of the present invention includes a pot for storing rice and water, a pot heating means for heating the pot, a pot temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the pot, The lid has an openable / closable cover that covers the top opening of the pan, and a heating control unit that controls the pan heating unit. At least one of the pan-facing surface of the lid and the inner surface of the pan has far infrared rays due to temperature rise. A far-infrared radiation unit that provides a radiation effect is provided, and heating of the pan heating means by the heating control means is controlled to an energy saving mode that is less than the amount of heating required to cook rice when the far-infrared radiation effect is not imparted. It is what I did.

  As a result, the temperature of the far-infrared radiation part rises during rice cooking and radiates far-infrared radiation. This makes it possible to cook good-tasting rice while taking into account the global environment.

  The rice cooker of the present invention can cook rice with as much good taste as possible with less power consumption than the current state in consideration of the global environment.

  The first invention is a pan for storing rice and water, a pan heating means for heating the pan, a pan temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the pan, and an openable / closable lid that covers the top opening of the pan. And a heating control means for controlling the pan heating means, and at least one of the lid-facing surface of the lid and the inner surface of the pan is provided with a far-infrared radiation section that imparts a far-infrared radiation effect due to temperature rise The heating of the pan heating means by the heating control means is a rice cooker that is controlled in an energy saving mode that is less than the heating amount necessary for cooking rice when the far infrared radiation effect is not given. Sometimes the temperature of the far-infrared radiation part rises and radiates far-infrared rays, so the effect increases the heating efficiency of rice cooking, promotes gelatinization of starch, which is the main ingredient of rice, and consumes more electricity during cooking To reduce environmental impact and consider the global environment Reluctant is also one that can raise cook a good rice of taste.

  In particular, the second invention is provided with a lid heating means for directly or indirectly heating the lid in the first invention, and the heating of the pan heating means by the heating control means is a far infrared radiation effect by the lid heating of the lid heating means. By controlling the energy-saving mode that is less than the amount of heating required to cook rice when not adding rice, as with the first invention, while reducing the power consumption during cooking than before You can cook delicious rice.

  In the third invention, in particular, in the first invention, the heating of the pan heating means by the heating control means is more than the heating amount necessary for cooking rice when the far infrared radiation effect by the heating of the pot is not given. By controlling the energy-saving mode to be less, it is characterized by cooking delicious rice while reducing the amount of power consumption during rice cooking compared to the conventional one. Therefore, as in the first invention, power consumption during rice cooking You can cook delicious rice while reducing the amount.

  In particular, the fourth invention includes, in any one of the first to third inventions, a rice cooking power consumption selecting means capable of selecting a rice cooking power consumption from a plurality of patterns, and a rice cooking power consumption selecting means. The energy saving mode using the pan heating means is set as the expected setting value for rice, and the energy consumption during rice cooking is reduced more than ever before in consideration of the global environment, without incurring the user's troubles and poor taste. You can cook delicious rice while letting it go.

  According to a fifth aspect of the invention, in the second aspect of the invention, in the second aspect of the invention, the heating control means sets the heating by the pan heating means to a lower heating amount than when the other mode is selected, and selects the heating by the lid heating means in the other mode. The heating control is performed so that the heating amount is larger than the time and the heating increment of the lid heating means is less than the heating decrement of the pan heating means. It can be positively heated, and without sacrificing the user's troubles and deterioration in taste, while taking into account the global environment, it reduces the consumption of electricity during cooking, while maintaining a good taste. You can cook rice.

  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)
FIG. 1 shows a rice cooker according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and shows an electric IH heating rice cooker as an example.

  As shown in the figure, in the main body 1, a pot 2 that contains rice and water and is detachably mounted, and a pot heating means that heats the pot 2 disposed so as to face the bottom side surface of the pot 2. 4 and a lid 3 that covers the upper surface opening of the pan 2 so as to be openable and closable. In addition, a pan temperature detecting means 5 that circumscribes the center of the bottom surface of the pan 2 and detects the temperature of the pan 2 is arranged, and the heating control means 6 inputs the temperature detected by the pan temperature detecting means 5 to heat the pot heating means 4. The pot 2 is heated by controlling the amount, and rice and water in the pot 2 are cooked. The lid 3 includes a lid heating means 9 and a lid temperature detecting means 10, and an inner lid 11 is disposed so as to face the pan 2, and the pan facing surface of the inner lid 11, the bottom of the inner surface of the pan 2, and At least one of the side surfaces is provided with a far-infrared radiation portion 12 that imparts a far-infrared radiation effect by applying a material with a high far-infrared radiation rate or coloring a color with a high far-infrared radiation rate.

  In the present embodiment, a case is shown in which the inner lid 11 is coated with a fluororesin having a high far-infrared emissivity, for example, a carbon resin mixed. As a matter of course, this coating may be applied only to the bottom and side portions of the inner surface of the pan 2 or to both the inner lid 11. The heating control means 6 inputs the detection temperature of the lid temperature detection means 10 and controls the heating amount of the lid heating means 9 to heat the lid 3.

  Furthermore, the lid 3 is provided with rice cooking power consumption selection means 7 that can select the power consumption when cooking a certain amount of rice before cooking from a plurality of patterns. In the case of selecting a mode with less power consumption at the time of cooking after adding rice and water, select the energy saving mode. Here, the choices of the rice cooking power consumption selection means 7 are the standard mode and the energy saving mode, but the powerful mode of cooking with a stronger heating power can also be selected. When the energy saving mode is selected by the rice cooking power consumption selection means 7, the process setting means 8 is designed so that the cooking power consumption is reduced, that is, the heating by the pan heating means 4 is lower than when the other mode is selected. The heating control means 6 is transmitted to the heating control means 6, and the heating control means 6 receives the sequence suitable for this energy saving mode and the outputs from the pan temperature detection means 5 and the lid temperature detection means 10 as inputs, and the pan heating means 4 and the lid heating means 9. Is to cook the food to be cooked in the pan 2.

  In the present embodiment, the sequence designed to reduce the power consumption during cooking, that is, the sequence designed so that the heating by the pan heating means 4 is lower than when the other mode is selected is dipping, cooking, maintaining boiling, Although the amount of heating of the pan heating means 4 in the steaming step is reduced in the rice cooking step consisting of steaming, the amount of heating in the dipping step, the cooking step, and the amount of heating in the boiling maintenance step may be reduced.

  About the rice cooker comprised in this way, operation | movement and an effect | action are demonstrated based on FIG. 4 prior to FIG. 2, FIG.

  FIG. 4 shows a general rice cooking process, which mainly includes a water immersion process A, a cooking process B, a boiling maintenance process C, and a steaming process D.

  In the water immersion process A, the heating control means 6 controls the pot heating means 4 to heat the pot 2 for a predetermined time so that the food in the pot 2 reaches a predetermined temperature. The water immersion process A is a process for sufficiently gelatinizing the center of the rice in the subsequent processes by immersing the rice in water having a temperature lower than the gelatinization temperature and allowing the rice to absorb water in advance. Next, after the water immersion process A is completed, the process proceeds to the cooking process B. In the cooking process B, the pot heating means 4 heats the pot 2 until the temperature detected by the lid temperature detecting means 10 reaches a predetermined temperature T2 (the temperature at which the food in the pot reaches approximately boiling). In this step, the pan heating means 4 is controlled by the temperature detected by the lid temperature detecting means 10. However, the pan heating means 4 is controlled to heat the pan 2 until the temperature of the pot temperature detecting means 5 reaches a predetermined temperature. It can be substituted.

  Then, after the cooking process B is completed, the process proceeds to the boiling maintenance process C. In the boiling maintenance process C, the heating control means 6 controls the pot heating means 4 so that the food in the pot 2 maintains the boiling state, and the pot heating means 4 heats the pot 2. And as the boiling maintenance process C passes, the water in the pan 2 evaporates, and when there is no water in the pan 2, the temperature of the pan 2 rises rapidly, and the detected temperature Ta of the pan temperature detecting means 5 is When the third predetermined temperature T3 (above the boiling point of water) is reached, it is determined that there is no water in the pan 2 and the process ends. This step is a step of gelatinizing rice starch, and the degree of gelatinization of rice after cooking reaches nearly 100%, but the degree of gelatinization is about 50 to 60% at the end of this step.

  Next, the process proceeds to the steaming step D. In the steaming step D, the detected temperature Ta of the pot temperature detecting means 5 is the second predetermined time t2 (usually around 15 minutes) so that the rice in the pot 2 can be kept at a high temperature close to 100 ° C. The heating control means 6 controls the pot heating means 4 so as to change at a predetermined temperature T2 (usually around 100 ° C.), and the pot heating means 4 heats the pot 2. The steaming process D is a process of gelatinizing the rice starch following the boiling maintaining process C. At the start of the steaming process D, the gelatinization degree was about 50 to 60%, but at the end of the steaming process, that is, rice cooking At the end, the degree of gelatinization reaches nearly 100%.

  FIG. 2 shows the rice cooking process in the normal mode of the rice cooker in the present embodiment. This realizes the general rice cooking process shown in FIG. 4 in the present embodiment. FIG. 3 shows the rice cooking process in the energy saving mode.

  First, after the user puts rice and water into the pan 2, if he wants to cook while suppressing the power consumption during cooking, the energy consumption mode is set from the cooking power consumption selection means 7 provided on the lid 3. And start cooking rice. The process setting means 8 sets a rice cooking sequence suitable for energy saving, and the heating control means 6 controls the same as the normal mode until the water immersion process A, the cooking process B, and the boiling maintenance process C as shown in FIG. When the rice is cooked and the water in the pan 2 is gone and the pan temperature rises to a predetermined temperature, the steaming process D is started. In the steaming process D, the temperature of the rice in the pan 2 is maintained at a high temperature close to 100 ° C. by heating the pan 2 by repeating ON / OFF for a certain time, but the heating amount by the pan heating means 4 is higher than that in the normal mode. The heating amount of the pan heating means 4 is weakened, and the ON time for a certain time is controlled to be shorter and longer than the normal mode, while the heating amount of the lid heating means 9 is larger than that of the normal mode. To control. However, at this time, the heating increment to the lid heating means 9 is controlled to be lower than the heating decrement to the pot heating means 4 in terms of the amount of power consumption. For example, as an example, the heating amount of the pan heating means 4 (e.g., rated power of 1200 W at 25% energization rate) is reduced by 30%, and the heating amount of the lid heating means 9 (e.g., rated power of 200 W at 30% energization rate) is 40%. increase.

  When rice is cooked under the control as described above, the rice in the pan 2 is efficiently heated by far-infrared radiant heat and gelatinization is promoted, so the heating amount by the lid heating means 9 is only slightly increased. Since the streets of the rice are greatly improved and the reduction of the heating amount by the pan heating means 4 can be complemented, the rice with good taste can be cooked even if the power consumption is reduced.

  In addition, as a rice cooking sequence designed to reduce the amount of power consumption during rice cooking, the heating by the pan heating means 4 is set to a lower heating amount than when the other mode is selected, and the heating by the lid heating means 9 is the same as when the other mode is selected. A sequence of heating amount or a sequence in which heating by the lid heating means 9 is not performed may be adopted, and in that case, although the amount of heating by the lid heating means 9 is slightly increased, the cooked rice does not reach a certain extent. Because the far-infrared radiant heat efficiently heats the rice in the pan 2 and promotes gelatinization, it compensates for the decrease in the amount of heating by the pan heating means 4 and can be relatively reduced in power consumption. You can cook delicious rice. Even when the lid 11 is not heated by the lid heating means 9, the temperature of the inner lid 11 is increased by steam or conduction heat generated during rice cooking, and the far infrared radiation effect from the far infrared radiation section 12 can be obtained. is there.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, by setting the energy saving mode, it is possible to use the power consumption less than the current amount as much as possible in consideration of the global environment without causing a disadvantage such as deterioration of taste to the user. Good-tasting rice can be obtained.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, the rice cooker in Embodiment 2 of this invention is demonstrated. Since the structure of the rice cooker is the same as that of Embodiment 1, the description thereof is omitted.

  The rice cooker in the present embodiment saves energy by the pot heating means 4 with the least amount of power consumption during cooking, using the expected setting value of the power consumption selection means 7 during rice cooking that can select the power consumption of rice cooking from a plurality of patterns. It is a mode.

  Thereby, since the expected set value of the power consumption selection means 7 at the time of cooking is set to the energy saving mode by the pan heating means 4, it is possible to save the user from the disadvantages such as trouble and deterioration of the taste. In consideration of this, rice with good taste can be cooked while reducing the amount of power consumption during cooking.

  In addition, it cannot be overemphasized that the said Embodiment 1, 2 is not restricted to an electric type IH heating rice cooker, and can be implemented also in the rice cooker of the other system controlled by a microcomputer. Moreover, the detection temperature in each rice cooking process, the process time, the energization rate per unit time, the input heating power of the boiling maintenance process for each amount of cooked rice, the boiling maintenance process end temperature, two additional cooking heating and the time of the interval, heating The rate of change of the amount is only an example, and can be changed variously according to the situation.

  As described above, the rice cooker according to the present invention can be cooked with good power as much as possible with less power consumption than the current state in consideration of the global environment, and is therefore required to be wrapped and heated from the entire surface. The present invention can also be applied to a rice cooker having a cooking function for solids other than rice, such as a baking function for bread and cake.

Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the rice cooker in Embodiment 1, 2 of this invention. The figure which shows the rice cooking process of the normal mode of the rice cooker The figure which shows the rice cooking process of the energy-saving mode of the rice cooker Diagram showing a general rice cooking process

Explanation of symbols

2 pan 3 lid 4 pan heating means 5 pan temperature detection means 6 heating control means 7 cooking power consumption selection means 8 process setting means 9 lid heating means 10 lid temperature detection means 11 inner lid 12 far infrared radiation part

Claims (5)

A pan for storing rice and water, a pan heating means for heating the pan, a pan temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the pan, an openable / closable lid for covering the top opening of the pan, and the pan heating means A heating control means for controlling the pan, and at least one of the lid-facing surface of the lid and the inner surface of the pan is provided with a far-infrared radiation portion for imparting a far-infrared radiation effect due to temperature rise, and the pan by the heating control means The heating means is a rice cooker that is controlled in an energy saving mode that is less than the amount of heating required to cook rice when the far-infrared radiation effect is not given. Equipped with a lid heating means for directly or indirectly heating the lid, and the heating of the pan heating means by the heating control means is necessary for cooking rice when the far infrared radiation effect by the lid heating of the lid heating means is not given. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the rice cooker is controlled in an energy saving mode smaller than the amount. The heating of the pot heating means by the heating control means is controlled to an energy saving mode that is less than the heating amount necessary for cooking rice when the far infrared radiation effect by heating of the pot is not given. Rice cooker. Either of the Claims 1-3 provided with the power consumption selection means at the time of rice cooking which can select the power consumption of rice cooking from several patterns, and made the desired setting value of the power consumption selection means at the time of cooking rice the energy-saving mode by a pan heating means Or the rice cooker according to item 1. In the energy saving mode, the heating control means sets the heating by the pan heating means to a lower heating amount than when the other mode is selected, sets the heating by the lid heating means to a higher heating amount than when the other mode is selected, and increases the heating of the lid heating means. The rice cooker according to claim 2, wherein the heating control is performed so as to be less than the heating decrement of the pot heating means.