JP4804223B2 - rice cooker - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a rice cooker, and more particularly to a rice cooker that can easily observe the water level of the cooked rice in the pan and can observe the inside of the rice cooker without opening the lid.

  Among household appliances, an electric rice cooker has become a necessity in general households, and various types have been developed. These electric rice cookers are roughly classified into so-called atmospheric pressure rice cookers that cook the pressure at almost normal pressure, and pressure-type rice cookers that cook the rice with increased pressure, depending on the pressure in the pan at the time of rice cooking, These rice cookers are equipped with various rice cooking menus such as white rice, brown rice, sushi rice, etc., and various rice cookers that can be cooked according to the user's preference in terms of hardness, stickiness, sweetness etc. It is a highly functional one with control software installed.

  Both the normal pressure type and the pressure type rice cooker are generally heated with a pan that is open at the top and made of a container of a predetermined size at the bottom, and an upper portion that is open and accommodates the pan from the opening to heat the cooked rice in the pan. It comprises a rice cooker body having means, and an openable / closable lid that covers the opening of the pan and the rice cooker body (see, for example, Patent Document 1 below).

  8 and 9 show an electric rice cooker described in Patent Document 1 below, FIG. 8 is an overall perspective view, and FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the electric rice cooker 30 has an opening on the upper side and a rice cooker main body composed of an inner case and an outer case in which the pan 32 is accommodated from the opening, and the rice cooker main body is opened and closed. It has a lid unit 37 that is freely mounted and closes the opening of the pan, and an operation panel 38 having various operation switches and display lamps is mounted on the front surface of the rice cooker body.

As shown in FIG. 9, the internal structure includes a pan 32 made of an iron-based metal such as stainless steel, a bottomed cylindrical inner case 33 made of synthetic resin in which the pan 32 is accommodated, and the inner case 33. And an inductive coil is provided on the bottom wall portion and the side wall portion of the inner case 33. Further, a coil base 35 is provided on the lower side of the bottom wall portion 33b of the inner case 33, and a center sensor 36 is provided at the center thereof. The outer case 34 includes a cover member 34a and a synthetic resin shoulder member 34c coupled to the upper end portion of the cover member 34a. The bottom wall portion 33b of the inner case 33 and the bottom portion 34b of the cover member 34a. A heat insulating and ventilating space having a predetermined width is formed between the two. The lid unit 37 has an outer cover member 37a, and a pressure adjusting unit 39 is provided at the center of the outer cover member.
JP 2000-197561 A (FIG. 1, FIG. 5, paragraphs [0033] to [0043])

  By the way, in the rice cooker as described above, a predetermined amount of rice is put in the pan, and water is put in accordance with the amount of rice put in the pan while looking at the water level scale displayed in the pan. . However, when water is poured into the pan, the user pours water from the top opening direction of the pan so that the water level scale is looked down. Therefore, it is difficult to precisely adjust the water level to the water level scale. It was.

  Moreover, the electric rice cooker is made of an iron-based metal material such as stainless steel, as seen in the rice cooker of Patent Document 1, and the rice cooker body comprising an inner case and an outer case in which the pan is accommodated. Is made of a bottomed cylindrical body made of synthetic resin, so that the inside of the pan cannot be observed from the outside when the lid is closed. Naturally, the lid cannot be opened when cooking rice.

  For this reason, the user cannot observe the state in the pan unless the lid is opened, and on the other hand, the lid cannot be opened during cooking, so the manufacturer can observe the inside of the pan without opening the lid. A rice cooker that can be used is required. This request is due to anxiety and inconvenience caused by using it without knowing the state in the pan, and as anxiety, for example, if you set a timer but forgot to put rice cooked in the pan, The power switch was turned on but it wasn't airing, the rice cooker was actually working, when the rice cooked was finished, or when it was cooked deliciously, etc. If the lid is not opened each time, the remaining amount is not known. On the other hand, if the number of times the lid is opened and closed increases, the heat insulation is interrupted and the delicious heat insulation state cannot be maintained.

  Such a user request is reasonable, but on the other hand, in order to be able to observe the inside of the pan without opening the lid, the rice cooker is a pan, a rice cooker body and a lid as described above. It is difficult to produce a product because the safety cannot be ensured unless the body is made of a solid iron or resin material. In particular, in the case of a pressure-type rice cooker, it becomes even more difficult because of high temperature and high pressure during cooking. It was. However, in recent years, as described above, various control software has been installed in rice cookers, and there has been a strong demand to cook delicious rice while observing the cooking process and selecting delicious rice. Therefore, the present inventors have completed the present invention by carrying out development through trial and error in order to meet this demand.

  That is, this invention responds to a user's request as described above, and the object of the present invention is to allow easy observation of the water level of the cooked rice in the pan and to open the pot without opening the lid. It is in providing the rice cooker which can observe.

The above object can be achieved by the following means. That is, the rice cooker according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a pan made of a bottomed cylindrical container in which the upper portion in which the cooked rice is accommodated is opened, and the upper portion is opened and accommodates the pan from the opening. In the rice cooker having a rice cooker body having a heating means for heating the cooked rice, and an openable / closable lid that covers the opening of the pan and the rice cooker body, the side wall of the pan is sealed with a light transmissive material. And when the pan is housed in the rice cooker body, the pan window and the rice cooker body window are provided. And a display lamp and a pot for displaying the rice cooking process and the heat-retaining process on the window frame of the window provided in the rice cooker body. An illumination lamp that illuminates the light is provided .

By providing the above-described configuration, the present invention has the following excellent effects. That is, according to the present invention, by forming a window sealed with a light-transmitting material in the pan, the cooked rice in the pan can be seen from this window. Since the water level can be seen horizontally with respect to the pan, the amount of water can be easily adjusted.

In addition, according to the present invention, if the window is formed in the rice cooker body in addition to the side wall of the pan, the safety can be ensured and the inside of the pan can be seen through from the window hole of the rice cooker body. The anxiety and inconvenience of the user due to not knowing can be solved.

Moreover, according to this invention, if a rice cooker main body and a pan can be aligned easily, it will become unnecessary for a user to match | combine while visually observing the window provided in the rice cooker main body and the pan.

According to the present invention, an illumination lamp is provided on the window frame of the rice cooker body, and the illumination lamp is turned on at the time of rice cooking or the like, whereby the state in the pot can be observed. Moreover, the mode of a rice cooking process can be displayed by providing a display lamp and making it light at the time of rice cooking.

  Hereinafter, the best embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the embodiment shown below exemplifies a rice cooker for embodying the technical idea of the present invention, and is not intended to specify the present invention for this rice cooker. Other embodiments within the scope are equally applicable. 1 is a side view of a rice cooker according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a front view showing a pan in which cooked rice is stored.

  The rice cooker which concerns on embodiment of this invention is a pressure type rice cooker, As this rice cooker 1 is shown in FIG. 1, FIG. A rice cooker body 9 having a heating means for opening and containing the pot from the opening and heating the cooked rice in the pot, and an openable / closable lid 13 covering the opening of the pot 2 and the rice cooker body. 2 and rice cooker body 9 are provided with windows 3A and 3B sealed on the respective outer peripheral walls with a window plate made of a light-transmitting material, and when pan 2 is accommodated in rice cooker body 9, each window of pan 2 3A and 3B and each window hole of the rice cooker main body 9 are aligned, and the inside of the pan 2 can be seen through from the window hole of the rice cooker main body 9.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the pot 2 is formed from a deep-bottomed cylindrical container having an opening 2 a sized to accommodate rice and water such as rice and water and windows 3 A and 3 B on opposite side walls. It is made of a ferrous metal material such as stainless steel. The opening edge of the upper opening 2a extends outward by a predetermined length to form a flange. When the pot 2 is accommodated in the rice cooker body 9, this flange is the shoulder of the outer case 8 of the rice cooker body 9. It is locked to the part. The windows 3A and 3B are respectively formed on opposite side wall surfaces (left and right in FIG. 2), have substantially the same size, and have substantially the same rectangular shape as the window hole of the exterior case 8 in FIG. 3b.

As shown in FIG. 2, these window frames 3 a and 3 b have a plurality of rice corresponding to the amount of rice and the amount of rice that is stored in the inner periphery of the pan 2 and the amount of water. Among the water level lines, the height H ₁ is preferably higher than the height H ₂ of the highest water level line. Incidentally, the height H ₁ is located below the upper opening 2a. Thus, increasing the height H ₁ from the high-water mark, it becomes possible to observe the level of water directly through the window when charged with rice and water in a pot 2, waterline as in the prior art On the other hand, it is possible to easily obtain an appropriate amount of water without visually determining the amount of water visually from above. The height H ₃ of the lower can and the height close to the induction coil _61, so as not by the induction coil ₆₁ to the failure of the heating pot. Further, the lateral width may be an arbitrary length, but if the length is increased, the heating area of the pan is reduced, so the length is set so as not to affect the heating.

  In order to more easily measure the amount of cooked rice in the pan 2, as shown in FIG. 3, a water level scale 3C may be provided on the outer wall adjacent to the windows 3A and 3B provided in the pan 2. If it does in this way, it will become easy to match | combine the water level of cooked rice with the water level scale 3C.

  Further, window plates 4a and 4b made of a light transmitting material such as polycarbonate and glass are attached to the window frames 3a and 3b of the windows 3A and 3B. The thickness of each window plate 4a, 4b is set to a thickness that can sufficiently withstand the pan pressure during rice cooking. In addition, a thin stepped portion is formed on the inner periphery of the window frame and the edge of the window plate, and they are overlapped with each other so that there is no water leak or vapor leak with an adhesive (for example, silicon). It is stuck and fixed as follows.

  Thus, when the pair of windows 3A and 3B are provided so as to face the side wall surface of the pot 2, the outside light can be collected from one window and the inside of the pot 2 can be observed from the other window. The number of windows may be one or three or more instead of two. Since lighting cannot be performed with one, it is preferable to irradiate the inside of the pan by providing a light source in a window frame of an exterior case described later.

The rice cooker main body 9 is composed of an inner case 5 having a bottom and a size that accommodates the pan 2 and having the same shape as the outer shape of the pan, and an outer case 8 that holds the inner case 5. Thus, these cases 5 and 8 are formed of a molded body of a synthetic resin material. These cases 5, 8 mounted so that a predetermined size of the ventilation space Sp is formed between the bottom wall portion 5 ₀ and the outer casing 8 of the inner case 5, this ventilation space Sp, A fan motor, a control board and the like (not shown) are mounted. By providing the ventilation space Sp, it is possible to insulate the space between the inner case 5 and the outer case 8, and it is possible to cool the control board and the like by driving the fan motor.

Outer window holes 5a and 5b having protruding pieces 5a 'and 5b' protruding to the inner wall surface of the outer case 8 are formed on the outer peripheral wall of the inner case 5 at locations corresponding to the windows 3A and 3B of the pan 2. . The size of each bay window hole 5a, 5b is preferably slightly smaller than the windows 3A, 3B of the pan 2. When the pan windows 3A and 3B are made larger than the bay holes 5a and 5b in this way, the pan window is not hidden by the inner peripheral edge of the bay window holes, and the observation area can be maximized. A cylindrical window frame, which will be described later, is fitted and fixed in each of the bay holes 5a and 5b. Moreover, 5 the inner casing, the bottom wall 5 ₀ backside by the induction coil ₆₁ which is Bunmaki _{concentrically,} 6 ₂ is mounted in, by driving the induction coil, by inducing eddy currents in a pan Make it self-heating. The inner case 5, the temperature sensor 7 is provided at a substantially central portion 5c of the bottom wall 5 _0. The sensor 7 detects the amount of rice cooked in the pan and controls rice cooking based on the output.

  Since the outer case 8 is provided with the ventilation space Sp between the outer case 8 and the outer case 8, the outer case 8 is larger than the outer shape of the inner case and is a decorative box. The outer case 8 has window holes 9a and 9b formed on the outer peripheral wall thereof at locations corresponding to the bay window holes 5a and 5b of the inner case. Cylindrical window frames 10A and 10B are fitted into the window holes 9a and 9b. An operation panel 12 is attached to the front surface of the exterior case 8. The operation panel 12 is provided with indicator lamps for displaying various operation switches and setting states set by the various switches.

  The cylindrical window frames 10A and 10B all have the same shape, and have a rectangular outer shape and a length reaching the inner case in accordance with the window holes 9a and 9b and 5a ′ and 5b ′ of the outer case 8 and the inner case 5. And formed of a synthetic resin material molding. Each window frame 10A, 10B has an opening 10a located on the front side, that is, the exterior side of the rice cooker 1, larger than the opening 10b located on the rear side, that is, the inside of the rice cooker 1, and a step portion 10c in the middle of the inner peripheral wall surface. A window plate 11 made of a light transmissive material (polycarbonate, glass) is mounted using the step portion 10c. Since this window plate does not apply pressure during cooking, it may be thinner than the pan window plate. In addition, although not shown in figure, it is preferable to provide the display lamp which displays the illumination lamp which illuminates the pan 2, or the rice cooking process, a heat retention process, etc. in this window frame 10A, 10B. It is preferable to use a fluorescent tube or a light emitting diode for the illumination and the display lamp, and particularly to use a display lamp having a different emission color to blink.

  By providing these lamps, the pan can be illuminated and the inside of the pan can be easily observed. In addition to observing the pan through the window, the indicator lamp can be lit to monitor from a remote location. can do.

  The rice cooker body 9 is provided with a lid 13 that closes the opening of the pan at the outer peripheral end of the opening. The lid 13 is provided with a safety valve or the like so as to withstand the high temperature and high pressure inside the pan. Hereinafter, the structure of the lid will be described with reference to FIG. In addition, FIG. 4 is sectional drawing which cut | disconnected the pan body of FIG. 2 in a different position.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the lid 13 includes a detachable inner lid 14 provided on the lower side and an outer lid 15 provided on the upper side. The inner lid 14 includes a valve seat 17 having a valve hole 16, a metal ball 18 placed on the valve seat 17 so as to close the valve hole 16 by its own weight, and a cover 19 covering the ball 18. A pressure valve 20 is provided. In the pressure valve 20, the ball 18 is placed on or separated from the valve hole 16 depending on the balance between the pressure in the pan 2 and the weight of the ball 18, and the valve hole 16 is opened and closed by the movement of the ball 18. . The opening / closing mechanism 21 of the pressure valve 20 is formed by a valve hole 16, a valve seat 17, a ball 18, and a cover 19. In addition, the inner lid 14 is opened when the inside of the pan 2 is abnormally pressurized (for example, when the pressure valve 20 fails during rice cooking and does not open), and is a safety valve that releases the pressure in the pan (not shown). Is provided. A plunger 21 is attached to the pressure valve 20 in the outer lid 15. The plunger 21 is controlled by a control device (not shown). That is, in the normal state, in the normal state, the rod 21a protrudes from the cylinder 21b, pushes the ball 18 on the valve hole 16 in the lateral direction of the valve hole 16, and forcibly opens the valve hole 16. Further, in the plunger 21, the rod 21a is immersed in the cylinder 21b by the output from the control device. At this time, the ball 18 returns onto the valve hole 16 due to its own weight, and the valve hole 16 is closed.

  In this way, the plunger 21 operates as a pressure valve opening mechanism, and the pressure valve 20 and the pressure valve opening mechanism (plunger) 21 are for forcibly reducing the pressure in the pan that has been pressurized during the rice cooking process. Used as pressure changing means. In addition, the outer lid 15 has a steam port 22 through which the inside of the pan 2 communicates with the atmosphere via the valve hole 16 and allows the pressure and steam in the pan 2 to escape to the atmosphere.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a control device for controlling the rice cooker.

Control unit 23, control unit 23a, the arithmetic unit 23b, a microcomputer having a clock unit 23c and a storage unit 23d, the operation switch 12 ₁ in the input unit 23 ₁ of the control device, cooking menu selecting means 12 _2, timer temperature sensor 7 for detecting the temperature of the means 12 ₃ and pan bottom are connected, the output unit 23 _2, the heating means (induction _coil) 6 1, _{6 2,} a pressure valve opening control means 25, display means 24a and cooking An illumination / indicator lamp 24b that is provided on the window frame of the cooker body and displays the inside of the pot or the rice cooking process is connected.

Cooking menu, as shown in FIG. 7, three cooking courses, rice-normal course, has a brown-ordinary course and rice-sushi rice course, these cooking menu is selected by the selection means 12 _2. For example, when a white rice / normal course is selected by this selection means, the rice cooking is performed by sequentially absorbing the rice in the pan at a gelatinizing temperature or lower (for example, 55 ° C.) (S106), Start-up heating process (S112) for heating (full power), boiling maintaining process for maintaining boiling state (S116), steaming 1 process performed after completion of boiling maintenance (S139), additional cooking process (S142) performed after this steaming process The rice is cooked through two steaming steps (S144) for performing a steaming finish. And after this rice cooking completion, it enters into a heat retention process (S147) and will be in a heat retention state.

  In this rice cooking process, as shown in FIG. 6, immediately after the start-up heating is completed, the pressure valve opening mechanism (plunger) 21 is operated by the control device 23 to force the pressure valve 20 for several seconds (for example, 4 seconds). ), And the pressure in the pan 2 is reduced from 1.2 atmospheres to near atmospheric pressure. The pressure valve is opened a plurality of times at a predetermined interval. Thereafter, the ball 18 is maintained at a substantially constant high pressure by its own weight.

  By opening and closing the pressure valve 20, the pressure in the pan 2 is reduced to near atmospheric pressure at a stretch, and the pan is vigorously boiled (sudden boiling), and the rice grains are agitated by the bubbles generated by this bumping phenomenon. This stirring can cook rice deliciously because the rice grains are sufficiently stirred in the pan regardless of the amount of rice cooked.

  According to this rice cooker, each rice cooking process, the cooked state, the steaming process, and the heat-retaining state can be observed, so that all requests from users can be met. In particular, it is possible to observe how the rice in the pan boils vigorously under a high temperature and high pressure in the pan, that is, a so-called bumping phenomenon.

  In addition, in the Example mentioned above, although what described cylindrical window frame 10A, 10B provided with window 3A, 3B and the window board 11 in the pan 2 and the rice cooker main body 9 was described, it provided in the pan 2. A window having the same structure as the windows 3A and 3B is provided in the inner lid 14, and the cylindrical window frames 10A and 10B and the window plate 11 provided in the rice cooker body 9 are covered so as to correspond to the windows of the inner lid 14. Even if it is provided on the body 13, the same effect can be obtained. In this case, a plurality of windows may be provided in order to make the inside easy to see through as in the above-described embodiment, or an illumination or a display lamp may be provided on the lid 13. .

FIG. 1 is a side view of a rice cooker according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. FIG. 3 is a front view showing the pan in which the cooked rice is stored. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the pot body of FIG. 2 cut at different positions. FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a control device for controlling the rice cooker. FIG. 6 is a characteristic diagram showing the relationship between the rice cooking process and the temperature and pressure in the pan. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the steps of the rice cooking menu. FIG. 8 is an external perspective view of a conventional rice cooker. FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of the rice cooker of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Rice cooker 2 Pan 3A, 3B Window 5 Inner case 8 Exterior case 9 Rice cooker main body 10A, 10B Cylindrical window frame 11 Window board 13 Cover body 14 Inner lid

Claims (1)

A rice cooker body having a pan made of a bottomed cylindrical container in which the upper portion of the cooked rice is accommodated and a heating means for opening the upper portion and accommodating the pan from the opening to heat the cooked rice in the pan. And an openable / closable lid that covers the opening of the pan and the rice cooker body, and a side wall of the pan is provided with a window sealed with a light transmissive material, and the outer peripheral wall of the rice cooker body A window sealed with a light-transmitting material is provided on the
When accommodating the pan in the rice cooker body, align the pan window and the rice cooker window so that the inside of the pan can be seen through the rice cooker window,
A rice cooker characterized in that a display frame for displaying a rice cooking process and a heat retaining process and an illumination lamp for illuminating a pan are provided on a window frame of a window provided in the rice cooker body .

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