JP2011217997A - Rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce power consumption through thermal energy reduction by using heat radiation of a control means forcibly cooled during rice cooking, steaming and heat insulation.SOLUTION: This rice cooker 1 includes a pot 3 for putting rice to be cooked; a rice cooker body 2 having an opening for storing the pot 3, a heating means 5 for heating the rice to be cooked in the pot 3, and a control means 8A controlling the heating means 5 to perform cooking of the rice to be cooked and heat insulation control; and a cover body 4 blocking the pot 3 and the opening of the rice cooker body 2. A heat radiating fin 14 of the control means 8A is enlarged and extended to a predetermined part of the rice cooker body 2. The heat radiating fin 14 which is a heat radiating fin 14 for control IC constituting the control means 8A, or a heat radiating fin 14 of an inverter 9, is extended to a bottom part 23 of the rice cooker body 2 and extended and enlarged to cover a greater part of the bottom part 23 of the rice cooker body 2. Thermal energy radiated by the heat radiating fin 14 is utilized for water absorption or heat insulation.

Description

  The present invention relates to a rice cooker, and particularly to a rice cooker that realizes energy saving.

In recent years, the issue of global warming and environmental pollution has entered an era in which it must be solved as a top priority on a global scale. Of these, it is said that global warming is one of the causes of frequent natural disasters. Therefore, global warming prevention, that is, numerical targets for CO ₂ emissions, have been set in countries and regions around the world. Various measures have been launched. In Japan, efforts are being made to achieve reduction targets under the Kyoto Protocol.

  Under such circumstances, electric appliances used in general households are also subject to this, and electric rice cookers are urgently required to save energy, and various rice cookers with various energy saving measures have been developed so far. Yes.

  By the way, such a rice cooker can cook rice according to liking using control ICs, such as a microcomputer. Since various electronic parts including a large number of semiconductor elements are mounted on the control board on which the control IC is mounted, some of these parts generate heat during operation, and in the vicinity of the control board. Heat from the heating source for rice cooking is applied, and the temperature of the control board rises, which may affect the electronic parts on the board and cause the electronic parts to malfunction or break.

  For this reason, heat sinks are provided in electronic components mounted on the control board that generate a large amount of heat. On the other hand, in order to control the temperature inside the rice cooker, the main body of the rice cooker is provided with an intake hole for taking in outside air and an exhaust hole for discharging it, and a cooling means such as a cooling fan is further installed to forcibly cool.

  For example, in the rice cooker disclosed in Patent Document 1 below, as shown in FIG. 5, an inner pot 107 is detachably stored in the rice cooker body 101, and a predetermined amount is provided outside the inner pot 107. A protective frame 108 is provided along the shape of the inner pot 107 with a gap therebetween, and induction coils 112 to 114 for heating the inner pot 107 are provided outside the protective frame 108, and the protective frame 108 and A vacuum heat insulating material 121 is provided outside the induction coils 112 to 114 so as to cover a bottom portion and a peripheral side portion of the protective frame 108, and the inner pot 107 and the protective frame 108 are disposed outside the vacuum heat insulating material 121. A pan cooling fan 129 for blowing air in the gap S1 is provided.

  And at the time of rice cooking, it blows with respect to clearance gap S2 formed between the protective frame 108 and the vacuum heat insulating material 121, cools the induction coils 112-114, and protects with the inner pot 107 at the time of the transition from rice cooking completion to a suitable temperature heat insulation. The air blowing direction from the fan 129 is switched so as to cool the inner pot 107 by blowing air to the gap S1 between the frame 108, and energy saving is achieved by reducing power consumption during cooking and heat retention. . Reference numeral 137 denotes a power supply board, and 138 denotes a cooling fan.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG. 6, the rice cooker disclosed by the following patent document 2 has the rice cooker main body 201, the cover body 207 which covers the upper surface opening part of the rice cooker main body 201 so that opening and closing is possible, and this lid body. To heat the lid temperature detecting means 225, the inner pot 204 detachably accommodated in the rice cooker body 201, the inner pot temperature detecting means 215 contacting the inner pot 204, and the food in the inner pot. The heating means 206, the inner pot temperature detecting means 215, and the lid temperature detecting means 225 are used to control the heating means 206 based on the information, and the control means 211 has a function of cooking the food in the inner pot, and the control means 211. And the cooling fan 216 which sends in the air for cooling the inside of the rice cooker main body 201 is provided, and has a function which stops rotation of the cooling fan 216 in a water immersion process or a steaming process.

  According to the rice cooker disclosed in the following Patent Document 2, since the rotation of the cooling fan 216 is stopped in the water immersion process or the steaming process, the influence on the detection accuracy of the inner pan temperature detection means 215 due to the temperature of the air outside the rice cooker. And the detection accuracy can be increased, so that the heating of the rice can be appropriately performed without excess and deficiency, and the energy loss can be reduced while the cooling fan 216 stops rotating. Play.

JP 2006-288918 A JP2007-130208A

  Thus, like the rice cooker currently disclosed by the said patent document 1 or 2, it blows with respect to the clearance gap formed between the protective frame and the vacuum heat insulating material at the time of rice cooking, an induction coil is cooled, and rice cooking At the time of transition from the end to the appropriate temperature insulation, the control means in the submerged process or the steaming process is switched or the air blowing direction from the fan is switched so as to cool the inner pot by sending air to the gap between the inner pot and the protective frame There are also known devices that require an energy saving effect by stopping the fan that cools the pan of the rice cooker body.

  In the case of these rice cookers, if the cooling fan is not operated in a timely manner, the inside of the rice cooker body may be cooled more than necessary, leading to energy loss. On the other hand, for the heat generation of the electronic components mounted on the control board, the cooling means is installed and forcibly cooled, but there is no known one that effectively uses the generated heat energy.

  The inventor of the present application pays attention to the use of heat generated from the control board from the viewpoint of energy saving, and as a result of various studies, the heat loss of the entire rice cooker can be reduced by effectively using the heat energy generated by the electronic components. It has been found that the energy consumption can be reduced and the rice cooker according to the present invention has been completed.

  That is, the present invention effectively uses the heat of the control IC that has been forcibly released to the outside of the rice cooker during water absorption, rice cooking, steaming, and heat retention to reduce heat energy released to the outside. The purpose is to provide a rice cooker that reduces the total power consumption.

  In order to achieve the above object, a rice cooker according to claim 1 of the present invention is a pan for putting a cooked rice, an opening for housing the pan, a heating means for heating the cooked rice in the pan, and the heating. In the rice cooker comprising a rice cooker body having a control means for controlling the means and performing rice cooking and heat retention control of the cooked rice, and a lid for closing the opening of the pan and the rice cooker body. The heat dissipating fin of the electronic component is enlarged and extended to a predetermined location in the rice cooker body, and the heat energy released by the heat dissipating fin is used for water absorption or heat retention.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the rice cooker according to the first aspect, the radiating fin is a radiating fin of a control IC constituting the control means.

  A third aspect of the present invention is the rice cooker according to the first aspect, wherein the radiating fin is a radiating fin of an inverter constituting the control means.

  Invention of Claim 4 is the rice cooker of any one of Claim 1 thru | or 3, The said thermal radiation fin is extended to the bottom part of the said rice cooker main body, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  Invention of Claim 5 is the rice cooker of any one of Claim 1 thru | or 3, The said radiation fin is extended and expanded so that most of the bottom part of a rice cooker main body may be coat | covered, It is characterized by the above-mentioned. To do.

  The invention of claim 6 is the rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the rice cooker body includes a cooling fan for cooling the control means, and the control means controls the cooling fan. Then, the cooling fan is driven during a period in which the temperature inside the rice cooker body is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, and the cooling fan is stopped during a period equal to or lower than the predetermined temperature.

  The invention of claim 7 is the rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the control means includes a cooling fan for cooling the control means, and the cooling fan is cooked by the control means. It is controlled so that it is sometimes driven and stopped when water is absorbed or kept warm.

  The invention of claim 8 is the rice cooker according to claim 6 or 7, further comprising an outside air temperature sensor for detecting an outside air temperature in the rice cooker body or the lid body, and by the detection output of the outside air temperature sensor, The control means controls the cooling fan to drive when the outside air temperature is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature and to stop when the outside air temperature is equal to or lower than the predetermined temperature.

  By providing the above configuration, the present invention has the following excellent effects. That is, according to invention of Claim 1, the cooking pot to be cooked by controlling the cooking pot in which the pot to be cooked, the opening for housing the pot, the heating means for heating the cooked food in the pot, and the heating means are controlled. In a rice cooker comprising a rice cooker body having control means for performing rice cooking and heat retention control, and a lid for closing the opening of the pan and the rice cooker body, the heat dissipating fins of the electronic parts of the control means are enlarged and the rice cooker body The heat of the electronic parts of the control means, which has been forcibly cooled in the past, is used for water absorption and heat insulation by extending the heat to the specified location and using the heat energy released by the heat radiation fins for heat insulation. Energy can be saved because it can be used as part of energy.

  Further, according to the invention of claim 2 or 3, in the rice cooker according to claim 1, when the radiating fin is a radiating fin of a control IC or an inverter constituting the control means, the radiating fin is It can be expanded and extended to a predetermined location in the rice cooker body, and the generated heat can be used as a part of energy for heat insulation and the rice cooker can be saved.

  Moreover, according to invention of Claim 4 and 5, in the rice cooker of any one of Claim 1 thru | or 3, a radiation fin is extended to the bottom part of a rice cooker main body, or most of the bottom part of a rice cooker main body is covered. Since it is extended and expanded so as to cover, the heat energy emitted from the electronic parts of the control means spreads over the entire rice cooker body and is used efficiently, so that the rice cooker can be saved.

  Moreover, according to invention of Claim 6, in addition to the effect of Claims 1 thru | or 5, the rice cooker main body is equipped with the cooling fan which cools a control means, and a control means controls a cooling fan and a rice cooker main body inside Since the cooling fan is driven during a period when the temperature is equal to or higher than the predetermined temperature, and the cooling fan is stopped during a period when the temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature, the temperature is finely adjusted according to the temperature inside the rice cooker body, and is controlled. The heat energy generated from the means can be used efficiently.

  According to the invention of claim 7, the rice cooker according to claim 6 is provided with a cooling fan for cooling the control means, and the cooling fan is driven at the time of rice cooking, and is stopped at the time of heat retention or the like. Thus, since the heat of the radiating fin of the control means is used during the heat insulation, the generated heat energy can be efficiently used.

  Further, according to the invention of claim 8, in the rice cooker according to claim 6 or 7, the rice cooker body or the lid is provided with an outside air temperature sensor for detecting the outside air temperature, and the detection output of the outside air temperature sensor is used. The control means controls the cooling fan to drive when the outside air temperature is above the predetermined temperature and to stop when the outside air temperature is below the predetermined temperature, so that the heat of the radiating fin is used appropriately according to the outside air temperature. This makes it possible to efficiently use the heat energy emitted from the radiating fins. Moreover, there is little heat loss of a rice cooker, and energy saving can be performed.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a rice cooker according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of a rice cooker according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the control means in the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 4 is a curve diagram showing temperature management in the rice cooking process. FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of a conventional rice cooker. FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of another conventional rice cooker.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, embodiment shown below illustrates one specific example of the rice cooker for materializing the technical idea of this invention, Comprising: This invention is not intended to specify this rice cooker. The present invention is equally applicable to other embodiments included in the scope of claims.

  First, the rice cooker which concerns on Example 1 of this invention is demonstrated using FIG. In addition, FIG. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the rice cooker which concerns on Example 1 of this invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the rice cooker 1 which concerns on Example 1 is the pan 3 which puts the to-be-cooked rice containing water and rice, the opening part which accommodates this pan 3 detachably, and the to-be-cooked rice in a pan. A rice cooker body 2 having a heating means 5 such as an induction heating coil 51, a side heater 52, a lid heater 53, etc., and a control means for controlling the heating means 5 to control rice cooking, steaming and heat retention. It has a lid 4 and a lid 4 that closes the opening of the rice cooker body 2.

  As will be described later, the lid 4 is provided with a pressure adjustment valve 4a for communicating or blocking the inside of the pan 3 and the outside air in order to control the pressure in the pan 3, and when the pressure in the pan 3 is adjusted, the cooked rice A storage tank 4c is detachably attached to prevent the spilling out and jumping out at once.

  The rice cooker body 2 has a bottomed cylindrical inner case 21 formed of a nonmetallic material that accommodates the pot 3 therein, and an outer case 22 that covers the inner case 21. The pan 3 is detachably accommodated. The inner case 21 has a flange 21a that protrudes to the outer periphery at its upper end. The pan 3 is formed with a flange 31 projecting outward at the upper end opening thereof, and when the pan 3 is accommodated in the inner case 21, the flange 31 is placed so as to be hooked on the flange 21 a of the inner case 21. Has been.

  The inner case 21 is provided with an induction heating coil 51 on the outer periphery near the bottom. The induction heating coil 51 is supported by a cover (not shown) formed of a heat resistant resin material so that the distance to the outer peripheral surface of the pan 3 is constant. In the inner case 21, a side heater 52 is disposed between the upper opening and the induction heating coil 51.

  The rice cooker body 2 is provided with an operation / display unit 7 on the front surface of the outer case 22. The operation / display unit 7 is provided with operation buttons for switches such as a power switch 7a, a rice cooking start switch, a menu selection switch, and a heat retention switch, and a display panel 7b. Among these components, a rice cooking menu or the like selected by an electronic component attached to the operation control board 8 is displayed on the display panel 7b.

  The rice cooker body 2 is provided with a power supply control board 10 that supplies and controls power to the operation control board 8, the induction heating coil 51, the side heater 52, the lid heater 53, and the like. Electronic components such as an inverter 9, a switching element, and a timer element are mounted on the power supply control board 10.

  Among these electronic components, the inverter 9 generates heat particularly during operation, so that the power control board 10 is cooled by the heat sink 13. Moreover, the bottom part temperature sensor 32 is provided in the center part of the bottom part of the rice cooker main body 2 so that the bottom face of the pan 3 may be contacted. Further, either the rice cooker body 2 or the lid 4 is provided with an outside air temperature sensor (not shown) that detects the outside air temperature. The output of the outside air temperature sensor is input to the operation control board 8.

  The control means 8 </ b> A includes a power supply control board 10 and an operation control board 8. The operation control board 8 is mounted with electronic components (not shown) such as a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc. made of semiconductor elements. The operation control board 8 is connected to various operation buttons of the operation / display unit 7, the pan bottom temperature sensor 32, a steam sensor, and the like, and signals from these operation buttons and sensors are input to the CPU. . In addition, a timer for measuring time, a rice cooking menu detection unit, a ROM, and a RAM are connected to the CPU. The control means 8A also includes an inverter 9, a switching element, a timer element and the like mounted on the power supply control board 10.

  The lid body 4 has a front lid 41 attached to the frame body 42 and a lid cover 48 attached to the bottom, and the inner lid 43 is attached to the frame body 42 via the lid cover 48. The lid 4 is attached so as to cover the upper opening of the inner case 21 of the rice cooker body 2. The lid 4 is attached to the rice cooker main body 2 in such a manner that the frame body 42 is pivotally supported using a hinge member 44 and a pivot pin 45 so as to be rotatable. A lid heater 53 is disposed between the frame body 42 and the inner lid 43 so as to be covered with the lid cover 48. The lid cover 48 is fixed to the frame body 42, and the inner lid 43 covers the lid cover 48 and is detachably supported by the frame body 42.

  A pressure regulating valve 4a that controls the pressure in the rice cooker body 2 and a safety valve that is opened when the inside of the pan 3 is abnormally pressurized due to a failure of the pressure regulating valve 4a, etc. 4b is mounted. A vapor discharge path 6 is provided inside the lid body 4 to connect the pressure regulating valve 4a and the storage tank 4c, and can be freely attached to and detached from a hollow portion formed in the substantially central portion of the front lid 41. It connects with the storage tank 4c which makes a part of the vapor | steam exhaust path 6 with which it attached to.

  Around the outer periphery of the inner lid 43, a pot packing 46 that is in contact with the flange 31 of the pot 3 and seals the pot 3 in a sealed state is supported by the outer frame 50 and attached. A locking lever 47b is provided at the other end of the lid 4 opposite to the position where the hinge member 44 is provided, and the locking member 47a formed at the upper end of the inner case 21 is a locking lever. The lid 4 is held in a closed state by being locked by 47b.

  By providing such a configuration, when the pot 3 is accommodated in the inner case 21 and the lid body 4 is closed, the lid body 4 is closed at a position where the pot packing 46 is pressed against the opening edge of the pot 3. As a result, the inside of the pan 3 is sealed.

  The inner lid 43 is made of, for example, a clad material obtained by coating a stainless steel material or an aluminum material with a stainless steel material. That is, the inner lid 43 is formed by press-molding a metal plate made of the above-described material into a disc shape with a step between the peripheral portion and the inside, and the peripheral portion is hardened via a rubber pot packing 46. A plastic outer frame 50 is attached. The pot packing 46 is preferably formed of silicon rubber.

  The inner lid 43 has a pressure regulating valve 4a for discharging the pressure in the pot 3 to the steam discharge path 6 through the valve hole 71 when the pressure of the steam in the pot 3 rises above a predetermined pressure. Is provided. The pressure regulating valve 4 a includes a valve seat 72 having a valve hole 71, a ball 73 placed on the valve seat 72 so as to close the valve hole 71 by its own weight, and a cover 74 covering the ball 73. Then, the ball 73 moves on the valve hole 71 by the balance between the pressure in the pan 3 and the weight of the ball 73, thereby opening and closing the valve hole 71.

  The pressure adjusting valve 4a is provided with a plunger 17 of a solenoid 12, and this plunger 17 is controlled by the control means 8A. When the plunger 17 does not receive the output from the control means 8A, its rod protrudes from the cylinder and pushes the ball 73 on the valve hole 71 in the lateral direction of the valve hole to forcibly open the valve hole 71. When the plunger 17 receives the output of the control means 8A, the rod is drawn into the cylinder, the ball returns to the top of the valve hole, and the valve hole 71 is closed. In this way, the plunger 17 operates as an opening mechanism of the pressure regulating valve 4a, and forcibly reduces the pressure in the pan 3 pressurized during the rice cooking process by the opening operation.

  The storage tank 4c constitutes a part of the discharge path 6, and has a discharge port 4d through which the pressure and steam in the pan 3 are released to the outside air. The discharge port 4d communicates the inside of the pan 3 with the outside air through the discharge path 6 and the valve hole 71 of the pressure regulating valve 4a. Then, a part of the steam generated during rice cooking is sent to the storage tank 4c through the pressure regulating valve 4a and the discharge path 6, and returned to water and water in the storage tank 4c. That is, the storage tank 4c plays a role of temporarily storing each of the components and moisture from the steam.

  In Example 1, in such a rice cooker 1, the radiation fin 14 used as a heat sink of the electronic component mounted in the operation control board 8 and the power supply control board 10 is expanded, and the inside of the rice cooker main body 2 is increased. The thermal energy released by the heat radiating fins 14 is used for water absorption, heat retention, etc., extending to a predetermined location. As described above, the inverter 9, the switching element, the timer element, and the like are mounted on the power supply control board 10 constituting the control means 8A.

  Among these electronic components, the inverter 9 particularly generates a large amount of heat during operation, and therefore includes a heat sink 13. A heat sink 13 is also provided in a control IC such as a microcomputer mounted on the operation control board 8. In order to cool these electronic components, the heat radiating fins 14 of the heat sink 13 are extended and enlarged so as to cover most of the bottom 23 of the rice cooker body 2.

  As described above, by using the heat energy released by the control IC that constitutes the control means 8A and the radiating fins 14 of the inverter 9 at the time of heat absorption and heat retention, the heat of electronic components that has been conventionally discarded is used. It can be utilized as a part of energy for heat insulation and the rice cooker 1 can save energy.

  The second embodiment relates to a rice cooker 1A that uses the cooling fan 11 when the heat capacity is insufficient even if the heat dissipating fins 14 are enlarged. The rice cooker 1A of Example 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the rice cooker according to the second embodiment. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the control means in the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 4 is a curve diagram for explaining temperature management in the rice cooking process.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the rice cooker 1 </ b> A according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes a pot 3 for putting a rice to be cooked, an opening for housing the pot 3, and induction heating for heating the rice to be cooked in the pot 3. A rice cooker body 2 having a coil 51, a side heater 52, and the like, and an intake hole 23a and an exhaust hole 23b communicating with the outside on the bottom surface thereof, a lid 4 for closing the opening of the pot 3 and the rice cooker body 2, and induction heating Control means 8A for controlling the coil 51, the side heater 52, etc. to absorb water, cook rice, steam and keep warm of the cooked rice.

  A lid heater 53 is disposed between the frame body 42 and the inner lid 43 of the lid body 4 so as to be covered with the lid cover 48, and a lid temperature sensor (not shown) is provided. Furthermore, the inner lid 43 is equipped with a pressure regulating valve 4a and a safety valve 4b for regulating the pressure in the rice cooker body 2, and the inner lid 43 is supported by the frame body 42.

  The basic structure of the rice cooker 1A, such as the rice cooker body 2, the pan 3, the lid 4, the inner lid 43, the outer case 22, the operation / display unit 7 provided on the front surface, and the control means 8A, is the rice cooker of the first embodiment. Since it is the same as 1, common symbols are assigned and description thereof is omitted, and only necessary portions will be described below.

  In the rice cooker body 2, a power supply control board 10 that supplies and controls power to the induction heating coil 51, the side heater 52, the lid heater 53, and the like is disposed at a location close to the intake hole 23 a. Electronic components such as an inverter 9 made of semiconductor elements, a switching element, and a timer element are mounted on the power supply control board 10. Among these electronic components, in particular, the inverter 9 generates heat during operation and thus includes a heat sink 13 and is further cooled by a cooling fan 11 described later.

  The rice cooker body 2 is provided with a pan bottom temperature sensor 32 at the center of the bottom 23 so as to be in contact with the bottom surface of the pan 3. Furthermore, an outside air temperature sensor (not shown) that detects the outside air temperature is provided on either the rice cooker body 2 or the lid body 4. The output of the outside air temperature sensor is input to a control device such as a CPU of the operation control board 8, and the cooling fan 11 or the shutter mechanism 25 of the intake hole 23a and the exhaust hole 23b is operated.

  The bottom portion 23 of the rice cooker body 2 is formed with an intake hole 23a for sucking air and an exhaust hole 23b for discharging the sucked air to the front and rear (left and right in FIG. 2). A cooling fan 11 is disposed at a position close to the head. The intake hole 23a and the exhaust hole 23b are provided with a shutter mechanism 25 that opens and closes, and the control means 8A opens the intake hole 23a and the exhaust hole 23b while the temperature inside the rice cooker body 2 is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature. The shutter mechanism 25 is controlled so as to close the intake hole 23a and the exhaust hole 23b during a period of a predetermined temperature or less.

  Each of the intake holes 23a and the exhaust holes 23b is formed by a plurality of narrow grooves, so-called slits, having a predetermined width and length at the bottom 23. Further, the intake holes 23a and the exhaust holes 23b made of these slits are opened and closed by opening / closing doors made of a plate-like body having a width and a length that block the respective slits, that is, shutter plates 23a ′ and 23b ′.

Control means 8A, as shown in FIG. 3, the pan bottom temperature sensor 32, the lid temperature sensor 4 _1, an input circuit 8 ₁ output of the outside air temperature sensor 4 ₀ is input, rice start switch _71, the menu selection switch 7 ₂ and a heat input switch 7 _3, etc., and a signal input circuit 8 ₂ to which operation outputs are input, and signals from the respective input circuits 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ are input to perform a predetermined calculation and output control circuit 8 ₃ and a control means 8 ₀ which performs a predetermined output to.

Control means 8 ₀ has a microcomputer CPU, signal a predetermined arithmetic processing based on a program stored in the ROM or RAM constituting the memory means 8 ₄ based on from the input circuit _81, 82 The induction heating coil 51, the lid heater 53, the side heater 52, the cooling fan 11 and the shutter mechanism 25 are controlled at a predetermined timing, and a predetermined display is displayed on the display panel 7b. That is, the control unit 8 _0, then temperature control of the bottom of the pot and controls the main induction heating coil 51 based on the detected temperature of the pan bottom temperature sensor 32, primarily based on the detected temperature of the lid temperature sensor 4 ₁ The lid heater 53 is controlled to control the temperature of the inner lid, and in the rice cooking process, the cooling fan 11 or the shutter mechanism 25 is controlled according to whether the outside air temperature is higher or lower than a predetermined temperature.

  In the rice cooker 1A of the second embodiment, as in the case of the rice cooker 1 of the first embodiment, the heat dissipating fins 14 of the electronic parts of the control means 8A are enlarged and extended to the bottom 23 in the rice cooker body 2, The heat energy released by the radiation fins 14 is used for heating water supply or heat insulation. This rice cooker body 2 includes a cooling fan 11 that cools the control means 8A when the heat capacity is insufficient even if the heat dissipating fins 14 are enlarged. The control means 8A drives the cooling fan 11 when the temperature inside the rice cooker body 2 is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, and stops the cooling fan 11 when the temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature. Further, the control means 8A controls the cooling fan 11 to be driven when cooking rice and stopped when keeping warm.

Furthermore, cooker 1A of Example 2 is provided with outside air temperature sensor 4 ₀ for detecting the outside air temperature in the cooker main body 2 or the lid 4, the detection output of the ambient temperature sensor 4 _0, the control unit 8A is The cooling fan 11 is controlled so as to be driven when the outside air temperature is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, and to be stopped when the outside air temperature is equal to or lower than the predetermined temperature.

  Next, rice cooking control by the control means 8A, control of the shutter mechanism 25 and the cooling fan 11 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a temperature / pressure curve diagram showing an example of rice cooking control, where the upper part of the drawing shows the temperature / pressure curve, the lower part shows the opening / closing operation of the pressure regulating valve 4a and the opening / closing operation of the intake / exhaust holes, and the cooling fan The rotation / stop state is shown. In the present embodiment, since the intake and exhaust holes are controlled to be opened and closed, FIG. 4 shows the opening / closing operation of only the intake holes.

Control means 8A, the storage means 8 ₄ various cooking process program is stored (see FIG. 3), the selection menu by the menu selection switch 7 ₂ is turned on the cooking start switch ₇₁ is selected, the Based on the operation, as shown in FIG. 4, rice cooking is performed in the order of the rice cooking process (water absorption process, rising heating process, boiling maintenance process), steaming process, and heat retaining process.

  First, in the water absorption process, the bottom temperature of the pan is heated to around 55 ° C, but it rises up to 105 ° C and 1.2 atmospheres slightly before the pressure in the pan rises, and the pressure regulating valve 4a is closed. Move to boiling maintenance process. At this stage, the solenoid plunger 17 is driven, the pressure regulating valve 4a is opened for a predetermined time, and the pressure in the pan is rapidly reduced from 1.2 atm to 1 atm. If this is repeated a predetermined number of times, the rice grains in the pan can be greatly stirred, so that the whole rice grains in the pan can be heated uniformly. Thereafter, boiling is maintained while maintaining the pressure in the pan at 1.2 atmospheres. Furthermore, when the pan bottom temperature reaches 130 ° C. and rice cooking is completed, the process proceeds to a steaming process, during which the pressure in the pan decreases to 1.0 atm.

  When the steaming process is finished, the heat-retaining process is started. At this time, the energization of the induction heating coil 51 is turned off, and the induction heating coil 51 is switched from on to off. At the same time, the solenoid 12 of the shutter mechanism 25 is activated, the operating plate 24 is moved, the shutter plates 23a ′ and 23b ′ are moved, the intake holes 23a and the exhaust holes 23b are closed, and the operation of the cooling fan 11 is also stopped. Is done.

  When the intake hole 23a and the exhaust hole 23b are moved to the closed state, heat loss in the heat retention process is reduced, and the temperature for long-time heat retention is maintained by the side heater 52 and the lid heater 53. In this case, since heat from the radiation fins 14 is further applied, it is possible to save the heat energy for heat retention.

Control means 8 _0, depending on the selected menu in cooking menu, as described above, primarily the induction heating coil 51, but carrying out the predetermined cooking process by controlling the side heater 52 and lid heater 53, these rice In the process, the shutter mechanism 25 is operated at a predetermined timing, and the heat of the radiating fins 14 is used. In that case, when the cooling of the control means 8A cannot be sufficiently performed only by the heat capacity of the radiating fin 14, cooling by the cooling fan 11 is performed. The shutter mechanism 25 and the radiation fin 14 can be operated as follows.

The shutter mechanism 25
(A) The intake hole 23a and the exhaust hole 23b are opened when the temperature inside the rice cooker body 2 is equal to or higher than the predetermined temperature, and is closed when the temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature.
(B) The intake hole 23a and the exhaust hole 23b are opened at the time of rice cooking and closed at the time of heat insulation.
(C) a suction hole 23a and the exhaust port 23b, by the detection output of the ambient temperature sensor 4 _0, open when the outside air temperature is higher than a predetermined temperature, close when the outside air temperature is below a predetermined temperature.
(D) When the outside air temperature is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature during rice cooking, the intake hole is set to a fully open position, the intake hole is set to a fully closed position when the temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature, and the intermediate closed position is set to an intermediate temperature between high and low temperatures. To do. (E) The shutter mechanism 25 is operated in conjunction with the rice cooking switch or the heat retention switch.

The cooling fan 11
(F) Air sucked from the intake hole 23a is applied to the radiating fin 14 and exhausted from the exhaust hole.
(G) Driven in conjunction with a rice cooker switch or a heat retention switch.
(H) The temperature inside the rice cooker body 2 is driven during a period of a predetermined temperature or higher, and is stopped during a period of a predetermined temperature or lower.
(■) It is controlled so that it is driven when cooking rice and stopped when keeping warm.

Further, the control unit 8A is the detection output of the ambient temperature sensor 4 ₀ which detects the outside air temperature with the rice cooker main body 2 or the lid 4,
(J) The cooling fan 11 is controlled to be driven when the outside air temperature is equal to or higher than the predetermined temperature, and to be stopped when the outside air temperature is equal to or lower than the predetermined temperature.

  According to the rice cooker 1A of the second embodiment, if the heat radiation capacity is insufficient even if the heat dissipating fins 14 are enlarged and extended to the bottom 23 in the rice cooker body 2, the cooling fan for cooling the heat dissipating fins 14 is used. Is provided to control the heat dissipation during cooking, and during the heat insulation, the cooling fan is stopped and the heat energy released by the heat dissipating fins of the electronic parts of the control means is utilized. Therefore, according to the rice cooker 1A of the second embodiment, the heat loss at the time of heat insulation can be reduced and the heat energy can be effectively used, and the cooling fan operation is also stopped, so that the power consumption can be saved and the energy saving is effective. It is.

  The heat of the heat radiating fins can be used not only for heat retention but also for heating in the water absorption process, and when the rice is repeatedly cooked, it is not started from the cooled state but maintained during the heat retention. Since the water absorption process can be started from the temperature, the heat energy is effectively used.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said Example, It can implement in another various aspect. For example, by providing heat radiation fins so as to close the intake and exhaust holes, and by separately opening and closing the intake hole shutters and the exhaust hole shutters according to the temperature inside the rice cooker body, cooling when the shutters of the heat radiation fins are opened The temperature may be adjusted using the difference between the capacity and the heating capacity when closed.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 1A Rice cooker 2 Rice cooker main body 3 Pan 4 Cover body 4a Pressure adjustment valve 4b Safety valve 4c Storage tank 51 Induction heating coil 52 Side heater 7 Operation plate 7a Power switch 7b Display panel 8 Operation control board 8A Control means 9 Inverter 10 Power supply Control board 11 Cooling fan 12 Solenoid 14 Radiation fin 21 Inner case 22 Outer case 23a Intake hole 23b Exhaust hole 24 Actuation plate 25 Shutter mechanism 32 Pan bottom temperature sensor 41 Front cover 42 Frame body 43 Inner cover

Claims (8)

  A pan for containing the cooked rice, an opening for housing the pan, a heating means for heating the cooked rice in the pan, and a control means for controlling the heating means to control rice cooking and heat retention. In a rice cooker comprising a rice cooker body and a lid for closing the opening of the pan and the rice cooker body, the heat dissipating fins of the electronic parts of the control means are enlarged and extended to a predetermined location in the rice cooker body And the rice cooker characterized by using the thermal energy discharge | released by this radiation fin for water absorption or heat retention.   2. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the heat radiating fin is a heat radiating fin of a control IC constituting the control means.   2. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the heat dissipating fins are heat dissipating fins of an inverter constituting the control means.   4. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the heat radiating fins are extended to a bottom portion of the rice cooker main body.   4. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the heat radiating fins are extended and enlarged so as to cover most of the bottom of the rice cooker body.   The rice cooker body includes a cooling fan that cools the control means, the control means controls the cooling fan, and drives the cooling fan during a period in which the temperature inside the rice cooker body is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the cooling fan is stopped during a period of a predetermined temperature or less.   The said control means is provided with the cooling fan which cools this control means, The said cooling fan is driven by the said control means at the time of rice cooking, and is controlled so that it may be stopped at the time of water absorption or heat retention. The rice cooker according to any one of 1 to 5.   The rice cooker main body or the lid is provided with an outside air temperature sensor for detecting outside air temperature, and the control means drives the cooling fan when the outside air temperature is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature by the detection output of the outside air temperature sensor. The rice cooker according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the rice cooker is controlled to stop when the outside air temperature is equal to or lower than a predetermined temperature.

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