JP6566894B2 - rice cooker - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a rice cooker, and more particularly to a steam separation unit that suppresses spillage of rice balls that occur during rice cooking.

  As a conventional rice cooker, there is a rice cooker provided with a “steam separation unit” on the lid so as to separate steam containing a rice cracker generated from an inner pot into a rice cracker and steam. In this conventional rice cooker, a separation chamber is provided in the steam separation unit, and there is an effect that “the separation performance of steam and rice cake is good because the steam and rice cake are separated by centrifugal force in the separation chamber”.

  For example, in the rice cooker described in Patent Document 1, “the steam (mixture) including the rice bowl from the gas mixture guide cylinder is separated from the tangential direction of the inner wall of the separation chamber formed in a substantially cylindrical shape. It flows into the interior and flows while swirling along the inner wall surface of the separation chamber, and the centrifugal force that accompanies this swirling separates the steam and rice balls having different specific gravities. Flows downward along the inner wall of the separation chamber, exits from the separation mechanism through an outlet, and falls into the receptacle in a manner that the bottom plate of the receptacle is lowered toward the lower surface opening. In the meantime, the rice bowl in the receiving container proceeds from the lower surface opening into the concave frame and accumulates in the concave frame, while the vapor separated in the separation chamber is deposited on the downstream wall of the separation chamber. Proceed from the provided steam outlet into the steam guide tube and steam guide Here, even if the rice cake that could not be separated comes out of the steam guide tube as bubbles, the foam is not removed from the steam guide tube because the lower and upper barriers are provided on the outlet side of the steam guide tube. It collides with the barrier and is crushed, and the rice cake passes through the lower barrier and the return port, then flows over the bottom plate of the receiving container, and accumulates in the concave frame through the lower surface opening. Is discharged to the outside of the rice cooker from the lid discharge port through the discharge port sealing material attached to the container lid discharge port.

JP 2013-22284 A

  In the rice cooker described in Patent Document 1, when the rice cake and steam are separated by centrifugal force, separation is not sufficient when high heat is continued in the rice cooking process, and the lid is discharged from the lid outlet to the outside of the rice cooker. There is a case where the stick is blown out. On the other hand, the space barrier from the steam guide tube to the steam port is increased to meander the steam and rice bowl, and the distance that the steam and rice bowl flows through the separation mechanism is increased to improve the separation performance of the steam and rice bowl. Can be raised. However, especially in a rice cooker with a long boiling time at high heating power for cooking delicious rice, increasing the input power to the heating means increases the amount of rice and steam generated per unit time. Steam and rice balls stay in the room. In order to solve this, it is necessary to further increase the distance through which the steam and the rice ball flow, but the separation mechanism is further increased in size. When the separation mechanism becomes large in this way, the amount of material used increases, leading to an increase in manufacturing cost, and handling by the user also deteriorates. Moreover, the ratio of the volume which a isolation | separation mechanism occupies with respect to the whole rice cooker also became large, and there existed a subject that the design and design restrictions of a rice cooker were also large.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems, and provides a rice cooker including a steam separation unit that is smaller in size and has a high ability to separate steam and rice.

The rice cooker according to the present invention covers a rice cooker body, an inner pot accommodated in the rice cooker body, a heating means for heating the inner pot, an upper opening of the rice cooker body, and steam is externally provided. A lid provided with a lid outlet for discharging the inner lid, an inner lid detachably mounted on the lower surface of the lid body and covering the upper opening of the inner hook, and provided on the upper surface side of the inner lid. A steam separation unit having an inner lid discharge port for discharging the steam in the inner pot, and connecting from the space in the inner pot to the lid body discharge port, the steam separation unit comprising: A container lid discharge port communicating with the lid discharge port, a separation chamber formed in a box shape above the internal space, and a gas mixture guide cylinder communicating the inner lid discharge port and the separation chamber; The separation chamber is a steam outlet that is an opening provided on a side surface of one end near the container lid discharge port. And a toroidal outlet opening on the bottom surface of the separation chamber below the vapor outlet, and the opening area of the annular outlet is an end of the mixture guide tube on the separation chamber side much larger than the opening area in section, the opening area of the container closure discharge port, the smaller than the opening area of the outlet if Ne Contact, larger than the opening area of the vapor outlet.

  The rice cooker according to the present invention separates the steam and the rice cake by centrifugal force in the separation chamber and causes the rice cake to flow out of the separation chamber into the receiving container. The neck discharge port has a larger area than the air-fuel mixture guide tube through which the mixture of the bed and steam flows, so that the discharge of the bed separated in the separation chamber is good. Only steam flows out from the steam outlet. As a result, only the steam is discharged from the steam discharge port, and the mixture containing the mushroom is not blown out of the rice cooker, and a rice cooker having a steam separation unit with a smaller and simple structure can be obtained.

It is a perspective view of the rice cooker which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is sectional drawing of the rice cooker which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a perspective view of the cover body and inner cover of the rice cooker which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a perspective view of an inner lid and a steam separation unit concerning Embodiment 1 of the present invention. It is a perspective view of an inner lid and a steam separation unit concerning Embodiment 1 of the present invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the cross section along the path | route which a vapor | steam flows through the inside of the vapor separation unit which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the cross section containing the air-fuel | gaseous mixture guide cylinder of the separation chamber of the steam separation unit which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the cross section containing the roughly outflow port of the separation chamber of the steam separation unit which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the horizontal cross section of the vapor separation unit which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the cross section along the path | route along which a steam flows through the steam separation unit of the rice cooker which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the internal shape of the air-fuel | gaseous mixture guide cylinder of the steam separation unit of the rice cooker which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below. Moreover, in the following drawings, the relationship of the size of each component may be different from the actual one.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
Hereinafter, embodiments of the rice cooker of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

[Overall configuration of rice cooker]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of rice cooker 100 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of rice cooker 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention. In the following description, for the sake of convenience, the upper direction of the paper in FIG. 2 is referred to as “up” of the rice cooker 100, and the lower direction of the paper is referred to as “lower” of the rice cooker 100.
In FIG.1 and FIG.2, the rice cooker 100 is provided with the rice cooker main body 1 which has an opening part in the upper part, and the cover body 10 which covers the upper opening part of the rice cooker main body 1 so that opening and closing is possible.

  The rice cooker body 1 detachably accommodates an inner pot 2 having a bottomed cylindrical shape into which water, rice and the like are placed and having an open top surface. The inner pot 2 is heated by a heating means 3 such as an electromagnetic induction coil or an electric heater so that rice in the inner pot 2 is cooked. An inner lid 20 is detachably attached to the lower surface side of the lid body 10, that is, the lower side of the lid body 10 in FIG. An annular inner lid packing 28 that is in close contact with the flange 2 a provided on the outer periphery of the upper end portion of the inner hook 2 when the lid body 10 is closed is provided on the peripheral portion of the inner lid 20.

  A pot bottom temperature sensor made of, for example, a thermistor (not shown) is provided inside the bottom center of the rice cooker body 1. The pan bottom temperature sensor is biased upward by elastic means such as a spring and is configured to contact the bottom surface of the inner pot 2 accommodated in the rice cooker body 1. Information regarding the temperature of the inner pot 2 detected by the pan bottom temperature sensor is output to a control means (not shown).

  An operation button 5 and a display panel 6 are provided on the upper surface side of the lid 10. The operation button 5 includes an input button for instructing the start of cooking and heat retention, an input button for setting the cooking operation such as the hardness of the cooked rice and the type of rice, and an input button for setting the cooking reservation. Yes. The display panel 6 consists of a liquid crystal display panel, for example, and displays the time, the setting content by the operation button 5, the information regarding rice cooking operation, etc.

The lid 10 is pivotally supported on the rice cooker body 1 by a hinge portion 17 and covers the upper opening of the rice cooker body 1 so as to be freely opened and closed.
On the upper surface of the lid body 10, a lid body outlet 16 for releasing steam generated during rice cooking to the outside of the rice cooker 100 is opened.

  The skeleton of the lid 10 is roughly a design top plate 11 constituting the uppermost surface, a lid upper surface member 12 provided on the lower side of the design top plate 11, and a lid provided on the lower side of the lid upper surface member 12. It is comprised by the cover lower surface member 13 which comprises the lower surface of the body 10. FIG. In the space provided between the design top plate 11 and the lid upper surface member 12, a control board 7 on which a circuit for controlling the operation of the operation buttons 5 and the display panel 6 is mounted is accommodated. In a space provided between the lid upper surface member 12 and the lid lower surface member 13, a lid heating means 4 made of, for example, an electric heater is provided.

[Attachment structure of the inner lid to the lid]
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of lid 10 and inner lid 20 of rice cooker 100 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 3 shows a state where the inner lid 20 is removed from the lid body 10.

  The inner lid 20 is integrally provided with a vapor separation unit 30 so as to protrude upward from the upper surface of the inner lid 20. The vapor separation unit 30 includes a rice bowl receiving container 40, a container lid 50 that covers the upper portion of the rice bowl receiving container 40, and a discharge port sealing material 60 provided on the container lid 50.

  On the lower surface of the lid lower surface member 13 of the lid body 10, an inner lid mounting recess 18 configured to be recessed toward the lid upper surface member 12 along the outer shape of the inner lid 20 is provided. An inner lid 20 is attached to the inner lid attaching recess 18. A vapor separation unit accommodating portion 14 configured to be further recessed toward the lid upper surface member 12 side is provided in a part of the inner lid mounting recess 18. In the vapor separation unit accommodating portion 14, a vapor separation unit 30 provided integrally with the inner lid 20 is detachably accommodated.

  The steam separation unit housing portion 14 has a planar shape that substantially conforms to the outer shape of the steam separation unit 30. In the first embodiment, the steam separation unit 30 having a substantially rounded rectangular planar shape and the steam separation unit accommodating portion 14 having a substantially rounded rectangular planar shape (inner peripheral planar shape) are exemplified. However, these external shapes are not limited.

  The inner lid outer frame 26 constituting the outer peripheral portion of the inner lid 20 is provided with a locking claw 27, and the lid body 10 is provided with an inner lid engaging portion 15 corresponding to the locking claw 27. Then, the inner lid 20 is attached to the lid body 10 by engaging the locking claw 27 with the inner lid engaging portion 15. Further, when the user pulls the inner lid 20 attached to the lid body 10 toward the near side, the engagement state between the locking claw 27 and the inner lid engaging portion 15 is released, and the inner lid 20 is closed. It can be removed from the body 10. In addition, the attachment structure of the inner lid with respect to the cover body 10 is not limited to the illustrated one, and any removable attachment structure can be employed.

  The lid heating means 4 is provided on the outer peripheral side of the vapor separation unit housing portion 14. That is, the lid heating means 4 is arranged at a position that does not overlap with the vapor separation unit housing portion 14 when viewed from above.

  The lid 10 is kept upright to the extent illustrated in FIG. 3 in the fully opened state. The inner lid 20 can be attached to or detached from the lid body 10 in the standing state.

[Vapor separation unit 30]
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the inner lid 20 and the vapor separation unit 30 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the inner lid 20 and the vapor separation unit 30 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. 4 shows a state in which the container lid 50 is opened, and FIG. 5 shows a state in which the container lid 50 is closed.

  The steam separation unit 30 is for separating an air-fuel mixture of steam and rice generated from the inner pot 2 during rice cooking into steam and rice. That is, the steam separation unit 30 is provided with the inner lid outlet 22 communicating with the space in the inner pot during cooking, and the container lid outlet 55 communicating with the lid outlet 16 at the upper part. The space from the inner pot 2 to the lid discharge port 16 is connected so that only steam passes and is discharged to the outside of the rice cooker 100. In the first embodiment, the steam flows inside the steam separation unit 30 through a path along the longitudinal direction of the container. This is because, in order to separate steam and rice balls, it is advantageous that the path through which steam passes is longer, but if a sufficient length can be secured for separation, the path through which steam passes is not necessarily separated. It is not necessary to take in the longitudinal direction of the unit 30.

  The vapor separation unit 30 includes a receptacle container 40 that is integrally attached to the upper surface of the inner lid 20, a container lid 50 that covers the upper portion of the receptacle container 40, and a container lid 50 that is attached to the receptacle container 40. And a pivot shaft 80 that pivotally supports the pivot shaft. A separation mechanism 70 is integrally provided on the inner surface side of the container lid main body 51. The separation mechanism 70 is a mechanism for separating the mixture of steam and rice cake generated in the inner pot 2 into steam and rice cake. When the container lid 50 is closed, the separation mechanism 70 is accommodated in the receiving container 40.

  In general, the receiving container 40 is formed in a substantially rounded rectangular shape by a bottom plate 42 and a side wall 43, and has an accommodating space therein. The bottom plate 42 has an inner lid discharge port 22 that communicates with a space formed by the inner pot 2 and the inner lid 20 in the rice cooker 100. The inner lid discharge port 22 communicates with a cylindrical air-fuel mixture guide tube 23. The air-fuel mixture guide cylinder 23 is a cylinder extending from the bottom surface of the container body 41 toward the container lid 50, that is, vertically upward from the bottom surface, and an air-fuel mixture outlet 23a is opened at the upper end. A return port 24 is opened in the bottom plate 42 of the container body 41.

  The container lid main body 51 of the container lid 50 is formed in a substantially rounded rectangular shape by a top plate 52 and a side wall 53. The container lid main body 51 has a slightly larger outer shape than the container main body 41, and can cover the upper surface opening of the container main body 41. An annular container lid packing 56 is attached to the inner peripheral edge of the container lid main body 51 on the inner surface side. The container lid packing 56 is for sealing between the receiving container 40 and the container lid 50, and is made of a material such as silicon rubber that can be elastically deformed. In a state in which the container lid 50 is closed, the upper end portion of the side wall 43 of the receptacle container 40 abuts against the container lid packing 56 to compress the container lid packing 56, and thereby the receptacle container 40 and the container lid 50. Is sealed.

  A container lid discharge port 55 is opened in the container lid main body 51, and a discharge port sealing material 60 is attached to the container lid discharge port 55. The container lid discharge port 55 is an opening for discharging steam from the vapor separation unit 30 to the outside, and is provided on the upper surface on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the rounded rectangular container lid body 51. The container lid discharge port 55 is provided directly below the lid body discharge port 16 in a state where the vapor separation unit 30 is attached to the lid body 10, and communicates with the lid body discharge port 16. Further, the top plate 52 is formed with a separation chamber top plate portion 54 at a portion where the separation mechanism 70 is formed. The separation chamber top plate portion 54 protrudes upward with respect to the top plate 52 of the container lid 50, and is formed so that the space inside the separation mechanism 70 can be largely taken upward.

  The discharge port sealing material 60 is a member for sealing between the container lid discharge port 55 and the lid discharge port 16, and is made of a material such as silicon rubber that can be elastically deformed. The discharge port sealing material 60 of the first embodiment includes an annular mounting portion 61 inserted into the container lid discharge port 55, an inclined portion 62 having a surface extending obliquely upward from the upper end of the mounting portion 61, and an inclined portion. A contact portion 63 that extends from the upper end of 62 to the opposite side of the inclined surface of the inclined portion 62 and contacts the lid discharge port 16 is provided. Inside the inclined portion 62, a flow path formed in a mortar shape is formed so that the cross-sectional area of the flow path becomes narrower from the lid discharge port 16 toward the container lid discharge port 55. In a state where the vapor separation unit 30 is attached to the vapor separation unit accommodating portion 14, the contact portion 63 comes into contact with the inner surface side of the lid discharge port 16, and the discharge port seal member 60 is compressed to be elastically deformed. The sealing between the container lid outlet 55 and the lid outlet 16 is ensured.

  The receptacle container 40 is provided with a latch lock 47 having a lock mechanism, and the container lid 50 is provided with a latch engaging portion 57 for engaging the latch lock 47. By closing the container lid 50 and engaging the latch lock 47 with the latch engaging portion 57, the state in which the container lid 50 is closed is more firmly held.

Next, the arrangement relationship between the vapor separation unit 30 and the inner lid 20 will be described.
The steam separation unit 30 is disposed at a position shifted from the center of the inner lid 20 having a substantially circular shape in plan view toward the back side of the rice cooker body 1, that is, closer to the hinge portion 17. In the first embodiment, when the inner lid 20 is attached to the lid body 10 (see FIGS. 1 and 2), the vapor separation unit 30 is arranged in a direction in which the distance between the vapor separation unit 30 and the hinge portion 17 is shortened. doing. Further, the rotation shaft 80 that pivotally supports the receiving container 40 when the container lid 50 is located is provided on the side far from the center of the inner lid 20 in the vapor separation unit 30. By disposing the steam separation unit 30 at a position shifted from the center of the inner lid 20 in the direction of the hinge portion 17, the inner lid 20 can secure a wide area at a position facing the steam separation unit 30, so that the user can When attaching / detaching the inner lid 20, this large area portion can be gripped, and the handleability is good. Furthermore, by arranging the rotation shaft 80 as described above, the container lid 50 opens on the side opposite to the user's hand holding the inner lid 20. For this reason, when the container lid 50 is opened, the container lid 50 does not collide with the user's hand holding the inner lid 20, and the handleability when opening and closing the container lid 50 is good.

[Separation mechanism]
FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a cross section along a path along which steam flows in the steam separation unit 30 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a cross section including the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 in the separation chamber 72 of the vapor separation unit 30 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a cross section including the roughly outflow port 74 of the separation chamber 72 of the vapor separation unit 30 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. Hereinafter, the vapor separation mechanism 70 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The separation mechanism 70 is a mechanism for separating the mixture of steam and rice cake generated in the inner pot 2 into steam and rice cake by a centrifugal separation action. The separation mechanism 70 is attached to the inner surface of the container lid 50, that is, the lower surface of the container lid 50. As shown in FIG. 8, when taking a cross section orthogonal to the path through which the steam flows through the vapor separation unit 30, the lower part of the separation mechanism 70 is a cylindrical part 75 a having a circular arc cross section, and the upper part has a cross section. A square portion 75b is formed. In the first embodiment, a part of the top plate 52 projects upward to form a separation chamber top plate part 54, and the container lid body 51 has a concave shape toward the top. Is formed. A wall 59 is erected on the inner surface of the separation chamber top plate portion 54 in a rectangular shape with rounded corners as viewed from the vertical direction from the inner side of the separation chamber top plate portion 54. The wall 59 is combined with the rectangular portion 75 b of the separation mechanism 70 to form the separation chamber 72. The wall surfaces located at the end of the separation chamber 72 in the direction of the flow path of the steam are referred to as an upstream wall 71a and a downstream wall 71b, respectively. The separation chamber 72 is a flow path through which a mixture of steam and rice is flowing. The separation chamber 72 only needs to be configured so that a mixture of steam and rough gas flows along its inner wall surface. In the first embodiment, the lower part is formed in a cylindrical shape, but only this shape is used. It is not limited to. For example, the upper portion of the separation chamber 72 may also be formed in a cylindrical shape, and the entire cross section of the separation chamber 72 may be formed in a cylindrical shape, or the lower portion of the separation chamber 72 may be formed in a rectangular shape in cross section. The entire cross section of the separation chamber 72 may be square.

  A mixed air flow inlet 73 is opened at the lower part of the separation chamber 72. The mixed air flow inlet 73 is opened at one end in the longitudinal direction of the separation chamber 72, that is, close to the upstream wall 71a, and the mixed gas guide tube 23 extending from the bottom surface of the receiving container 40 is inserted. The mixture of steam and rice generated in the inner pot 2 is blown out from the mixture outlet 23 a at the tip of the mixture guide cylinder 23 inserted into the separation chamber 72 and guided into the separation chamber 72. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the mixed air flow inlet 73 opens toward a position shifted in the horizontal direction from the center of the circular arc shape of the cylindrical portion 75 a in the lower part of the separation chamber 72. That is, the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 is inserted along the wall that forms the separation chamber 72.

  An outflow port 74 is provided at the lower end of the separation chamber 72 and at one end opposite to the mixed airflow inlet 73 in the longitudinal direction of the separation chamber 72. The rice outlet 74 is an opening through which the rice cake separated from the mixture of steam and rice in the separation chamber 72 flows out of the separation chamber 72. In the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 8, an example is shown in which one rough outlet 74 is provided, but the number of rough outlets 74 is not limited. In order to be able to discharge a beef from another towel outlet 74 even if one tomb outlet 74 is blocked by a tomb, it is preferable to provide a plurality of towel outlets 74, In this case, it is preferable that the installation heights are different from each other.

  A steam outlet 77 is opened in the downstream wall 71b. The opening position of the steam outlet 77 is substantially the center of the cross section of the flow path of the steam formed in the separation chamber 72. When the vapor separated from the air-fuel mixture in the separation chamber 72 travels along the path, the vapor flows out from the vapor outlet 77 to the outside of the separation chamber 72.

  The mixed air flow inlet 73 and the vapor outlet 77 are respectively disposed on one end side and the other end side of the separation chamber 72 in the flow direction. The mixed air flow inlet 73 is disposed on the upstream side in the flow direction, and the steam outlet 77 is disposed on the downstream side in the flow direction. The distance between the mixed airflow inlet 73 and the vapor outlet 77 is set in consideration of the inner diameter of the separation chamber 72 and the like so that the steam and the rice cake can be separated from the air-fuel mixture flowing in from the mixed airflow inlet 73. In the first embodiment, the mixed air flow inlet 73 is formed at one end in the longitudinal direction of the separation chamber 72, and the vapor outlet 77 is formed at the other end in the longitudinal direction of the separation chamber 72. By being configured in this manner, the distance between the mixed airflow inlet 73 and the steam outlet 77 can be increased, which is advantageous for separating the steam and the rice cake from the mixed gas flowing in from the mixed airflow inlet 73. is there. As for the arrangement of the mixed air flow inlet 73 and the vapor outlet 77, the mixed air flow inlet 73 is provided at one end of the separation chamber 72, as long as the distance necessary for separating the steam and the rice cake is secured. However, the present invention is not limited to the provision of the steam outlet 77 at the end. Similarly to this, the distance between the mixed airflow inlet 73 and the vapor outlet 77 is not limited to the form in the longitudinal direction of the separation chamber 72.

  The steam outlet 77 is connected to a steam guide cylinder 78 extending in the outflow direction. The steam guide cylinder 78 extends to the vicinity of the lower portion of the container lid outlet 55 in a state where the container lid 50 is closed. A steam outlet 78 a opened at the downstream end of the steam guide cylinder 78 is provided directly facing a space 58 below the container lid outlet 55. Further, there is no shield on the path connecting the steam outlet 78a and the container lid outlet 55 with a straight line. With this configuration, the separated steam blown out from the steam outlet 78a is directly blown out into the space below the container lid outlet 55, so that the container lid can be discharged without hindering the flow of steam. It can flow out from the outlet 55 to the outside. The lid discharge port 16 communicating with the container lid discharge port 55 is formed so as not to hinder the flow of steam flowing out from the container lid discharge port 55. For example, the opening area of the lid discharge port 16 is set to be equal to or larger than the opening area of the container lid discharge port 55, or the space for communicating the container lid discharge port 55 and the lid discharge port 16 is made larger. Also good.

[Air-fuel mixture discharge mechanism and back return mechanism from the inner lid]
Next, a mechanism for discharging the air-fuel mixture from the inner hook 2 and a mechanism for returning the screw into the inner hook will be described with reference to FIGS.

  A mounting hole 29 is opened in the inner lid 20. The bottom surface of the receiving container 40 is combined with the mounting hole 29 from the upper surface side of the inner lid 20. The inner lid discharge port 22 and the toe return port 24 formed on the bottom surface of the receptacle container 40 are configured to be exposed from the mounting hole 29. The inner lid 20 and the generally receiving container 40 are integrally configured by being coupled, for example, by fitting. The structure for integrating the inner lid 20 and the receptacle 40 is not limited to this. Further, if the user asks, the receiving container 40 may be configured to be detachable from the inner lid 20 or may be configured to be detachable. However, even if the inner pot 2 becomes high pressure during cooking, the inner lid 20 is configured so that the attachment state of the receiving container 40 is maintained.

  The rice bowl receiving container 40 has a rice bowl receiving portion 21 formed by a side wall 43, a bottom plate 42, and a lower barrier 45 rising from the bottom plate 42. The rice bowl receiving portion 21 is formed in the lower part of the separation chamber 72, and the rice bowl flowing out from the rice bowl outlet 74 of the separation chamber 72 is temporarily stored inside the receptacle container 40. Yes.

  The inner lid discharge port 22 is open on the bottom surface 49 of the receptacle 40. The inner lid discharge port 22 is an opening for discharging the air-fuel mixture in the inner hook 2 to the outside of the inner hook 2. From the inner lid discharge port 22, an air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 stands up toward the upper side. The air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 is a hollow cylinder for guiding the air-fuel mixture from the inner lid discharge port 22 into the separation chamber 72 of the separation mechanism 70. The upper end portion of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 is inserted into the separation chamber 72 from the air mixture inlet 73. The length for inserting the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 into the separation chamber 72 is set so that the air-fuel mixture flowing out from the upper end of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 flows along the inner wall of the separation chamber 72. As long as the air-fuel mixture can flow along the inner wall of the separation chamber 72, the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 does not necessarily have to be inserted into the separation chamber 72 and is connected to the inner periphery of the air flow inlet 73. It is good also as a structure. Further, if the configuration allows the air-fuel mixture to flow along the inner wall of the separation chamber 72, the opening position and opening direction of the mixed air flow inlet 73 and the connection position and connection direction of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 are arbitrarily adopted. can do. In the first embodiment, when the container lid 50 shown in FIG. 4 is opened, the upper end portion of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 is exposed in the container main body 41 of the receiving container 40, but when the container lid 50 is closed. 6 to 8, the upper end portion of the mixture guide tube 23 is inserted into the separation chamber 72.

In addition, a return port 24 is opened on the bottom plate 42 of the return receptacle 40. The bed return port 24 is an opening that allows the inside of the bed receiving container 40 and the inside of the inner hook 2 to communicate with each other. An opening / closing valve 25 is attached to the return port 24 so as to be movable up and down.
The on-off valve 25 descends when the internal pressure in the inner hook 2 is low, and holds the return port 24 in an open state. Further, during cooking, that is, when the inner pressure of the inner pot 2 is high, the opening / closing valve 25 is raised by the inner pressure, and the return port 24 is closed. The on-off valve 25 is made of a material such as silicon rubber, which has heat resistance and hardly changes over time.

[Operation of steam separation unit]
Next, the effect | action of the steam separation unit 30 in the case of cooking with the rice cooker 100 which concerns on Embodiment 1 is demonstrated with reference to FIG.6 and FIG.7.
When the user accommodates the inner pot 2 containing water and rice in the rice cooker body 1, closes the lid 10, and operates the operation button 5, the inner pot 2 is heated by the action of the heating means 3. When the water in the inner pot 2 boils, steam (air mixture) containing a rice bowl is generated. At this time, since the internal pressure of the inner hook 2 has increased, the on-off valve 25 provided at the return port 24 closes the return port 24 if it is pushed up. For this reason, the steam including the rice cake passes through the inner lid discharge port 22 and the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 and is guided into the separation chamber 72 from the end of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 inserted into the air flow inlet 73.

  The steam (air mixture) including the rice cake coming out of the gas mixture guide cylinder 23 flows into the separation chamber 72 along the inner wall of the separation chamber 72 and flows while swirling along the inner wall surface of the separation chamber 72. Steam and rice balls having different specific gravities are separated by the centrifugal force associated with the turning. The rice bowl separated in the separation chamber 72 flows downward along the inner wall of the separation chamber 72, exits the separation mechanism 70 through the mouth outlet 74, and falls into the rice receptacle 40. The bottom plate 42 of the receptacle container 40 is inclined so as to descend toward the receptacle return port 24, and the towel in the receptacle container 40 is temporarily stored in the receptacle receiver 21.

  FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a horizontal cross section of the vapor separation unit 30 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. Assuming that the opening area of the end of the air-fuel mixture guide cylinder 23 on the separation chamber 72 side is A and the opening area of the general outlet 74 formed in the separation chamber 72 is B, the relationship between A and B is A <B It is comprised so that. By being configured in this way, the separation of the mixed powder from the separation chamber 72 to the large receiving portion 21 is expedited with respect to the inflow of the mixed gas blown out from the mixed gas guide tube 23, and the inside of the separation chamber 72 Since the pressure loss is reduced, the separation performance between the rice ball and the steam is improved. In addition, excessive steam and steam do not stay in the separation chamber 72. Then, it is possible to prevent the air-fuel mixture or separated rice cake from flowing into the steam outlet 77 and to allow only the steam to flow into the steam outlet 77. The steam blown out from the steam outlet 77 through the steam guide cylinder 78 passes through the discharge port sealing material 60 attached to the container lid discharge port 55 and is discharged from the lid discharge port 16 to the outside of the rice cooker 100.

  Furthermore, when the area of the steam outlet 77, the opening area in the cross section of the steam guide cylinder 78, and the opening area of the steam outlet 78a are C, the steam separation unit is configured to satisfy B> C. By being configured in this way, it is possible to prevent the rice balls from being discharged to the outside of the rice cooker 100. In addition, when the opening area of the container lid discharge port 55 is D, C <D. By being configured in this way, the vapor is easily discharged from the container lid discharge port 55.

  Thereafter, when the heating is stopped and the internal pressure of the inner pot 2 is lowered, the on-off valve 25 is lowered by its own weight and the weight of the toy, and the toy return port 24 provided on the bottom surface of the toy receiving part 21 is opened. . As a result, the rice balls collected in the female receptacle 21 fall into the inner hook 2 from the female return port 24. When the rice ball returns to the rice in the inner pot 2, the ingredients of the deliciousness contained in the rice ball are given to the rice, and it is possible to cook a delicious and sticky rice.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the second embodiment, a rice cooker 200 in which the shape of the tip of the air-fuel mixture guide cylinder 23 is changed with respect to the steam separation unit 30 of the rice cooker 100 according to the first embodiment will be described. In the second embodiment, the description will focus on changes from the first embodiment. The site | part which has the structure same as the rice cooker 100 of Embodiment 1 attaches | subjects the same code | symbol, and abbreviate | omits the description.

  FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a cross section along a path along which steam flows through steam separation unit 30 of rice cooker 200 according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. In the second embodiment, two concave portions 90 are formed on the front end surface of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 223 inserted into the separation chamber 72. The concave portion 90 is disposed at a symmetrical position with respect to the central axis of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 223. The concave portion 90 is rectangular when viewed from the side surface of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 223, and penetrates the cylindrical shape of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 from the outer peripheral surface to the inner peripheral surface.

  By providing a concave portion 90 as shown in FIG. 10 at the front end of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 223 inserted into the separation chamber 72, the foam blown out from the front end of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 223 and the steam is destroyed. It becomes easy to be done. The inside of the inner pot 2 during cooking is boiled with water, and steam and rice balls are mixed to form a foam. Bubbles generated in the space formed by the inner hook 2 and the inner lid 20 overflow from the inner lid discharge port 22, pass through the gas mixture guide tube 223, and flow into the separation chamber 72. As shown in the first embodiment, when the edge of the front end of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23 is circular, bubbles formed by the blown rice bowl and the steam are substantially spherical at the front end of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 23. Since the bubbles are blown into the shape, the bubbles are not easily destroyed, and the bubbles are easily spread into the separation chamber 72 without being destroyed. If the rice cake and the steam remain in the form of bubbles and spread into the receptacle 40 from the outlet 74, they are pushed out to the air-fuel mixture that flows into the vapor separation unit 30 and eventually. There is a possibility of flowing out from the container lid outlet 55 to the outside.

  In the second embodiment, because the recess 90 provided at the tip of the mixture guide tube 223 causes the toe blown from the tip of the mixture guide tube 223 and the foam formed by the steam to blow out in an uneven shape, Bubbles are broken and easily separated into steam and rice. Thereby, it is suppressed that the bubble formed with the steam and steam outside the rice cooker 200 flows out. Note that the shape of the tip of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 223 is not limited to the form shown in FIG. For example, the recesses 90 may be further increased, or the recesses 90 may be triangular instead of rectangular. Further, not only the air-fuel mixture guide cylinder 223 is recessed with respect to the tip, but also a protrusion may be provided. In other words, an uneven shape may be formed at the tip of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 223 so that the blown bubbles do not swell evenly.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
In Embodiment 3, the rice cooker 300 which changed the internal shape of the air-fuel mixture guide cylinder 23 with respect to the steam separation unit 30 of the rice cooker 100 according to Embodiment 1 will be described. In the third embodiment, the description will focus on the changes made to the first embodiment. The site | part which has the structure same as the rice cooker 100 of Embodiment 1 attaches | subjects the same code | symbol, and abbreviate | omits the description.

  FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal shape of the air-fuel mixture guide tube 323 of the steam separation unit 30 of the rice cooker 300 according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. 11A shows a case where one triangular protrusion 91a is provided inside the air-fuel mixture guide tube 323, and FIG. 11B shows a case where one recess 91b is provided inside the air-fuel mixture guide tube 323. 11C, when the shape of the protrusion is changed with respect to FIG. 11A and a protrusion 91c having a large tip angle is installed, FIG. 11D shows the protrusion 91a of FIG. It is a figure at the time of increasing the number of installation.

  In the air-fuel mixture guide tubes 323a to 323d shown in FIGS. 11 (a) to 11 (d), the protrusions 91a and 91c and the recess 91b are formed along the axial direction of the air-fuel mixture guide tubes 323a to 323d. To the tip on the separation chamber 72 side. By being configured in this manner, the bubbles formed by the steam and the steam that flow into the air-fuel mixture guide tubes 323a to 323d have different shapes and are blown out from the tips of the air-fuel mixture guide tubes 323a to 323d. Therefore, the blown bubbles are easily broken at the tips of the air-fuel mixture guide tubes 323a to 323d, and the separation of the stomach and the steam is promoted.

  Note that the internal shapes of the air-fuel mixture guide tubes 323a to 323d are not limited to the form shown in FIG. For example, the protrusions 91a and 91c and the recess 91b may be further increased and the protrusions 91a and 91c and the recess 91b may be rectangular instead of triangular. Further, the sizes of the protrusions 91a and 91c and the recess 91b may be increased. That is, it is only necessary to form an uneven shape inside the air-fuel mixture guide cylinders 323a to 323d so that the blown bubbles do not swell evenly.

  Moreover, you may employ | adopt combining the form shown in Embodiment 2 and Embodiment 3 in combination. By combining the uneven shape at the tip of the air-fuel mixture guide cylinder 223 of the second embodiment and the internal uneven shapes of the air-fuel mixture guide cylinders 323a to 323d of the third embodiment, bubbles formed by a rough and steam Is promoted, and the separation performance of rice balls and steam is improved.

[Effect of the embodiment]
(1) As described above, according to the first to third embodiments, in the rice cookers 100, 200, and 300, the rice cooker body 1, the inner pot 2 accommodated in the rice cooker body 1, and the inner pot 2 A heating means 3 for heating the lid, a lid body 10 that covers the upper opening of the rice cooker body 1 and has a lid body discharge port 16 for discharging steam to the outside, and a detachable attachment to the lower surface of the lid body 10 An inner lid 20 that covers the upper opening of the inner hook 2, and an inner lid discharge port that is provided on the upper surface side of the inner lid 20 for discharging steam in the inner hook 2. A vapor separation unit 30 that connects the space to the lid discharge port 16. The vapor separation unit 30 communicates the container lid discharge port 55 communicating with the lid discharge port 16, the separation chamber 72 formed in a box shape above the internal space, the inner lid discharge port 22, and the separation chamber 72. The air-fuel mixture guide cylinders 23, 223, 323a to 323d to be operated are provided. Separation chamber 72 has a steam outlet 77 which is an opening provided on one side surface close to container lid discharge port 55 and a bottom surface of separation chamber 72 below steam outlet 77. And an outlet 74. The opening area B of the outlet 74 is larger than the opening area A at the end of the mixture guide tubes 23, 223, 323a to 323d on the separation chamber 72 side.
With this configuration, the mixture of steam and rice cake flows along the inner wall surface of the separation chamber 72. In this process, the mixture of steam and rice cake is separated by the action of centrifugal separation. 23, when the mixed gas blown out from the gas flow outlet 23 is discharged from the separation chamber 72 to the receiving portion 21, the pressure loss in the separation chamber 72 is reduced. Separation performance is improved. Therefore, excessive steam and steam do not stay in the separation chamber 72, and it is possible to suppress the mixture or separated powder from flowing into the steam outlet 77, and only the steam enters the steam outlet 77. It can be made to flow. Further, the inside of the vapor separation unit 30 is not filled with bubbles by the steam, and the bubbles are not pushed out into the air-fuel mixture and discharged from the container lid discharge port 55 to the outside. That is, the separation performance between the steam and the rice bowl of the steam separation units 30 of the rice cookers 100, 200, and 300 according to the first to third embodiments can be increased. For this reason, even when heated with a high heating power or when boiling is set for a long time, the overflow of rice balls can be suppressed and delicious rice can be cooked.

(2) According to the first to third embodiments, in the rice cookers 100, 200, and 300, the opening area D of the container lid outlet 55 is smaller than the opening area B of the outlet 74, and the steam outlet 77. Is larger than the opening area C.
By comprising in this way, in addition to the effect shown by said (1), it can suppress that a rice ball is discharged | emitted with the steam to the exterior of the rice cooker 100. FIG. Moreover, it becomes easy to discharge | evaporate from the container cover discharge port 55. FIG.

(3) According to the first to third embodiments, in the rice cookers 100, 200, and 300, the steam separation unit 30 is connected to the container lid outlet 55 from the side surface of one end of the separation chamber 72 near the container lid outlet 55. A steam guide cylinder 78 extending in a cylindrical shape toward the lower space of the. One end of the steam guide cylinder 78 communicates with the steam outlet 77 and the other end is opened to form a steam outlet 78a. The steam outlet 78a is disposed facing the space below the container lid outlet 55. Is done.
By being configured in this way, in addition to the effects shown in (1) and (2) above, there is nothing that hinders the flow of steam in the path from the steam outlet 78a to the container lid outlet 55. Only the steam separated in the separation chamber 72 easily flows out from the container lid outlet 55 through the steam guide tube 78. As a result, it is possible to prevent the rice balls collected in the rice receptacle receiving part 21 and the rice cakes still in the form of bubbles and remaining in the vapor separation unit 30 from flowing out of the container lid discharge port 55 together with the vapor. it can.

(4) According to the first to third embodiments, in the rice cookers 100, 200, and 300, the vapor separation unit 30 is configured so that the container lid discharge port 55 starts from the side surface of one end of the separation chamber 72 near the container lid discharge port 55. A steam guide cylinder 78 extending in a cylindrical shape toward the lower space 58 of the. One end of the steam guide cylinder 78 communicates with the steam outlet 77, the other end is opened to form a steam outlet 78a, and a shield is provided along a path connecting the steam outlet 78a and the container lid outlet 55 in a straight line. It is configured so that there is no.
With this configuration, the same effect as the above (3) can be obtained.

(5) According to Embodiment 2, in the rice cooker 200, the air-fuel mixture guide tube 223 has irregularities formed on the end surface on the separation chamber 72 side. Further, according to the third embodiment, in the rice cooker 300, the air-fuel mixture guide tubes 323a to 323d have irregularities formed on the inner surfaces.
By being configured in this manner, in addition to the effects shown in the above (1) to (4), bubbles formed by the rice bowl and the steam that flowed into the separation chamber 72 are mixed with the mixture guide tube 223, The breakage of the bubbles is promoted by spreading unevenly at the tips of 323a to 323d. Thereby, the separation performance of the rice bowl and the steam in the separation chamber 72 is improved.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Rice cooker main body, 2 Inner pot, 2a Flange, 3 Heating means, 4 Cover body heating means, 5 Operation button, 6 Display panel, 7 Control board, 10 Cover body, 11 Design top plate, 12 Cover top member, 13 Cover Lower surface member, 14 Vapor separation unit accommodating portion, 15 Inner lid engaging portion, 16 Lid body discharge port, 17 Hinge portion, 18 Inner lid mounting recessed portion, 20 Inner lid, 21 Neighbor receiving portion, 22 Inner lid discharge port, 23 Mixture guide cylinder, 23a Mixture outlet, 24 spring return port, 25 open / close valve, 26 inner lid outer frame, 27 locking claw, 28 inner lid packing, 29 mounting hole, 30 steam separation unit, 40 Container, 41 Container body, 42 Bottom plate, 43 Side wall, 45 Lower barrier, 47 Latch lock, 50 Container lid, 51 Container lid body, 52 Top plate, 53 Side wall, 54 Separation chamber top plate, 55 Container lid outlet, 5 Container lid packing, 57 Latch engaging part, 58 space, 59 wall, 60 discharge port sealing material, 61 mounting part, 62 inclined part, 63 abutting part, 70 separation mechanism, 71 peripheral wall, 71a upstream wall, 71b downstream wall, 72 Separation chamber, 73 Mixing air flow inlet, 74 Nebashi outlet, 75a Cylindrical part, 75b Square part, 77 Steam outlet, 78 Steam guide tube, 78a Steam outlet, 80 Rotating shaft, 90 Recess, 91a Protrusion , 91b Recess, 91c Protrusion, 100 Rice cooker, 200 Rice cooker, 223 Mixture guide tube, 323a-d Mixture guide tube, A (opening of the mixture guide tube), B (opening outlet) open area , C (opening area of the steam guide tube), D (opening area of the container lid outlet).

Claims (5)

The rice cooker body,
An inner pot accommodated in the rice cooker body;
Heating means for heating the inner pot;
Covering the upper opening of the rice cooker body, and a lid provided with a lid outlet for discharging steam to the outside,
An inner lid that is detachably attached to the lower surface of the lid and covers the upper opening of the inner pot;
A vapor separation unit, provided on the upper surface side of the inner lid, having an inner lid outlet for discharging steam in the inner hook, and connecting from the space in the inner hook to the lid outlet. With
The vapor separation unit includes:
A container lid outlet in communication with the lid outlet;
On the upper side of the internal space, a separation chamber formed in a box shape,
An air-fuel mixture guide tube that communicates the inner lid outlet and the separation chamber,
The separation chamber is
A steam outlet that is an opening provided on the side surface of one end near the container lid outlet,
A rough outlet that is open at the bottom of the separation chamber below the vapor outlet;
With
The opening area of the outlet is
Much larger than the opening area at the end of the separation chamber side of the gas mixture guide tube,
The opening area of the container lid outlet is:
A rice cooker that is smaller than the opening area of the rice outlet and larger than the opening area of the steam outlet . The vapor separation unit includes:
A steam guide tube extending in a cylindrical shape from a side surface of one end of the separation chamber close to the container lid discharge port toward a space below the container lid discharge port ;
The steam guide tube is
One end communicates with the steam outlet, the other end is opened to form a steam outlet,
The steam outlet is
Wherein it is arranged facing the container lower portion of the space of the lid outlet, rice cooker according to claim 1. The vapor separation unit includes:
A steam guide tube extending in a cylindrical shape from a side surface of one end of the separation chamber close to the container lid discharge port toward a space below the container lid discharge port ;
The steam guide tube is
One end communicates with the steam outlet, the other end is opened to form a steam outlet,
The rice cooker of Claim 1 or 2 comprised so that there might be no obstruction | occlusion in the path | route which tied this steam blower outlet and the said container lid discharge port in a straight line. The mixture guide tube is
The rice cooker of any one of Claims 1-3 with which the unevenness | corrugation is formed in the end surface at the side of the said separation chamber. The mixture guide tube is
The rice cooker of any one of Claims 1-4 with which the unevenness | corrugation is formed in the inner surface.

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