JP5889319B2 - Pressure rice cooker control method and pressure rice cooker for carrying out this method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for controlling a pressure rice cooker and a rice cooker for carrying out this method. The method according to the invention is particularly suitable for cooking rice mixed with beans such as kidney beans, peas and lentils.

  Conventionally, when rice is prepared and cooked with other beans, at least two significantly different treatments are required. This is because the cooking time for beans is generally longer than the cooking rice time. For this reason, beans are generally first cooked in the first container. Next, the rice and beans are cooked in a pressure cooker after the water of the beans has been cut in advance.

  An object of the present invention is to propose a simple method for controlling a pressure rice cooker that can reduce the user's labor by cooking rice mixed with beans.

  This purpose is a control method of a pressure rice cooker comprising a case with a lid having a heating means for a kettle, a pilot operated pressure reducing valve, and a temperature sensor, and a predetermined duration in a predetermined amount of liquid Pre-cooking the beans in the kettle, and the transition to allow the user to add a certain amount of predetermined rice and / or seeds and liquid, with the heating means switched off and the pressure reducing valve opened A heating step for controlling the heating means so that the inside of the kettle reaches a predetermined set temperature from 101 ° C. to 120 ° C., and a predetermined duration from 15 to 25 minutes starting from the time when the set temperature is reached And a rice cooking step for controlling the heating means so that the kettle is maintained at a preset temperature.

  According to another feature of the invention, during the pre-cooking step, the heating means causes the interior of the kettle to reach a predetermined set temperature from 95 ° C. to 120 ° C. and then for a predetermined duration from 8 to 22 minutes. Controlled to be maintained.

  The set temperature of the pre-cooking step is between 95 ° C. and 100 ° C., and the pressure reducing valve is kept in the open position.

  The duration of the pre-cooking step is between 10 and 22 minutes.

  The set temperature of the pre-cooking step is between 101 ° C. and 120 ° C., and the pressure reducing valve is kept in the closed position.

  The duration of the pre-cooking step is between 3 and 9 minutes.

  The duration of the transition step is between 2 and 10 minutes.

  During the heating step and the rice cooking step, the pressure reducing valve is kept in the closed position, and at the end of the rice cooking step, the pressure reducing valve is opened until the pressure difference between inside and outside of the housing becomes almost zero.

  The set temperature of the rice cooking step is between 106 ° C and 116 ° C.

  The heating step is started by the operation of the rice cooker by the user.

  At the end of the transition step, the rice cooker periodically emits audio and / or visual signals to the user.

  The invention also relates to a control device for a pressure rice cooker specially adapted to carry out the method according to the invention and to a pressure cooker comprising this control device.

  Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following description of embodiments illustrated by way of non-limiting example and illustrated by the accompanying drawings.

It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of the pressure rice cooker which can implement the method by this invention. It is a graph which shows temperature and pressure corresponding to the 1st step of one embodiment of a control method by the present invention over time. It is a graph which shows temperature and pressure corresponding to another step of this embodiment in time.

  An embodiment of a pressure rice cooker suitable for carrying out the method according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG.

  This embodiment of the pressure rice cooker 1 according to the present invention comprises a main body 10, i.e. a housing, in which a compartment for containing an inner pot 11 for rice cooking is formed. The housing includes a lid 12 attached to the housing 10 such that an upper portion of the main body is opened and closed by the lid 12. A control device 13 that performs the control operation of the rice cooker 1 is also provided in the housing 10.

  The rice cooker 1 further includes a first sensor 15 for detecting the temperature in the pot, particularly the temperature of the lower portion of the pot 11. The first sensor 15 is attached near the bottom of the hook, for example. A second sensor 16 for detecting the temperature of the inner surface of the lid 12 is attached to the lid. The first sensor and the second sensor are connected to the control device 13.

  The heating means of the rice cooker 1 includes a main heating element 17 that provides a heat source for performing a rice cooking operation and a high temperature maintenance operation in the pot 11 of the rice cooker, and an element 18 that heats the upper edge of the pot 11. An element 19 for heating the inner surface of the lid 12.

  The pressure rice cooker 1 further includes a pressure reducing valve 20 such as an electromagnetic valve pilot operated by the control device 13. The pressure reducing valve 20 is attached to the lid 12 in a known manner.

  As is well known, the rice cooker 1 can include a safety valve 21 that protects the rice cooker from an excessive increase in the pressure inside the housing 10.

  The housing 10 and the lid are made of, for example, plastic.

  The control device 13 is installed in the main body 10, for example, inside the main body. The control device 13 is further connected to a control button 22 that allows the user to program the rice cooker.

  Moreover, the control apparatus 13 is connected to the heating means 17, 18, and 19 and operates these operation | movement or a stop according to the event designated by the cooking program which a user selects. Some of these events involve temperature measurements made by one and / or the other of the sensors 15,16.

  According to one variant embodiment, the main heating element 17 is inductive and the element 18 that heats the upper edge of the pot 11 and the element 19 that heats the lid 12 are resistive.

  The rice cooker further comprises signal means (not shown) that can emit information to the user. This signal means is for example audio and / or visual.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, the mixed cooking of beans and rice first includes the pre-cooking of beans in the rice cooker according to the present invention. Then, after this pre-cooking, rice and water, or a mixture of water and other seeds are added, and the rice cooking step of the rice and beans mixture is started.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a rice preparation method including a pre-cooking step, a transition step, a heating step, and a rice cooking step, and an embodiment using an embodiment of a rice cooker control method will be described in detail. explain.

  First, a predetermined amount of beans and water (or a mixture of water and seasoning) is placed in the pot 11. The amount of water and beans can be marked with a special mark as a mark on the pot 11. It is also possible to use kitchen appliances for measuring beans and liquids.

  Subsequently, a pre-cooking step for beans is performed. This step is represented by steps A and B in FIG. 2 showing the change in temperature over time. In the first variant, the pressure reducing valve 20 is in the closed position during this step. Therefore, pre-cooking of beans is performed under a pressurized state. On the other hand, all or a part of the heating means 17, 18, 19 are operated so that the temperature inside the pot 11 is maintained between 101 ° C. and 120 ° C. That is, the control loop of the heating means 17, 18, and 19 with respect to the signal of the first temperature sensor 15 located at the bottom of the pot 11 is executed. The duration of the pre-cooking step is between 3 and 9 minutes. According to the present invention, the user can change the duration of the pre-cooking step via the control button according to what kind of texture is desired for the beans. If the cooking time is long, the beans after the cooking step are soft or flexible as a texture. According to one variant embodiment, the set temperature in the pre-cooking step is 117 ° C. ± 1 ° C. According to the variant embodiment shown, only the main heating element 17 is used in the pre-cooking step. At the end of the pre-cooking step, each heating element is switched off. Then, the pressure reducing step B is started, and the pressure reducing valve 20 is intermittently opened during this time so that the pressure is balanced inside and outside the pot 11 without causing spillage.

  After the end of the pre-cooking step, that is, after the overpressure in the pot 11 has been completely released, a step called transition step C starts.

  To indicate that a manual operation needs to be performed, the rice cooker can emit signals such as audio and / or visual signals to the user. This is because the user must add the desired amount of rice (and / or seeds) and an additional amount of water to perform rice cooking with beans.

  The Applicant has confirmed that it is not necessary to drain the pre-cooked water for the beans. To continue the cooking method according to the present invention, it is only necessary to add rice and water.

  Transition step C has a predetermined duration, for example from 2 minutes to 10 minutes. However, the transition step C can be stopped by a user's manual operation.

  After the end of this transition step C, the user sometimes starts a heating step D, sometimes after a transition period, by performing a specific operation. The heating step D is to allow the inside of the pot 11 to reach a predetermined set temperature from 101 ° C. to 120 ° C., preferably from 106 ° C. to 116 ° C. For this reason, the control apparatus 13 operates all the heating means 17, 18, and 19 of the rice cooker 1 unless the signal of the 2nd sensor 16 distribute | arranged to the lid | cover 12 shows preset temperature.

  This heating step D can be performed in a state where the pressure reducing valve 20 is in the closed position so that the pressure inside the hook rises. The state of changes in temperature and pressure in the pot of the rice cooker during this heating step is as shown in the graph of FIG.

  When the set temperature of the heating step is reached, the rice cooking steps E and F are immediately executed by the control device 13. This step maintains the set temperature of the heating step for a predetermined duration from 15 to 25 minutes, for example 19 minutes. For this reason, the rice cooking step consists of a control loop of the heating means 17, 18, 19 for the signal of the second temperature sensor 16 of the lid 12. When the cooking time has elapsed, the heating means 17, 18, and 19 are immediately stopped. The pressure reducing valve 20 becomes an open position, for example, 5 minutes before the end G of the rice cooking step. The state of changes in temperature and pressure in the rice cooker during the rice cooking step is as shown in the graph of FIG.

  According to another variant embodiment (not shown), the heating and cooking steps of the method according to the invention can also be carried out with the pressure reducing valve 20 kept in the open position. In this case, it is considered that the set temperature at the time of heating and cooking is between 95 ° C and 100 ° C. On the other hand, rice cooking time may be longer by several minutes.

  According to another variant embodiment, which shows a graph of temperature and pressure over time in FIG. 3, the pre-cooking step A is performed with the pressure reducing valve 20 kept in the open position. In this case, the set temperature of the pre-cooking step is between 95 ° C and 100 ° C. On the other hand, the duration of the pre-cooking step A is longer than the first variant and is between 10 and 22 minutes. As long as the pressure in the hook 11 corresponds to atmospheric pressure, there is no pressure reduction step B as described in the first modification. There is no change in the other steps of the method according to the invention.

  The method according to the present invention is very simple because the rice cooking step after raising the temperature has only one step. This also makes it possible to preserve the nutrients of the rice by minimizing the time it takes to expose the rice to high temperatures.

  On the other hand, the preparation of rice mixed with beans no longer requires pre-cooking in a separate container. The method according to the invention also does not require the operation of different containers. In fact, the preparation of rice mixed with beans is semi-automated and the user's hands are limited to replenishing rice (and / or seeds) and an additional amount of water.

  The invention also relates to a control device 13 that is particularly adapted to carry out the method according to the invention. The control device according to the invention comprises a storage device which is connected to the heating means, the sensor, the pressure reducing valve and the signal means, while storing various sequences of programs corresponding to the implementation of the method according to the invention.

  Moreover, this invention relates to the rice cooker equipped with this control apparatus.

  Furthermore, the present invention relates to a data recording medium readable by a computer, on which a program including program code means for executing the steps of the control method that is the subject of the present invention is recorded.

  Finally, the invention relates to a program comprising program code means adapted to carry out the steps of the control method that is the subject of the invention.

Claims (12)

Pressure cooker comprising a casing (10) with a lid (12) having heating means (17, 18, 19) of a pot (11), a pilot operated pressure reducing valve (20), and a temperature sensor (15) Control method,
Pre-cooking beans in a pot (11) in a predetermined amount of liquid for a predetermined duration of time (A, B);
The heating means (17, 18, 19) is switched off and the pressure reducing valve (20) is opened to allow the user to add a quantity of predetermined rice and / or seed and liquid. Step (C);
A heating step (D) for controlling the heating means (17, 18, 19) so that the inside of the pot (11) reaches a predetermined set temperature from 101 ° C to 120 ° C;
Cooked rice that starts from the time when it reaches the preset temperature and controls the heating means (17, 18, 19) so that the kettle (11) is maintained at the preset temperature for a predetermined duration from 15 minutes to 25 minutes During the steps (E, F), the heating step (D) and the rice cooking step (E, F), the pressure reducing valve (20) is kept in the closed position, and at the end (G) of the rice cooking step. The pressure cooker control method comprising: opening the pressure reducing valve (20) until the pressure difference between the inside and outside of the housing (10) becomes substantially zero .   During the pre-cooking step (A, B), the heating means (17, 18, 19) causes the inside of the pot (11) to reach a predetermined set temperature from 95 ° C. to 120 ° C. and then from 8 minutes. It controls so that this may be maintained over the predetermined | prescribed duration to 22 minutes, The control method of the pressure rice cooker of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned.   3. The pressure cooker according to claim 2, wherein a set temperature of the pre-cooking step (A) is between 95 ° C. and 100 ° C., and the pressure reducing valve (20) is kept in an open position. Control method. The control method of the pressure rice cooker according to claim 3, wherein the duration of the pre-cooking step (A, B) is between 10 minutes and 22 minutes.   3. The pressure rice cooker according to claim 2, wherein a set temperature of the pre-cooking step (A, B) is between 101 ° C. and 120 ° C., and the pressure reducing valve (20) is kept in a closed position. Control method.   6. The method of controlling a pressure rice cooker according to claim 5, wherein the duration of the pre-cooking step (A, B) is between 3 minutes and 9 minutes.   The duration method of the said transition step (C) exists between 2 minutes and 10 minutes, The control method of the pressure rice cooker in any one of Claims 1-6 characterized by the above-mentioned. The control method of the pressure rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein a set temperature of the rice cooking step (E, F) is between 106 ° C and 116 ° C. The said heating step (D) is started by operation of the rice cooker by the user, The control method of the pressure rice cooker in any one of Claims 1-8 characterized by the above-mentioned. The pressure rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 9 , wherein at the end of the transition step (C), the rice cooker periodically generates an audio signal and / or a visual signal to a user. Control method. Control device (13) for a pressure cooker, specially adapted to carry out the method according to any of claims 1 to 10 . A pressure rice cooker comprising the control device according to claim 11 .

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