JP7407900B2 - heating cooking system - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to a heating cooking system, and in particular, an electric rice cooker is used by being placed on an induction heating cooker, and after rice cooking is completed, it is removable from the induction heating cooker, and the induction heating cooker is used alone. Even regarding what is available.

Conventionally, a rice cooking unit (also called ``ohitsubu'') equipped with an inner pot was placed on top of a tabletop induction heating cooker (also called ``electromagnetic cooker''), and rice was cooked using an induction heating source. There was an electric rice cooker in which the rice cooking unit could be moved to a location away from the induction heating cooker after rice cooking (see Patent Document 1).

Furthermore, there was an electric rice cooker that not only could be separated into an upper and lower part from an induction heating cooker, but also had a function to measure the weight of the inner pot for storing rice, etc., in an attempt to improve user convenience (Patent Document 2, 3 and 4).

Utility model registration No. 3103627 Patent No. 5775885 JP2017-079207A Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-077459

In the electric rice cooker described in Patent Document 1, when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker, various input operation buttons that constitute the operation section of the induction heating cooker are exposed, so that the rice cooking unit There is a possibility that an input operation button on the induction heating cooker that is not necessary for cooking rice may be pressed while the rice cooker is placed on the induction heating cooker.
Furthermore, in the electric rice cookers described in Patent Documents 2, 3, and 4, when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker, the input operation section is arranged at the front part of the top surface of the induction heating cooker. Since the input operation section and the display section are close to the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit, there is a problem that the input operation section and display section receive heat radiated from the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit which has become high temperature due to induction heating, and become overheated. there were.

The main purpose of the present disclosure is to provide a heating cooking system that can prevent users from misunderstandings and operational errors.

The heating cooking system of the present disclosure includes:
An induction heating cooker equipped with a top plate on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate of the induction heating cooker and has a built-in inner pot,
The induction heating cooker includes a heating coil that inductively heats the inner pot, and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil for setting energization conditions for the heating coil,
The rice cooking unit includes a second input operation means for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
Information for rice cooking control is transmitted between the rice cooking unit and the induction heating cooker at a portion rearward of the gap and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit and the top plate of the induction heating cooker. forming a window for passing infrared signals,
comprising a reference position determining means for determining whether the rice cooking unit is placed at a predetermined position of the induction heating cooker;
The induction heating cooker or the rice cooking unit is configured such that the rice cooking unit is positioned at a predetermined reference position by the reference position determining means during the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit or during the reserved rice cooking period. When it is determined that there is no rice cooking process, it performs processing to determine whether to continue or stop the rice cooking operation depending on the progress of the rice cooking process, and also performs a notification operation in advance at the stage of continuing or stopping the rice cooking operation. It is.

Another first disclosed electric rice cooker is:
an induction heating cooker comprising a heating coil and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil for inputting induction heating conditions;
A rice cooking unit comprising an inner pot that accommodates rice to be cooked and is heated by the heating coil, and a second input operation means for inputting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
This configuration is characterized in that a protrusion projecting toward the gap is formed on at least one of the top surface of the induction heating cooker and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit.

According to the electric rice cooker of the first disclosure, it is possible to prevent overheating of the first input operation means arranged at the front part of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker.

The second disclosed electric rice cooker is
An induction heating cooker comprising a heating coil and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil and inputting induction heating conditions;
A rice cooking unit comprising an inner pot that accommodates rice to be cooked and is heated by the heating coil, and a second input operation means for inputting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
This configuration is characterized in that a vent hole is formed on the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit in correspondence with the space, through which cooling air from a cooling fan built in the rice cooking unit flows.

According to the electric rice cooker of the second disclosure, overheating of the first input operation means disposed at the front portion of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker can be prevented by the cooling air flowing through the rice cooking unit.

The heating cooking system that is the third disclosure is as follows:
An induction heating cooker equipped with a top plate on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate of the induction heating cooker and has a built-in inner pot,
The induction heating cooker includes a heating coil that inductively heats the inner pot, and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil for setting energization conditions for the heating coil,
The rice cooking unit includes a second input operation means for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
A window for passing an infrared signal between the rice cooking unit and the induction heating cooker is provided at a portion rearward of the gap and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit and the top plate of the induction heating cooker. form,
The induction heating cooker may check the placement of the rice cooking unit using the infrared signal before starting the rice cooking process using the rice cooking unit, and thereafter disable the input operation of the first input operation means. This is a configuration characterized by the following.

According to the heating cooking system of the third disclosure, it is possible to prevent overheating of the first input operation means disposed at the front part of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker, and the Before starting the rice cooking process, the placement of the rice cooking unit is confirmed by the infrared signal, and then the input operation of the first input operation means of the induction heating cooker is disabled, so that a predetermined rice cooking unit is used. In this case, it is possible to prevent careless input operations from being performed by the first input operation means.

The heating cooking system that is the fourth disclosure is as follows:
An induction heating cooker equipped with a top plate on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate of the induction heating cooker and has a built-in inner pot,
The induction heating cooker includes a heating coil that inductively heats the inner pot, and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil for setting energization conditions for the heating coil,
The rice cooking unit includes a second input operation means for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
A window for passing an infrared signal between the rice cooking unit and the induction heating cooker is provided at a portion rearward of the gap and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit and the top plate of the induction heating cooker. form,
The induction heating cooker, before starting the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit, confirms the placement of the rice cooking unit by the infrared signal, and then disables the input operation of the first input operation means,
Furthermore, the induction heating cooker is characterized in that when it is detected by the infrared signal that the rice cooking unit has completed a predetermined rice cooking process, the invalid state of the input operation of the first input operation means is canceled. It is the composition.

According to the heating cooking system of the fourth disclosure, it is possible to prevent overheating of the input operation section disposed at the front part of the top surface of the induction heating cooker by the space, and also to prevent the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit from being overheated. Before starting, the placement of the rice cooking unit is confirmed by the infrared signal, and then the input operation of the first input operation means of the induction heating cooker is disabled, so when using a predetermined rice cooking unit, During the rice cooking operation, it is possible to prevent careless input operations from being performed by the first input operation means. Furthermore, once the rice cooking process is finished, the invalid state of the input operation is automatically canceled, so there is no problem in using the induction heating cooker alone.

The fifth disclosure heating cooking system is as follows:
An induction heating cooker equipped with a top plate on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate of the induction heating cooker and has a built-in inner pot,
The induction heating cooker includes a heating coil that inductively heats the inner pot, and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil for setting energization conditions for the heating coil,
The rice cooking unit includes a second input operation means for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
Information for rice cooking control is transmitted between the rice cooking unit and the induction heating cooker at a portion rearward of the gap and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit and the top plate of the induction heating cooker. forming a window for passing infrared signals,
The induction heating cooker or the rice cooking unit confirms the placement of the rice cooking unit by the infrared signal during the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit or during the reserved rice cooking period, and moves the rice cooking unit to a predetermined reference position. When it is determined that the rice cooking unit is not present, a process is performed to determine whether to continue or stop the rice cooking operation depending on the progress of the rice cooking process, and a notification operation is performed in advance at the stage of continuing or canceling the rice cooking operation. This configuration is characterized by the following.

According to the heating cooking system having this configuration, it is possible to prevent the first input operation means disposed at the front portion of the upper surface from overheating.
Also, before or after starting the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit, the placement of the rice cooking unit is confirmed by the infrared signal, and depending on the progress of the rice cooking process, it is determined whether to continue or stop the rice cooking operation. In addition, since the user is notified in advance when the rice cooking operation is to be continued or stopped, there is an advantage that misunderstandings and operational errors by the user can be prevented.

The heating cooking system disclosed in the sixth disclosure is as follows:
An induction heating cooker equipped with a top plate on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate of the induction heating cooker and has a built-in inner pot,
The induction heating cooker includes a heating coil that inductively heats the inner pot, and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil for setting energization conditions for the heating coil,
The rice cooking unit includes a second input operation means for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
Information for rice cooking control is transmitted between the rice cooking unit and the induction heating cooker at a portion rearward of the gap and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit and the top plate of the induction heating cooker. forming a window for passing infrared signals,
The induction heating cooker confirms the placement of the rice cooking unit by the infrared signal during the rice cooking process using the rice cooking unit or during the reserved rice cooking period, and moves the rice cooking unit to a predetermined reference position. The configuration is characterized in that it includes a wireless communication section that notifies the outside via wireless when it is determined that there is no such problem.

According to the heating cooking system of the sixth disclosure, it is possible to prevent overheating of the input operation section disposed in the front part of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker, and also to prevent the rice cooking unit from overheating when the rice cooking unit is cooking or reserved. If it is detected that the rice has deviated from the reference position during the rice cooking period, it will be notified to the outside, so it can be monitored to ensure that the rice is being cooked reliably, increasing the user's convenience and sense of security. can.

The heating cooking system disclosed in the seventh aspect is as follows:
An induction heating cooker equipped with a top plate on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate of the induction heating cooker and has a built-in inner pot,
The induction heating cooker includes a heating coil that inductively heats the inner pot, and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil for setting energization conditions for the heating coil,
The rice cooking unit includes a second input operation means for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
A window for passing an infrared signal between the rice cooking unit and the induction heating cooker is provided at a portion rearward of the gap and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit and the top plate of the induction heating cooker. form,
The induction heating cooker monitors the placement of the rice cooking unit using the infrared signal while the rice cooking unit is placed at a predetermined position and is performing a warming process, and also monitors the placement of the rice cooking unit using the infrared signal, and also monitors the input of the first input operation means. Continue to disable the operation,
Furthermore, when the induction heating cooker cannot detect the presence of the rice cooking unit at a predetermined position by the infrared signal, the induction cooking device terminates the warming process of the rice cooking unit, and the input operation of the first input operation means is disabled. This is a configuration that cancels the .

According to the heating cooking system having this configuration, it is possible to prevent the first input operation means disposed at the front portion of the upper surface from overheating.
Further, during the heat keeping process by the rice cooking unit, the placement of the rice cooking unit is confirmed by the infrared signal, and when it is detected that there is a problem with the placement of the rice cooking unit, the warming operation is stopped and the first Since the invalid state of the input operation of the input operation means can be canceled, there is an advantage that misunderstandings and erroneous operations on the part of the user can be prevented.

According to the heating cooking system of this disclosure, it is possible to improve the convenience of adjusting the amount of water.

1 is a perspective view of an electric rice cooker according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1 taken along line XX. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of an operation input section in the front part of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the front part of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view 2 of the front part of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged plan view of the front part of the lid of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is a control block diagram showing the configuration of an induction heating cooker that induction-heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a control block diagram showing the configuration of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a rice cooking process of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the operational relationship between the rice cooking unit and the induction heating cooker of the present invention. 2 is a flowchart 1 showing a control operation of an induction heating cooker that inductively heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a flowchart 2 showing a control operation of the induction heating cooker that inductively heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a flowchart 3 showing a control operation of the induction heating cooker that induction-heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart 4 showing a control operation of the induction heating cooker that inductively heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart 5 showing a control operation of the induction heating cooker that inductively heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a flowchart 6 showing a control operation of the induction heating cooker that inductively heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 7 is a flowchart 7 showing a control operation of the induction heating cooker that inductively heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a flowchart 1 showing the control operation of the rice cooking unit of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a flowchart 2 showing the control operation of the rice cooking unit of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a flowchart 3 showing the control operation of the rice cooking unit of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1. FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the electric rice cooker based on Embodiment 2 of this invention. FIG. 20 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the operation input section in the front part of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 19. It is a control block diagram which shows the structure of the induction heating cooker which inductively heats the electric rice cooker of FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the front lower part of the electric rice cooker based on Embodiment 3 of this invention. FIG. 25 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the operation input section in the front part of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 24. 25 is a vertical sectional view of the lower left side of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 24. FIG. It is an explanatory view showing the whole picture of one house (household) using the electric rice cooker concerning Embodiment 4 of the present invention. FIG. 28 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the electric rice cooker shown in FIG. 27. 28 is a plan view of the lid of the electric rice cooker shown in FIG. 27. FIG. FIG. 28 is an explanatory diagram chronologically showing the cooperative relationship between the induction heating cooker and the power command device in the home shown in FIG. 27; It is a flowchart which shows the steps of the reservation rice cooking operation of an electric rice cooker. It is a flowchart which shows the monitoring and notification operation of an electric rice cooker. It is a flowchart 1 showing the control operation of the induction heating cooker and the rice cooking unit according to Embodiment 5 of the present invention. 34 is a flowchart 2 showing the control operation of the induction heating cooker and rice cooking unit of FIG. 33. FIG. 34 is a flowchart 3 showing the control operation of the induction heating cooker and rice cooking unit of FIG. 33. FIG. 34 is a flowchart showing the control operation of the rice cooking unit of FIG. 33. FIG. This relates to Embodiment 6 of the present invention and is a flowchart showing the control operation of the induction heating cooker. This relates to Embodiment 7 of the present invention, and is a perspective view of an electric rice cooker. 39 is a plan view 1 of the lid of the rice cooking unit of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 38. FIG. 39 is a plan view 2 of the lid of the rice cooking unit of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 38. FIG. 39 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a control means of the rice cooking unit of FIG. 38. FIG. 39 is a flowchart showing a control operation when stewing is performed in the rice cooking unit of FIG. 38. FIG. FIG. 39 is an explanatory diagram of a control pattern in simmering cooking of the rice cooking unit of FIG. 38;

Hereinafter, the rice cooker of the present invention will be explained in detail using the drawings. Note that in the following drawings, the size relationship of each component may differ from the actual one. In addition, in the following drawings, parts with the same reference numerals are the same or equivalent, and this is common throughout the entire specification. Further, the forms of the constituent elements shown in the entire specification are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these descriptions.

Embodiment 1.
Embodiment 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 20 will be described below.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electric rice cooker according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 1 taken along line XX. Further, in FIG. 2, cross-sectional representation (hatching) of some components is omitted.

It is assumed that the R direction of the solid double-headed arrow in FIG. The L direction is the left direction.
It is assumed that the BK direction of the double-headed arrow indicated by the broken line in FIG. 1 is the direction behind the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10. FR also indicates the forward direction.

As shown in FIG. 1, the electric rice cooker 100 includes a rice cooking unit 1 and an induction heating cooker 10. The rice cooking unit 1 is simply placed on the top plate 22 that constitutes the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10, and is not fixed with screws or other connecting means. It can be easily removed from the top. The induction heating cooker 10 is a member on which the rice cooking unit 1 is placed, and has a substantially L-shape when viewed from the side of the electric rice cooker 100, for example.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the rice cooking unit 1 includes a main body 1A having a rectangular (cubic) shape, a lid 1B connected to the main body 1A by a hinge (not shown), and a handle 1C ( ), an inner pot 3, an inner pot temperature detection means 5, a power supply means 6 mainly composed of a power supply coil, a power reception coil 7, a lid opening/closing button 8, a lid heating means 9A, It includes an inner pot side heating means 9B, a display means 11 which is an example of the notification means 70, and a second input operation means 12 through which rice cooking conditions and the like are inputted by the user. Reference numeral 18 denotes an operation section for measuring the weight of rice, which will be described later, and is provided with a plurality of operation keys 18A. One operation key (switch) 18A is a key for starting weight measurement, and there is also an operation key (switch) 18A for canceling the measurement result.

The rectangular case that constitutes the outer shell of the rice cooking unit 1, except for the lid 1B, is made of plastic material. 1F indicates the front wall surface, and 1R indicates the right wall surface (right side surface).
Similarly, the main body case 10A forming the outer shell of the induction heating cooker 10 is also formed from a plastic material. 10F is the front wall surface of the main body case 10A, and 10R is the right wall surface.

The induction heating cooker 10 includes, in its internal space, a cooling fan 13, an induction heating coil 14, a power transmission coil 17, a magnetic shield plate 19, a control device 50, and an outside temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of indoor air in a kitchen or the like. Detecting means 15. The induction heating coil will be referred to as a "heating coil" in the following description.

The main body 1A of the rice cooking unit 1 is a member that houses the inner pot 3, and a lid 1B and a U-shaped handle 1C (not shown) are attached to the main body 1A. Both ends of the handle are rotatably fixed to the left and right side surfaces of the electric rice cooker main body 1A, and are used when lifting the entire rice cooking unit 1.

The lid body 1B is, for example, a square or rectangular member provided so as to cover the entire upper surface of the main body 1A in plan view. The lid body 1B has a planar shape that is almost the same size as the planar shape of the main body 1A.

The inner pot 3 is a substantially bottomed cylindrical member having an opening at the top. The inner pot 3 is made of a material such as magnetic metal or carbon, and food to be cooked, such as rice, is put into the inner pot 3. The inner pot temperature detecting means 5 is a temperature detecting means (also referred to as "temperature monitoring means") that detects the temperature of the inner pot 3, and is composed of, for example, a thermistor 5A. Although the thermistor measures the temperature by contacting the outer surface of the inner pot 3, an infrared temperature sensor 5B or the like which detects the temperature without contact may also be used. As shown in FIG. 2, the infrared temperature sensor 5B is installed inside the induction heating cooker 10, and measures the temperature by receiving infrared rays emitted from the inner pot 3 as shown by the broken arrow.

The power supply means 6 is, for example, a power storage means provided on the rear (back) side of the rice cooking unit 1 than the inner pot 3. The power supply means 6 is comprised of a secondary battery 95 (see FIG. 8), such as a lead acid battery, a nickel metal hydride battery, a lithium ion battery, or the like. Note that the power supply means 6 is not limited to being composed of the secondary battery 95, but may be composed of a primary battery such as a dry battery. In this way, when the power supply means 6 is constituted by a primary battery, it is desirable to provide the power supply means 6 at a position where it can be easily replaced, considering the possibility that the power supply means 6 may be replaced frequently.

The power receiving coil 7 is, for example, a coil provided inside the rice cooking unit 1, and functions to feed power to the power feeding means 6 based on the power sent from the power transmitting coil 17. Note that there are electromagnetic induction methods, magnetic field resonance methods, electric field coupling methods, and the like as methods for supplying power to the power supply means 6 in a non-contact manner, and in the first embodiment, an example of the electromagnetic induction method will be described.

The lid opening/closing button 8 is configured such that the lid 1B is opened from the main body 1A when a force is applied from the front side of the rice cooking unit 1 toward the rear side. It is provided. For example, in the state shown in FIG. 1, when a force is applied to the lid opening/closing button 8 from the front side of the rice cooking unit 1 toward the rear side, the lid body 1B locks with the main body 1A (not shown). ) is removed and opened by the force of a spring mechanism (not shown) built into the rear of the lid 1B.

The lid heating means 9A is a heating means provided above the inner pot 3, and is provided inside the lid 1B, for example. The inner pot side heating means 9B is a heating means provided on the side of the inner pot 3, and is provided inside the main body 1A, for example. When the rice cooking unit 1 is correctly placed on the induction heating cooker 10, the lid heating means 9A and the inner pot side heating means 9B are driven by the electric power of the external power supply supplied from the induction heating cooker 10. be done. When the rice cooking unit 1 is not placed on the induction heating cooker 10, the lid heating means 9A and the inner pot side heating means 9B are driven by the electric power of the power supply means 6, for example.

The display means 11 is composed of two display screens. The two display screens 11A and 11B are display means for displaying various information about the electric rice cooker 100, and are composed of, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), an organic EL (Electro Luminescence), or the like.

The first display screen 11A provided on the lid 1B displays the time during which the rice can be kept warm, for example, when the rice cooking unit 1 is removed from the induction heating cooker 10. The first display screen 11A also displays, for example, the power storage state of the power supply means 6. The first display screen 11A also displays, for example, the current power storage state within the range of 0% to 100%. Furthermore, the first display screen 11A displays the time required until charging of the power supply means 6 is completed.

A second display screen 11B arranged on the front side of the main body 1A displays information such as the weight of rice to be cooked and the optimum amount of water in letters and numbers.

The second input operation means 12 is arranged at the front part of the lid 1B. The input operation means 12 is, for example, an operation means that accepts operation inputs for executing processes such as a preheating process, a rice cooking process, and a steaming process. Multiple press-type input keys are arranged. The details will be explained with reference to FIG. Note that touch-type input keys may be provided in place of or in combination with the press-type input keys.

Furthermore, a first display screen 11A is arranged at the same position as the second input operation means 12. Then, using the second input operation means 12, the user can input various rice cooking conditions such as the amount of rice to be cooked, the brand of rice, the hardness of the rice, and the cooking completion time and time zone in the case of pre-cooked rice, and the input results are as follows. can be confirmed each time on the first display screen 11A. The details will be explained with reference to FIG.

The cooling fan 13 is a blowing means for dissipating heat generated in the control device 50, which is constituted by a semiconductor integrated circuit, an electronic circuit, etc., into the air in the induction heating cooker 10. When the cooling fan 13 rotates, an air flow from the cooling fan 13 toward the heating coil 14 is generated. The heating coil 14 heats the inner pot 3 itself by generated magnetic lines of force, and heats the food to be cooked, such as rice or water, stored inside the inner pot 3. For example, the rice cooking unit 1 uses induction heating. It is placed on the cooking device 10 and positioned below the inner pot 3 thereof. The heating coil 14 is formed by winding a thin copper wire or the like into a donut shape.

The power transmission coil 17 supplies electric power from the induction heating cooker 10. The power transmission coil 17 is located upstream of the air flow of the cooling fan 13 than the heating coil 14 is. That is, the power transmission coil 17 is located on the rear side of the induction heating cooker 10 rather than the heating coil 14, and is located on the front side than the cooling fan 13. By providing the power transmission coil 17 in this way, it is possible to reduce the possibility that air whose temperature has increased by cooling the heating coil 14 will be supplied to the power transmission coil 17.

The magnetic shield plate 19 is a member that shields electromagnetic waves emitted from the heating coil 14 from reaching the power transmission coil 17 . For example, the magnetic shield plate 19 has a certain height and is provided in an annular shape in plan view so as to surround the heating coil 14 . For example, the magnetic shield plate 19 extends downward from the lower surface of the top plate 22 located at the top of the induction heating cooker 10. Note that the magnetic shield plate 19 is not limited to an example in which the magnetic shield plate 19 is provided in an annular shape on the radially outer side of the main body of the induction heating cooker 10 than the heating coil 14; It suffices if it is located between the two.

The outside air temperature detection means 15 is for detecting the outside temperature of the space in which the electric rice cooker 100 is placed. It is installed on the wall surface of a rear vertical part 16 that stands vertically at the rear of the induction heating cooker 10. The temperature detected by the outside air temperature detection means 15 is used together with the temperature detected by the inner pot temperature detection means 5 to calculate the heat retention time which will be described later.
Although the outside air temperature detection means 15 is provided in the induction heating cooker 10 in the first embodiment, it may be provided in the rice cooking unit 1.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 2 indicates legs arranged one each at each of the four corners of the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1. A weight sensor 4 is disposed inside this leg, and can measure the weight of the rice cooking unit 1 in grams. This weight sensor will be explained in detail later.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 20 denotes a first input operation means arranged in the shape of a horizontally long strip on the front part of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10. As shown in FIG. In this input operation means, various press-type input buttons (keys) are arranged. In this input operation means, various conditions such as heat power, cooking menu (boiling water, simmering food, etc.), cooking time, etc. can be input so that induction heating cooking can be performed by the induction heating cooker 10 independently, independently of the rice cooking unit 1. .
When the rice cooking unit 1 is placed at a predetermined position on the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10, the first input operation means 20 is covered and hidden from above by the rice cooking unit 1, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The state will be as follows.

Reference numeral 21 denotes a protrusion (projection) formed on the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 so as to extend from side to side so as to cross directly behind the first input operation means 20 . The protrusion 21 has a length that spans the entire width of the top surface of the induction cooking device 10, and is made of a heat-resistant and elastic material. It is fixed to the upper surface of a top plate 22 made of heat-resistant glass or the like. Note that this protrusion is made of silicone rubber, for example.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 23 denotes an inner lid that opens and closes the upper opening of the inner pot 3, and is made of a thin metal plate of good heat conductivity, such as aluminum, and has a circular planar shape. An electric heater serving as the lid heating means 9A is arranged on the upper surface of the inner lid 23.

Reference numeral 24 denotes a sealing packing attached around the inner lid 23, and is made of a material with high heat resistance and elasticity, such as silicone rubber. When the lid body 1B is closed, the inner pot 3 is sealed by the inner lid 23 and the packing 24. In addition, a small hole is formed in the inner lid 23 for releasing steam during rice cooking, and a steam exhaust passage communicating with the outside of the rice cooking unit 1 is formed so as to penetrate inside the lid 1B. .

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 25 denotes an inner body made of a heat-resistant resin or a non-magnetic metal (for example, aluminum) that is not heated by induction, which closely surrounds the inner pot 3; An electric heater serving as pot side heating means 9B is wound around the pot.

26 is a wireless communication module (wireless communication unit) housed in the rear vertical portion 16, and is capable of wireless communication with local network equipment (including a power control device) installed in the home. It is possible to exchange information with mobile information terminals, communication devices, etc. in remote locations through the Internet. It is also possible to receive remote control signals for the rice cooking unit 1. As the wireless communication means, for example, well-known means such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) and Wi-Fi (registered trademark) can be employed.

In FIG. 2, 27 is a support plate that supports the second display screen 11B. A window 28 is formed in the inner barrel 25 corresponding to the center of the bottom of the inner pot 3, and is covered with a material that transmits infrared rays. A window 29 is provided at a position corresponding to the window, and is formed on the top plate 22. The top plate 22 is normally coated with a coating film or the like on the back (lower) surface that blocks visible light so that the internal structure of the induction heating cooker 10 cannot be seen. Since there is no such coating film, infrared rays can easily pass through.

In FIG. 2, 30 is a permanent magnet installed on the rear surface of the rice cooking unit 1 so as to correspond to the reed switch 31 (see FIG. 3), which is one of the placement detection sensors placed inside the rear vertical part 16. be.

A support substrate 32 supports the infrared temperature sensor 5B constituting the inner pot temperature detection means 5, and is installed horizontally inside the induction heating cooker 10.

Reference numeral 34 denotes an infrared signal transmitting/receiving section constituting a part of the reference position determination means 33, and is arranged at a position outside the magnetic shield plate 19 and behind the first input operation means 20. Two or more infrared signal transmitting/receiving sections 34 are installed instead of one, and at least one is for transmitting infrared signals, and at least one is for receiving infrared signals. In that case, if they are installed side by side in close proximity, a window 37, which will be described later, can be shared, which is structurally advantageous.

Reference numeral 35 denotes an infrared signal transmitting/receiving section constituting a part of the reference position determining means 33, and is arranged on a vertical extension line of the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34. Similarly to the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34, two or more infrared signal transmitting/receiving sections 35 may be installed instead of one.

36A is a first signal processing unit that decodes infrared signals. Note that a similar second signal processing section 36B is also provided on the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 side. Since there is a concern that noise may be generated in wireless communication while the induction heating coil 14 is being driven, infrared signals are used for communication. 101 is a power plug, and 102 is a power cord.

In FIG. 3, numeral 37 is a window formed in the top plate 22, which, like the window 29, allows infrared signals to pass through.
39 is a bottom plate made of heat-resistant plastic that constitutes the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1, and forms a window for transmitting infrared signals.
40 is a support substrate that supports the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34.

In FIG. 3, 1F is the front wall surface of the main body 1A of the rice cooking unit 1, and 10F is the front wall surface of the main body case 10A forming the outer shell of the induction heating cooker 10.
In FIG. 3, the range of the first input operation means 20 in the front and back direction is as indicated by the solid arrow.

In the first input operation means 20, a plurality of push-type electronic switches 41 are arranged in a horizontal row at regular intervals. Each electronic switch 41 can generate a predetermined signal by closing an internal contact when the upper operating section 41A is pressed. 41B is a pressing rod, which is made of plastic.

42 is a circuit board on which each electronic switch 41 is mounted. Reference numeral 43 denotes a protective sheet (or protective plate) made of a thin and curved plastic material, which seals over the operating section 41A to prevent water from entering from above. When the protective sheet 43 is pressed by a user's finger, the operating portion 41A moves downward by a minute dimension and the internal contacts of the electronic switch 41 close.
Reference numeral 44 denotes a through hole formed in a support frame 45 made of plastic, and has a diameter larger than the outer dimensions of the operating portion 41A so as to allow vertical movement of the operating portion 41A.

The first input operation means 20 includes a display means 70D for displaying the operation input results. Although not shown, it is composed of a liquid crystal display screen, a laser light emitting diode element (LED), and the like. The LED illuminates the protective sheet 43 of the first input operation means 20 with light from below, displays specific parts of the protective sheet 43 in red or yellow, and displays the input results of each electronic switch 41 to the user. indicate.
Further, the liquid crystal display screen has a structure in which an opening is provided in a part of the protective sheet 43, which is covered from above with a transparent sheet, and the liquid crystal display screen is installed so as to face the opening.

In this first embodiment, a description will be given of enabling and disabling the input function of the first input operation means 20, but when the input function is disabled, the display function of the display means 70A is also disabled, The screen display will be turned off. Conversely, when the input function of the first input operation means 20 is enabled (when it is activated for the first time or when the invalidation is canceled), it is simultaneously enabled and the display operation is performed.

In FIG. 3, S is a gap formed between the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 and the opposing surface of the bottom plate 39 of the rice cooking unit 1, and has a height of about 10 mm to 15 mm.
FIG. 3 shows a state in which rice is being cooked, and the rice cooking unit 1 has a predetermined amount of rice and water stored in the inner pot 3, so that the rice cooking unit 1 is heavier than the rice cooking unit 1. In this state, the facing distance G1 between the front wall surface 1F of the main body 1A of the rice cooking unit 1 and the front wall surface 10F of the main body case 10A forming the outer shell of the induction heating cooker 10 is approximately several mm. Therefore, the gap S communicates with the front through the gap G1. Note that not only the front wall surface 1F of the main body 1A of the rice cooking unit 1 but also both left and right wall surfaces and the lower ends of both the left and right wall surfaces of the main body case 10A forming the outer shell of the induction heating cooker 10 are aligned on the same horizontal plane. The void S communicates with the front and both left and right sides.

The protrusion (projection) narrows the facing distance H between the bottom plate 39 of the rice cooking unit 1 and the upper surface of the first input operation means 20. In other words, since the space S is narrowed, the hot air generated at a position directly above the induction heating coil 14 located behind the protrusion 21 passes over the protrusion 21 and reaches the first input operation means 20. Flow to the side is suppressed. Therefore, even if the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 becomes high temperature due to the induction heating coil 14 during the rice cooking operation, the first input operation means 20 is prevented from becoming overheated.

After using the rice cooking unit 1 and removing the unit 1 from above the induction heating cooker 10, the first input operation means 20 is hot, so another heating cooking operation using the induction heating cooker 10 is started immediately. This will prevent you from being unable to start.

In FIG. 3, 20W indicates the width of the first input operation means 20 in the front-rear direction, which is approximately 50 mm to 70 mm.

Next, FIG. 4 will be explained. FIG. 4 is an enlarged longitudinal cross-sectional view of the front leg portion 2. As shown in FIG. The weight sensor 4 is fixed to the upper surface of the bottom plate 39, and a strain sensor 4S is arranged directly above the thick column-shaped leg portion 2, although not shown. Depending on the force with which the leg portion 2 presses the strain sensor 4S, that is, the weight of the rice cooking unit 1, the weight can be measured based on the output from the strain sensor 4S. Note that a weight sensor using such a strain sensor 4S has already been proposed for a long time, and detailed explanation will be omitted. 46 is a through hole formed in the bottom plate 39, and has a size (aperture) that allows the leg portion 2 to move up and down.

The state shown in FIG. 4 is a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed and the rice cooking operation is performed, but the state shown in FIG. 5 is a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed but the inner pot 3 is It is light because it only contains rice and does not contain the required amount of water. Therefore, the facing distance G2 is larger than the facing distance G1.

Next, the second input operation means 12 and the first display screen 11A will be explained based on FIG. 6.
FIG. 6 is a plan view of the first half of the lid 1B of the electric rice cooker 100 according to the first embodiment. A first display screen 11A composed of a liquid crystal display screen or the like is arranged approximately at the center of the lid body 1B in the left and right directions.

The first display screen 11A displays the time, a rice type display section 60, a hardness display section 61, and a menu display section 62. Further, a rice type switch 63, a hardness switch 64, a menu switch 65, and an off/warm switch 66 are provided on the left side outside the first display screen 11A. A rice cooking switch 67, a reservation switch 68, and a time switch 69 are provided on the right side. After the rice cooking operation starts, when the off/warm switch 66 is pressed, a command signal to stop cooking rice is issued to the control device 50. Further, after the warming operation has started, when the off/warming switch 66 is pressed, a command signal to stop warming is issued. In this first embodiment, the control program is such that the heat retention process is automatically executed by the control device 50 for a certain period of time following the unevenness process.

12V is a switch for selecting the voice input mode, and when this is pressed, a message saying "Switched to voice input mode" will appear from the voice notification means 90V, which will be described later, and you can input voice from now on. Note that if the switch 12V is pressed again, the voice input mode is canceled. The voice notification means 90V gives a message that "Voice input mode has been cancelled." Note that the voice input mode is an example of voice input means.

Reference numeral 91 denotes a wireless communication unit (input/output means) that performs near field communication (NFC), and when an information processing terminal equipped with an NFC function approaches or comes into contact with it, communication can be performed.

The rice type switch 63 is an input means for setting the type of rice to be cooked. Every time the rice seed switch 63 is pressed, the display on the rice seed display section 60 changes to "white rice", "unrinsed rice", "brown rice", and "germinated brown rice" in response. Information regarding the type of rice set by the rice type switch 63 is input to the control device 50, which will be described later.

In Fig. 6, the rice variety switch 63 is written with the brand name, and the specific brand of rice can also be specified with this switch 63, but depending on how the switch 63 is pressed, there are two types of input functions (brand and rice variety). You can select only one from among them. Note that detailed explanation will be omitted.

The hardness switch 64 is an input means for setting the hardness of cooked rice. Each time the hardness switch 64 is pressed, the display on the hardness display section 61 is switched between "hard" and "soft" in response. Information regarding the hardness of the cooked rice inputted to the hardness switch 64 is inputted to the control device 50, and the control device 50 selects the hardness of the cooked rice. When "hard" is set, the rice cooking operation is performed in the "hard mode" described later, and when "soft" is set, the rice cooking operation is performed in the "soft mode" described later. In the first embodiment, the hardness switch 64 and the control device 50 constitute a hardness selection means.

The electric rice cooker described in Embodiment 1 and subsequent embodiments has two types of cooking modes: a "soft mode" and a "hard mode" that cooks rice harder than the soft mode. It shall be possible.

The menu switch 65 is an input means for setting a rice cooking menu. Each time the menu switch 65 is pressed, the display on the menu display section 62 changes to "risotto", "porridge", and "stice" in response. Further, information regarding the rice cooking menu set by the menu switch 65 is input to the control device 50.

The off/keep warm switch 66 is an input means for switching the end/start of the keep warm operation, the rice cooking switch 67 is an input means for instructing the start of rice cooking, the reservation switch 68 is an input means for setting a rice cooking reservation, and the time switch 69 is an input means for setting times such as the current time and reserved time. Information set by the off/warm switch 66, rice cooking switch 67, reservation switch 68, and time switch 69 is input to the control device 50.

The various switches 63 to 69 constitute a press-type input means 12P (see FIG. 8). Note that when touch-type switches are used instead of the press-type switches 63 to 69, the touch-type input means 12T is used. In FIG. 8, which will be described later, the touch type input means 12T is also illustrated.

Next, the control-related configuration of the induction heating cooker 10 will be described with reference to FIG. 7. In FIG. 7, 80 is a main control device, which is configured with a microcomputer as its core, and includes storage means 80R such as a semiconductor storage device (flash memory, ROM, RAM), and timekeeping means (clock circuit) for calculating time. )80T is built-in. A computer program that controls the entire heating control operation and various control data tables are stored in the storage means 80R.

71 is a commercial power supply (for example, 50 Hz or 60 Hz, voltage 100 V or 200 V). The power supply section 72 receives power from a commercial power source via the power cord 102 and the plug 101. The power supply unit 72 has a built-in rectifier circuit and the like, and has a function of converting power to a predetermined voltage.

Reference numeral 73 denotes an inverter circuit that receives power from the power supply section 72, generates high-frequency power, and supplies it to the induction heating coil 14. Various electrical components such as semiconductor power control elements and switching elements are mounted on the inverter circuit. Reference numeral 20 denotes the first input operation means, which uses the press-type electronic switch 41 as the press-type input means.

Reference numeral 70 denotes a notification unit, which includes a display unit 70D and a voice notification unit 70V such as a voice synthesizer. The display means 70D includes a liquid crystal display screen and a semiconductor light emitting element (such as an LED). The state and conditions of induction heating operation (for example, heating power value, heating time) can be displayed using letters, numbers, figures, etc.

Although not shown, the audio notification means 70V includes a buzzer and a speaker that emit sound. As described above, the display means 70D is placed at a location where the first input operation means 20 is located, so that when the user operates the first input operation means 20, the user can immediately check the input result. I have to.

Reference numeral 74 denotes a top plate temperature detection means that comes into contact with the top plate 22 and measures its temperature, and for example, a thermistor is used. Data on the temperature detection results is transmitted to the main controller 80.

In FIG. 7, the heated object temperature detection means is composed of an infrared temperature sensor 5B that receives infrared rays emitted from the outer surface of the inner pot 3 and measures the temperature when the rice cooking unit 1 is mounted. . This temperature sensor can also measure the temperature of ordinary pots, frying pans, etc. other than the rice cooking unit 1, so that the main controller 80 can also control the temperature of objects to be heated (such as ordinary metal pots).

Next, the control-related configuration of the rice cooking unit 1 will be explained with reference to FIG. 8. In FIG. 8, 50 is a control device, which is configured with a microcomputer as its core, and includes a storage means 50R such as a semiconductor storage device (flash memory, ROM, RAM), and a clock means (clock circuit) for calculating time. It has a built-in 50T. A rice cooking computer program that controls the entire rice cooking control operation including conditions such as heat power, energization time, target heating temperature, etc. for the water absorption process and rice cooking (boiling) process, and a weight measurement computer program that measures the weight of rice. A self-inspection program, a computer program for dealing with abnormalities, and data tables for various controls are stored in the storage means 50R.

A sensor 93 detects opening of the lid body 1B, and is installed near the lid opening/closing button 8. When the mechanical lock of the lid body 1B is removed, a lid opening signal is transmitted from this sensor to the control device 50.
The weight measuring means 94 includes the four weight sensors 4 described above and a processing circuit (not shown) that calculates the weight of the rice cooking unit 1 based on the output voltages from those sensors.
Reference numeral 12 denotes the second input operation means, and various press-type switches 63 to 69 provided on the lid 1B are used as the press-type input means 12P.

Reference numeral 90 denotes a notification means, which includes a first display screen 11A, a second display screen 11B, and a voice notification means 90V such as a voice synthesizer. Although not shown, the speech synthesizer 90V is equipped with a buzzer and a speaker that emit sound.

5A is a thermistor that comes into contact with the inner pot 3 and measures its temperature, and the data of the temperature detection result is transmitted to the control device 50 each time.

In FIG. 7, the heated object temperature detection means is comprised of an infrared temperature sensor 5B that receives infrared rays emitted from the outer surface of the inner pot 3 and measures the temperature when the rice cooking unit 1 is mounted. This temperature sensor can also measure the temperature of ordinary pots, frying pans, etc. other than the rice cooking unit 1, so that the main controller 80 can also control the temperature of objects to be heated (such as ordinary metal pots).

Reference numeral 95 denotes a secondary battery constituting the power supply means 6, and is composed of, for example, a lead acid battery, a nickel metal hydride battery, a lithium ion battery, or the like. Note that the power supply means 6 is not limited to being composed of this secondary battery 95, but may be composed of a primary battery such as a dry battery.

The reference position determination means 33 determines whether the rice cooking unit 1 is placed at a predetermined position of the induction heating cooker 10. The determination result of the reference position determination means 33 is output to the control device 50. Note that the control device 50 may have the functions of the reference position determining means 33.

In this first embodiment, the reference position determining means 33 includes two means. One is a combination of a permanent magnet 30 installed on the rear surface of the rice cooking unit 1 and a reed switch 31 (one of the placement detection sensors) (see FIG. 3) provided on the rear vertical portion 16.
The other is a combination of a pair of infrared signal transmitting/receiving sections 34 and 35 as described above.

For example, the reference position determining means 33 may be configured to determine whether the resistance value when a current is passed through the heating coil 14 is equal to or greater than the reference resistance value. Specifically, for example, if the control device 50 determines that the resistance value when current is passed through the heating coil 14 is equal to or higher than the reference resistance value, the rice cooking unit 1 It is determined that it is in the correct position above. Further, if the control device 50 determines that the resistance value when current is passed through the heating coil 14 is less than the reference resistance value, the rice cooking unit 1 is removed from the induction heating cooker 10. judge.

Note that the reference position determining means 33 may be configured to determine whether the rice cooking unit 1 is attached to a predetermined position of the induction heating cooker 10 based on the temperature detected by the infrared temperature sensor 5B. In this case, for example, if the temperature detected by the infrared temperature sensor 5B is equal to or higher than the threshold temperature, the control device 50 may determine that the rice cooking unit 1 is likely to be attached to the induction cooking device 10. It is determined that the rice cooking unit 1 is placed at a predetermined position. Furthermore, if the detected temperature of the infrared temperature sensor 5B is less than the threshold temperature, it is determined that the rice cooking unit 1 is not placed because there is a high possibility that the rice cooking unit 1 has been removed from the induction heating cooker 10. do.

Note that the control device 50 is not limited to the configuration including the storage means 50R and the time measurement means 50T. For example, the storage means 50R and the timer 50T may be configured separately from the control device 50, and the outputs of the storage means 50R and the timer 50T may be input to the control device 50.

Further, in the audio notification means 70V, the audio (guide audio) is output at a preset volume or a volume set by the user. Additionally, the volume can be set to multiple levels.

For example, the control device 50 controls the temperature of the inner pot 3 based on the temperature detected by the thermistor 5A, which is a temperature detection means of the inner pot 3, the threshold temperature stored in advance in the control device 50, and the temperature detected by the outside air temperature detection means 15. The time from the initial temperature to below the threshold temperature is calculated, the heat retention possible time is determined, and the heat retention possible time is displayed on the first display screen 11A. The higher the temperature detected by the thermistor 5A is than the threshold temperature, the longer it will take for the temperature of the inner pot 3 to reach the threshold temperature when the rice cooking unit 1 is removed from the induction heating cooker 10. The possible time is set to be long.

In this way, the first display screen 11A displays the heat retention time, which prompts the user to eat the food to be cooked (rice) promptly, or allows the rice cooking unit 1 to be connected to the induction heating cooker 1. It is possible to encourage the user to return the temperature to the temperature to keep the food to be cooked (rice) warm. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the temperature of the cooked rice will fall below the threshold temperature stored in advance in the control device 50 and the taste of the rice will deteriorate.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a temperature change with time in the electric rice cooker 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Note that the horizontal axis in FIG. 9 indicates time, and the vertical axis in FIG. 9 indicates the temperature of the inner pot 3.

The temperature of the inner pot 3 is, for example, the temperature detected by the thermistor 5A, which is the inner pot temperature detection means 5. As shown in FIG. 9, when a preheating process is performed, a rice cooking process is performed after the preheating process, and a steaming process is performed after the rice cooking process, the temperature of the inner pot 3 in the rice cooking process is There are periods of time when changes are steep. In this way, during the time period when the temperature change of the inner pot 3 is steep, the electric power supplied to the heating coil 14 increases.

Therefore, during times when the temperature of the inner pot 3 is rapidly changing, the main controller 80 controls the power transmission coil 17 to give priority to the heating of the food to be cooked (rice and water) over the power supply from the power supply means 6. It is a good idea to stop the power supply. Specifically, for example, when the temperature change per unit time of the inner pot 3 is equal to or higher than a predetermined value, the main control device 80 stops power supply to the power transmission coil 17, and controls the change in temperature of the inner pot 3 per unit time. When the temperature is below a predetermined value, power supply to the power transmission coil 17 is continued. In this way, it is possible to reduce the possibility of hindering the temperature rise of the object to be heated in the rice cooking process. Note that the main controller 80 is not limited to an example in which it determines whether to stop power supply to the power transmission coil 17 based on the temperature of the inner pot 3.

For example, it may be determined whether or not to stop power supply to the power transmission coil 17 depending on whether or not the rice cooking process is in progress. Specifically, the main controller 80 stops power supply to the power transmission coil 17 when the preheating process is finished and the rice cooking process is started, and when the rice cooking process is finished and the steaming process is started. , starts supplying power to the power transmission coil 17.

Alternatively, for example, it may be determined whether or not to stop supplying power to the power transmission coil 17 depending on whether the current value supplied to the heating coil 14 is equal to or higher than a threshold current value. Specifically, when the current value supplied to the heating coil 14 is equal to or higher than the threshold current value, the main controller 80 stops the power supply to the power transmission coil 17 and reduces the current value supplied to the heating coil 14. is less than the threshold current value, power supply to the power transmission coil 17 is continued.

In this Embodiment 1, as explained above, the control device 50 of the rice cooking unit 1 and the main control device 80 of the induction heating cooker 10 are configured to control the communication between the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 and the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35. Through communication, the latest control data is always transmitted and received at least during the rice cooking operation (from the preheating process to the steaming process), and the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10 cooperate with each other through infrared communication. It is carried out.

Next, the operation of the electric rice cooker 100 according to the first embodiment will be explained.
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the mutual operational relationship between the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10 of the present invention. Operation steps after connecting the power plug 101 of the induction heating cooker 10 to the commercial power source 71 are indicated by symbols SP1 to SP6.

Simply connecting the power plug 101 of the induction heating cooker 10 to the commercial power source 71 does not start either the induction heating operation or the rice cooking operation (SP1).
Next, when the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10 (SP2), if it is in the correct position, the reed switch 31, which is a placement detection sensor, is turned on (SP3).
From this stage, the rice cooking unit becomes dedicated mode. Therefore, the induction heating cooker 10 automatically starts cooking within a predetermined time without the user having to give any input operation or heating operation command on the induction heating cooker 10 side. An infrared signal for reference position determination is transmitted from the 10 side, and the rice cooking unit 1 is activated.

After that, the rice cooking operation is started (SP4), and after the rice cooking operation is finished (SP5), when the rice cooking unit 1 is lowered from the top of the induction heating cooker 10, the rice cooking unit exclusive mode is automatically canceled and the induction heating The cooker 10 alone can perform induction heating cooking using other cooking utensils such as pots and frying pans.

Next, FIG. 11 will be explained.
FIG. 11 shows the operation steps of the induction heating cooker 10. The operation steps are indicated by S1 to S12.
First, when the power plug 101 is connected to the commercial power source 71, the reed switch 31 is turned ON (closed) if the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in the correct position (S1).

Then, even if the user does not operate the first input operation means 20 or the second input operation means 12 of the rice cooking unit 1, the main controller 80 can control the infrared temperature sensor 5B and other current sensors (see FIG. (not shown) starts a self-check to see if there is any abnormality in the internal components of the induction heating cooker 10 (S2).

If there is no abnormality, the main controller 80 drives the power transmission coil 17 and starts supplying a predetermined power. The notification means 70 is also activated (S3). On the other hand, the cooling fan 13 is started operating in the "weak" mode (S4). Therefore, the power transmission coil 17 is cooled by the cooling air.

At this stage, the main controller 80 knows that the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in the correct position because the reed switch 31 is ON. The determining means (B) 33 is driven. Then, the infrared signal is transmitted from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 to the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 (S5).

Thereafter, a response signal is transmitted by infrared rays from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 side, and upon receiving the response signal, the reference position determining means 33 makes a final confirmation that the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in the correct position. (S6). If there is no predetermined response signal instantaneously after transmitting an infrared signal from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 to the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35, the rice cooking unit 1 may not be placed in the correct position. Alternatively, it is assumed that the cooking liquid from the previous cooking has dripped onto the top surface of the window 37 and is stuck as dirt, which is interfering with infrared communication. In any of these cases, an error occurs on the main controller 80 side.

Since operation data, temperature data, etc. are exchanged between the two infrared signal transmitting/receiving units 34 and 35 during the rice cooking operation, even if the window 37 is dirty, the rice cooking operation is not permitted. Note that if the reference position determination result is NG in step S6, the process proceeds to an abnormality handling step shown in FIG. 16, which will be explained later.

In the next step S7, the main controller 80 performs a process of disabling the generation of the input command signal from the first input operation means 20. Specifically, the signal for generating the input signal of the first input operation means 20 is cut off to prevent the input signal from being generated, but this invalidation means is not limited to this method at all.

By disabling the input operation section from the first input operation means 20, for example, even if the rice cooking unit 1 is momentarily lifted and the first input operation means 20 is operated, such operation is not performed as the main operation. Since the information is not input to the control device 80, it is not possible to stop rice cooking immediately and start using the induction heating cooker 10 independently.

Next, in the induction heating cooker 10, the notifying means 70 such as the voice notifying means 70V notifies that the rice cooking operation will be started (S8).
In the next step S9, the rice cooking unit 1 enters a standby state in order to determine whether a command to start rice cooking has been given. After placing the rice cooking unit 1, it takes time to adjust the amount of water in the inner pot 3, etc. until the actual rice cooking starts. Therefore, the waiting time is measured by the timer 80T (S10).

For example, there is no command signal indicating that rice cooking has started (S11), there is no command signal to start rice cooking via the wireless communication unit 26 (S12), and the predetermined time T1 (for example, 60 minutes) is not received from step 10. If the time has elapsed (S13: see FIG. 12), the main controller 80 determines that rice cooking has been postponed for some reason.

As shown in FIG. 12, the main controller 80 issues a command to stop driving the power transmission coil 17, and also stops the operation of the cooling fan 13 (S14).

Next, in the induction heating cooker 10, the notification means 70 such as the voice notification means 70V notifies that the rice cooking operation has been canceled (S15). If the predetermined time T2 (for example, 61 minutes) has elapsed since step 10 (S16), the main controller 80 cancels the disabling process of the input operation section from the first input operation means 20 (S17) . Therefore, at this stage, for example, if the rice cooking unit 1 is moved to another location, the first input operation means 20 can be operated to start another cooking process using the induction heating cooker 10. Note that if there is no operation of this first input operation means 20, the main controller 80 automatically shuts off the main power supply, and performs an operation that takes safety into account so that the heating operation is not performed inadvertently. (S18).

Next, the case where there is a command signal to start cooking rice (see S11 in FIG. 11) will be described with reference to FIG. 13.
Proceeding to step S19 to start the rice cooking process, the main controller 80 acquires information on rice cooking conditions from the rice cooking unit 1 through communication between the infrared signal transmitting and receiving sections 34 and 35 (S20). For example, data indicating the heating time for cooking rice, the amount of rice cooked, etc. may be acquired.

In the next step S21, the cooling fan 13 is changed to the "strong" operation mode, and the inverter circuit 73 is driven (S22). As a result, the inner pot of the rice cooking unit 1 is heated by induction by the heating coil 14, and the temperature rises, so that the inner pot of the rice cooking unit 1 enters a preheating process and thereafter proceeds to a rice cooking process.

The main controller 80 starts measuring elapsed time in order to understand the rice cooking time (S23), and also sends information indicating the rice cooking conditions to a power command device (not shown) etc. via the wireless communication unit 26. Send.
"Rice cooking conditions" refer to the heating time, maximum power consumption, amount of rice cooked, etc. for cooking rice. Note that even if the main controller 80 does not know the elapsed time, information such as the elapsed time from the start of rice cooking and the remaining heating time is transmitted from the rice cooking unit 1 side between the two infrared signal transmitting/receiving units 34 and 35 at any time. Since the information can be obtained through communication, step S23 may be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 13, the main controller 80 thereafter performs determinations and checks in steps S26, S27, S28, and S29.
First, the reference position determining means 33 is driven again even during rice cooking (S25), and it is checked at regular time intervals whether or not the rice cooking unit 1 is placed (S26).

Also, checks are performed to see if the top plate 22 has reached an abnormally high temperature and whether the mounting board of the inverter circuit 73 is overheated (S27).

Then, it is checked whether a command to stop rice cooking has been issued (S28) and whether the scheduled rice cooking time has not been exceeded (S29). These checks are repeated at predetermined time intervals.

Then, when a predetermined rice cooking time (for example, 40 minutes for a standard course with a rice cooking amount of 3 cups) prescribed in the operation program of the control device 50 has elapsed (S29), the notification means 70 of the induction heating cooker 10 It is notified that the rice cooking operation is completed (S30).

Next, as shown in FIG. 14, a command to stop driving the power transmission coil 17 is issued (S31). Then, driving of the inverter circuit 73 is stopped (S32). Further, the notification means 70 notifies that the unevenness process is to be started (S33).

Measurement of elapsed time is started in order to grasp the unevenness time (S34), and when a predetermined unevenness process time (for example, 5 minutes or 10 minutes) has elapsed (S35), the operation of the cooling fan 13 is stopped ( S36). As a result, the heating coil 14 is sufficiently cooled at this stage, and the temperature of the top plate 22 is below 40°C to 50°C.

Then, the main controller 80 cancels the invalidation process of the input operation section from the first input operation means 20 (S37). Then, the main controller 80 automatically shuts off the main power supply and performs an operation that takes safety into account so that the heating operation is not performed inadvertently (S38).
In addition, in this Embodiment 1, it has been explained that the control program is such that the heating process is automatically executed by the control device 50 for a certain period of time following the steaming process, so the rice cooking unit 1 can be used as is. If the induction heating cooker 10 is left on top of the induction heating cooker 10, the heat retention process will actually continue for, for example, one hour after the unevenness process, and during that time, the reference position determining means 33 is driven (step S25). ), whether or not the rice cooking unit 1 is placed is checked at regular time intervals. However, in that case, since the heating coil 14 has not been driven on the induction heating cooker 10 side, only step SB11 shown in FIG. 16 is performed, and the input command operation from the first input operation means 20 is invalidated. The processing (S7 in FIG. 11) is canceled.

Next, the operation in FIG. 15 will be explained.
The operation shown in FIG. 15 is performed after the determination in step S6 shown in FIG. 11 is "No". In other words, since the reference position determination result was NG (nonconformity), the reference position determination is performed again.

First, in step SA1, the notification means 70 notifies that the reference position determination result is NG (nonconforming). Specifically, it suggests to the user that the rice cooking unit 1 may not be placed in the correct position or that the window 37 is dirty, and urges the user to clean or check the window.

Then, in order to complete subsequent corrective actions and recheck actions within a certain time, measurement of elapsed time is started (SA2).
Next, the infrared signal is transmitted again from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 of the induction heating cooker 10 (SA3). Then, the reference position is determined based on the state of the response signal from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 (SA4). Here, when it is confirmed that the rice cooking unit 1 is in the correct position by obtaining a predetermined response signal, the notification means 70 will output a voice message such as "The correct setting of the rice cooking unit has been confirmed." A first process is performed in which the notification is made and the process proceeds to step S7.

If the determination of the reference position in step SA4 does not result in "Yes" within a predetermined time T4 (for example, 5 minutes or 10 minutes), the operation of the power transmission coil 17 and cooling fan 13 is stopped as shown in step SA7. The system stops, and the notification means 70 issues a voice notification such as "We cannot proceed to the rice cooking operation, so we will stop the operation," and the main power is automatically shut off (SA9), ending the series of operations. That is, if the problem cannot be corrected within a certain grace period (time T4), a second process is performed in which the operation is forcibly stopped before the rice cooking operation for safety reasons.

The operation steps in FIG. 14 do not include the process (S7) of invalidating the input command operation from the first input operation means 20 as described in FIG. 11. This is because it is a step (step S6) before such processing.

Next, the operation in FIG. 16 will be explained. The operation shown in FIG. 16 is performed after the determination in step S26 shown in FIG. 13 is "No". That is, in the step after starting the rice cooking operation, the reference position determination result is NG (nonconformity), so the reference position determination is performed again.

First, in step SB1, the main controller 80 temporarily stops driving the inverter circuit 73.
Furthermore, the notification means 70 provides a voice guide such as "The rice cooking unit 1 is not placed correctly. Please set it in the correct position" (SB2).

It is determined whether, for example, 15 minutes have passed since the inverter circuit 73 started driving (SB3). For example, if only 10 minutes have passed since induction heating started, the inner pot 3 is in the preheating process, so even if the heating is stopped at this point, there will be no problem if the rice is cooked again later. Therefore, if 15 minutes have not elapsed at SB3, the process advances to step SB9.

In step SB9, the power transmission coil 17 and the cooling fan 13 are stopped, and the notification means 70 notifies that the rice cooking operation has been stopped midway (SB10). Then, the process of invalidating the input command operation from the first input operation means 20 (S7 in FIG. 11) is canceled (SB11).

After this, the main control device 80 shuts off the main power supply itself (SB12) and completes the series of operations. Note that since the top plate 22 may be at a high temperature due to the heating coil 14, the timing of stopping the cooling fan 13 is delayed by a predetermined period (for example, several minutes) in step SB9, and the induction heating cooker 10 is Alternatively, the temperature may be lowered before stopping.

In step SB3, where it is determined whether 15 minutes have elapsed since the inverter circuit 73 started driving, if 15 minutes have elapsed, the process proceeds to step SB5.

Next, the operation in FIG. 17 will be explained.
The operation shown in FIG. 17 is performed after the determination in step S28 shown in FIG. 13 is "No". That is, this corresponds to a case where a rice cooking stop command is issued from the rice cooking unit 1 side for some reason in a process after the rice cooking operation has started. This is a case where the switch 66 of the second input operation means 12 shown in FIG. 6 is pressed.

First, in step SD1, the main controller 80 temporarily stops driving the inverter circuit 73.
In step SD2, the notification means 70 provides a voice guide such as "An operation to stop the rice cooking operation has been performed midway."

It is determined whether, for example, 15 minutes have passed since the inverter circuit 73 started driving (SD3). For example, if 25 minutes have passed since induction heating started, the status of inner pot 3 is already in the boiling process, so if you stop heating at this point, even if you start cooking again after the rice has cooled down. However, there are concerns that the rice will not produce the same results as the original, and the resulting rice will have an inferior taste.

Therefore, at this stage, there will be no problem if rice cooking is started again immediately, so restarting rice cooking is encouraged. Therefore, in SD8, the notification means 70 provides a voice guide such as "Please set the rice cooking unit immediately and press the rice cooking button (rice cooking switch 67) again."

If a command to cook rice by pressing the rice cooking button (rice cooking switch 67) is issued within one minute from the notification in SD8 (SD9), the drive of the inverter circuit 73 is restarted and the process proceeds to step S29.

If it has been, for example, 15 minutes or less since the inverter circuit 73 started driving, the process advances to step SD5. The notification means 70 gives a voice guidance such as "The rice cooking operation will be stopped midway" (SD5), and stops driving the power transmission coil 17 and the cooling fan 13 (SD6). Then, the main power supply is automatically cut off (SD7), and the series of operations ends.

If "No" is determined in step S27 shown in FIG. 13, that is, if an abnormality is detected, the process proceeds to a predetermined abnormality handling step SC1. Depending on the nature of the abnormality, measures such as immediately stopping the inverter circuit 73 may be taken.

Next, the operation in FIG. 18 will be explained.
This FIG. 18 shows the operation steps on the rice cooking unit 1 side.
The operation steps of the rice cooking unit 1 are indicated by SR1 to SR15.

When the rice cooking unit 1 is correctly set on the induction heating cooker 10, the power receiving coil 7 starts to be driven by the power transmitting coil 17. Even if the user does not operate the second input operation means 12 of the rice cooking unit 1, the control device 50 detects an abnormality in the internal components of the rice cooking unit 1 using the thermistor 5A and other current sensors (not shown). A self-check is started to see if there is any (SR2).

If there is no abnormality, the control device 50 knows that the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in the correct position. The infrared signal transmitter/receiver 35 receives the signal, and transmits a response signal to the infrared signal transmitter/receiver 34 (SR3).

Thereafter, the first display screen 11A of the lid 1B is activated, but the second display screen 11B is not activated (SR4). This is because the second display screen 11B does not need to be activated and displayed since the rice is not yet at the stage of measuring the weight of the rice, and this also results in energy savings.

In step SR4, the notification means 90 provides a voice guide saying, for example, "We are about to start cooking rice."
The control device 50 reads the latest rice cooking conditions used in the previous rice cooking from the storage means 50R. For example, the condition that the amount of cooked rice is 3 cups of white rice and the cooking method is "soft" is read out (SR5).

Next, the read rice cooking conditions are displayed on the first display screen 11A. For example, to display "white rice" and change it, the switch 63 can be pressed. If you press it once, the selection frame advances to the next option, such as ``Rin-free rice'', and if you press it twice, ``Germinated brown rice'', and then goes back to the original ``White rice'', so you can select the desired rice type as the desired rice cooking condition. Can be selected (SR6).

Similarly, information on the brand of rice and the degree of cooking of the rice, that is, the hardness of the rice, can be sequentially read out and corrected (SR7, SR8).
At this stage, the control device 50 activates the second display screen 11B and displays that the weight of the rice can be measured. Also, the audio notification means 90V also provides notification (SR9).

Next, proceed to the rice weight measurement process and notification process. The second display screen 11B and voice notification means 90V provide guidance on how to measure the weight of rice and the appropriateness of the amount of water to be poured into the inner pot 3 according to the measurement results (SR9). This step will be explained in detail later.

When you have finally finished adjusting the amount, type, brand, water amount, etc. of rice, press the rice cooking switch 67, and the voice notification means 90V will say, for example, "The rice weight was 300g. Appropriate amount of water determined. The voice guide will say something like "Now, let's start cooking." Further, the second display screen 11B ends its display operation (turns off) (SR10).

Next, the final rice-cooking conditions such as ``White rice, how to cook it..., estimated time of completion of cooking is 6:50 PM'' are performed using an audio guide (SR11).

When about 10 seconds have passed since the rice cooking switch 67 was pressed, the control device 50 assumes that there is no cancellation operation by the user and transmits a predetermined "rice cooking command signal" to the induction heating cooker 10. The command signal in this case is transmitted from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 to the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 side (SR12).
The "rice cooking command signal" here is not a control program that determines the details of the rice cooking process. If you send basic data indicating the amount, type, brand, etc. of rice, induction heating for cooking rice will be performed based on the basic data using the computer software (rice cooking control program) stored in the storage means 80R of the main controller 80. Energization control of the coil 14 can be executed. However, the control program itself that determines the details of the rice cooking process may be directly transmitted.

Next, it is determined whether the preheating process is finished (SR13), and if it is determined that the preheating process is finished, the process proceeds to the next step (SR14), and the infrared signal transmitter/receiver 35 indicates that the preheating process is finished. A signal is transmitted in infrared (SR14).

Then, it is determined whether the rice cooking process is finished (SR15), and if it is determined that the rice cooking process is finished, the process proceeds to the next step (SR16), and the infrared signal transmitter/receiver 35 indicates that the rice cooking process is finished. A signal is transmitted in infrared (SR16).

As shown in FIG. 19, next it is determined whether the unevenness process is finished (SR17), and if it is determined that the unevenness process is finished, the process proceeds to the next step (SR18), and the infrared signal transmitter/receiver 35 A signal is sent by infrared rays indicating that the unevenness process is finished.

Then, the notification means 90 on the side of the rice cooking unit 1 displays the completion of rice cooking (completion of rice cooking) on the first display screen, and the voice notification means 90 also provides an audio notification that the rice has been cooked and the rice cooking process has been completed. (SR19). The above steps complete the series of rice cooking operations.

Next, the operation steps in FIG. 20 will be explained.
FIG. 20 is for explaining steps SR9 to SR10 in FIG. 18 in detail.

The step SR9 includes steps SR9A to SR9M shown in FIG.
In the first step SR9A, the voice notification means 90V notifies the user that the mode will be automatically switched to the voice input mode. This audio guide includes an explanation that only rice should be placed in the inner pot 3 and that the weight should be measured with the lid 1B open. Then, the mode is automatically switched to the voice input mode (SR9B).

Next, the notification means 90 provides a voice guide asking whether the user wishes to enter the weight measurement mode (SR9C). Depending on the user who is proficient in rice cooking, he or she may be able to adjust the amount of water to an appropriate level through experience.If you do not wish to measure using rice cooking unit 1, you may be able to use the prescribed words such as ``Do not measure'' by voice. When the user speaks, the voice is input through a microphone provided at an appropriate location on the lid 1B, and the process immediately proceeds to the usual step SR10. At the same time, the voice input mode is automatically canceled.

When the user utters a request for weight measurement mode in step SR9C, the control device 50 determines whether the lid 1B is open (SR9D). This determination is made by the control device 50 determining the output from the lid open sensor 93. In addition, when the lid body 1B is not opened, the audio notification means 90V may be used to guide the lid body 1B by voice to open it.

In the next step SR9E, when the user utters "Start measurement", the control device 50 uses the weight measuring means 94 to calculate the weight of the entire rice cooking unit 1 from the measured values of the four weight sensors 4 (SR9F ).

Then, the measured results are announced by voice (SR9G). Then, the amount of water corresponding to the weight is calculated, and the result is announced by the audio notification means 90V (SR9H). When the user hears this notification and pours water into the inner pot 3 of the rice cooking unit 1 with the lid 1B open, the weight measuring means 94 compares the proper weight with the current weight during the pouring process. Calculate the deviation and notify by voice (SR9K).

If the control device 50 determines that the appropriate water level has finally been reached after such water injection or removal of excess water (SR9L), a voice notification will be issued to automatically cancel the voice input mode. A notification is made using the means 90V and the second display screen 11B, and the process proceeds to step SR10 described above. That is, when the amount, type, brand, and amount of water have finally been adjusted, the voice notification means 90V and second display screen 11B notify that the appropriate amount of water has been measured (SR10).

In the next step SR11, pressing the rice cooking switch 67 is recommended by voice, and furthermore, the voice notification means 90V displays, for example, ``Start cooking with white rice, how to cook...''.The expected time of cooking is 18:50. Give a voice guide such as "It's a minute" (SR11).

In this first embodiment, the voice input mode is automatically set at the stage of measuring the weight of rice and pouring water, so the user can concentrate on adding water, and can also open and close the lid 1B. It is possible to avoid operations such as checking the first display screen 11A by using the screen, and it can be expected that the user's convenience will be improved.

Summary of Embodiment 1.
As is clear from the above description, the first embodiment discloses the electric rice cooker 100 of the first invention.
That is, the electric rice cooker 100 in the first embodiment is
An electric rice cooker 100 comprising an induction heating cooker 10 and a rice cooking unit 1 placed on top of the induction heating cooker 10 in which a built-in inner pot 3 is heated by induction,
The induction heating cooker 10 includes a heating coil 14 that inductively heats the inner pot 3, and a first input operation located in front of the heating coil 14 to set the energization conditions for the heating coil 14. means 20;
The rice cooking unit 1 includes an inner pot 3 for storing rice to be cooked, and a second input operation means 12 for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit 1 covers the upper part of the first input operation means 20 in a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10,
At least one of the top surface of the induction heating cooker 10 and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 is provided with a connection between the top surface of the induction heating cooker 10 and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 between the first input operation means 20 and the heating coil 14. It includes a protrusion 21 that narrows the facing distance H from the lower surface of the unit 1,
Furthermore, a gap S communicating with the outside is formed between the upper surface of the first input operation means 20 of the induction heating cooker 10 and the lower surface of the rice cooking unit 1.

According to the electric rice cooker having this configuration, overheating of the first input operation means 20 disposed at the front portion of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 can be prevented.

Furthermore, the electric rice cooker 100 in Embodiment 1 was equipped with a configuration according to a third invention.
That is, the heating cooking system of Embodiment 1 is as follows:
An induction heating cooker 10 equipped with a top plate 22 on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit 1 in which an internal pot 3 placed close to or in contact with the top plate 22 of the induction cooker 10 is heated by induction. and,
The induction heating cooker 10 includes a heating coil 14 that inductively heats the inner pot 3, and a first input operation located in front of the heating coil 14 to set the energization conditions for the heating coil 14. means 20;
The rice cooking unit 1 includes a second input operation means 12 for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit 1 covers the upper part of the first input operation means 20 in a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10,
Between the first input operation means 20 and the heating coil 14, a gap S communicating with the outside is formed between the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 and the lower surface of the rice cooking unit 1;
An infrared signal is transmitted between the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10 at a portion rearward of the gap S and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 and the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10. forming a window 37 for passage;
The induction heating cooker 10 confirms the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 using the infrared signal before starting the rice cooking process using the rice cooking unit 1, and then performs an input operation on the first input operation means 20. It is meant to be invalidated.

According to the heating cooking system of the third invention, overheating of the first input operation means 20 disposed at the front part of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 can be prevented by the space S, and the Before starting the rice cooking process using the rice cooking unit 1, the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 is confirmed by the infrared signal, and after that, the input operation of the first input operation means 20 of the induction heating cooker 10 is disabled. When using a predetermined rice cooking unit 1, it is possible to prevent careless input operations from being performed by the first input operation means 20.

Furthermore, the electric rice cooker 100 in Embodiment 1 was equipped with a configuration according to a fourth invention.
That is, the heating cooking system of Embodiment 1 is as follows:
An induction heating cooker 10 equipped with a top plate 22 on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit 1 in which an internal pot 3 placed close to or in contact with the top plate 22 of the induction cooker 10 is heated by induction. and,
The induction heating cooker 10 includes a heating coil 14 that inductively heats the inner pot 3, and a first input operation located in front of the heating coil 14 to set the energization conditions for the heating coil 14. means 20;
The rice cooking unit 1 includes a second input operation means 12 for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit 1 covers the upper part of the first input operation means 20 in a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10,
Between the first input operation means 20 and the heating coil 14, a gap S communicating with the outside is formed between the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 and the lower surface of the rice cooking unit 1;
Behind the gap S, at a portion where the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 faces the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10, a rice cooking process is performed between the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10. Forming a window 37 for passing an infrared signal before the start of the rice cooking process and after the start of the rice cooking process,
The induction heating cooker 10 confirms the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 using the infrared signal before starting the rice cooking process using the rice cooking unit 1, and then performs an input operation on the first input operation means 20. Further, when the induction heating cooker 10 detects that the rice cooking unit 1 has completed a predetermined rice cooking process by the infrared signal, the input operation is disabled in the first input operation means 20. This is to release the current state.

According to the heating cooking system of the fourth invention, overheating of the first input operation means 20 disposed at the front part of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 can be prevented by the space S, and the Before starting the rice cooking process using the rice cooking unit 1, the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 is confirmed by the infrared signal, and then the input operation of the first input operation means 20 of the induction heating cooker 10 is disabled. When using a predetermined rice cooking unit 1, it is possible to prevent careless input operations from being performed by the first input operation means 20 during the rice cooking operation. Moreover, when the rice cooking process is completed, the invalid state of the input operation is automatically canceled, and there is no problem in using the induction heating cooker 10 alone.

As explained in Embodiment 1, the cooking system of the fifth invention has the following features:
An induction heating cooker 10 equipped with a top plate 22 on the upper surface; a rice cooking unit 1 that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10 and has a built-in inner pot 3; Equipped with
The induction heating cooker 10 includes a heating coil 14 that inductively heats the inner pot 3, and a first input operation located in front of the heating coil 14 to set the energization conditions for the heating coil 14. means 20;
The rice cooking unit 1 includes a second input operation means 12 for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit 1 covers the upper part of the first input operation means 20 in a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10,
A gap S communicating with the outside is formed between the upper surface of the first input operation means 20 and the lower surface of the rice cooking unit 1,
At the rear of the gap S and opposite to the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 and the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10, there is a device for controlling rice cooking between the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10. forming a window 37 for passing an infrared signal transmitting information for
The induction heating cooker 10 or the rice cooking unit 1 confirms the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 by the infrared signal during the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit 1 or during the reserved rice cooking period, and performs a predetermined operation. When it is determined that the rice cooking unit 1 is not at the reference position, a process is performed to determine whether to continue or stop the rice cooking operation depending on the progress of the rice cooking process, and at the stage of continuing or stopping the rice cooking operation. This configuration is characterized in that the information is notified in advance (SA8 in FIG. 15, SB2 and SB10 in FIG. 16, SD5 and SD8 in FIG. 17, etc.).

According to the heating cooking system having this configuration, overheating of the first input operation means 20 disposed at the front portion of the upper surface thereof can be prevented.
In addition, before or after starting the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit 1, the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 is confirmed by the infrared signal, and the progress of the rice cooking process is checked, such as the elapsed time from the start of rice cooking and the temperature of the inner pot 3. Depending on the information, a process is performed to determine whether to continue or stop the rice cooking operation, and the user is notified in advance when the rice cooking operation is to be continued or stopped, thereby preventing misunderstandings or operational errors by the user. It has the advantage of being preventable.

Note that the control program of the main controller 80 or the controller 50 may be changed so that the degree of progress of the rice cooking process is determined not only by the elapsed time from the start of rice cooking but also by taking into account temperature information of the inner pot 3. .

Embodiment 2.
21 to 23 relate to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. FIG. 21 is a longitudinal sectional view of the electric rice cooker seen from the side. FIG. 22 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the front of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 21. FIG. 23 is a block diagram showing a control-related configuration of the electric rice cooker of FIG. 21. Note that the same or equivalent parts as in Embodiment 1 are given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations are omitted.

The electric rice cooker 100 according to the second embodiment has a configuration according to the second invention.
That is, the electric rice cooker 100 of this second embodiment is an electric rice cooker 100 that includes an induction heating cooker 10 and a rice cooking unit 1 that is placed on top of the induction heating cooker 10 and whose built-in inner pot 3 is heated by induction. There it is,
The induction heating cooker 10 includes a heating coil 14 that inductively heats the inner pot 3, and a first input operation located in front of the heating coil 14 to set the energization conditions for the heating coil 14. means 20;
The rice cooking unit 1 includes an inner pot 3 for storing rice to be cooked, and a second input operation means 12 for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit 1 covers the upper part of the first input operation means 20 in a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10,
Between the first input operation means 20 and the heating coil 14, a gap SS communicating with the outside is formed between the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 and the lower surface of the rice cooking unit 1;
A vent hole is formed on the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 in correspondence with the space SS, through which cooling air from a cooling fan built in the rice cooking unit 1 flows.

According to the electric rice cooker 100 of the invention of the second embodiment, overheating of the input operation section disposed at the front part of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10 can be prevented by the cooling air flowing through the rice cooking unit 1.

The electric rice cooker 100 according to the second embodiment will be described in detail below.
In FIG. 21, 103 is an IC tag installed in place of the permanent magnet 30 of the first embodiment. A reader (IC tag information reading unit) 104 that reads information on the tag corresponds to the placement detection sensor (reed switch) 31 of the first embodiment.

In FIG. 21, reference numeral 105 indicates support legs attached to the four corners of the bottom of the induction heating cooker 10, and a weight sensor 4 (not shown) corresponding to the weight sensor 4 of Embodiment 1 is installed inside the support legs. ) are placed.

In FIG. 22, 22A is an inclined portion formed around the top plate 22 (front, rear, left and right) that constitutes the upper surface of the induction heating cooker 10. That is, the inner side of the inclined portion is higher by about 10 mm than the upper surface of the outermost edge.

In FIG. 22, 106 is a protrusion integrally formed on the lower surface of the bottom plate 39 of the rice cooking unit 1. As is clear from FIG. 22, this protrusion is formed in a square or rectangular shape in plan view on the lower surface of the bottom plate 39 so as to surround the periphery of the inclined portion 22A.

As shown in FIG. 22, the protrusion 106 is shaped to fit on the outside of the inclined portion 22A. Note that the inclined portion 22A and the protrusion 106 do not need to be in close contact with each other, and may maintain a gap of about several mm. The fitting between the inclined portion 22A and the protrusion 106 provides a stopper function to prevent the rice cooking unit 1 from accidentally moving back and forth and left and right on the induction heating cooker 10.

The protrusion height of the protrusion 106 may be flush with the lower end surface of the peripheral edge, and does not need to protrude significantly downward. If it protrudes too much, the stability will deteriorate when the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on a table or the like.

Reference numeral 130 denotes a cooling fan, which is installed to prevent hot air from accumulating inside the rice cooking unit 1, particularly at the bottom of the inner pot 3 and its surroundings. Reference numeral 107 denotes a ventilation hole constituting the intake air path of the cooling fan 130, which is a circular hole or a thin slit with a diameter of several millimeters so that a finger cannot be inserted into the hole. The thick arrows indicate the flow of cooling air drawn into the cooling fan 130.

In FIG. 23, 194 is a weight measuring means for measuring the weight of rice, and includes the weight sensor 4 (not shown). Note that this weight measuring means does not measure only the rice cooking unit 1 as in the first embodiment, but measures the weight of the induction heating cooker 10 with the rice cooking unit 1 placed thereon.

Since the basic operation of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be expected.

Embodiment 3.
24 to 26 relate to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. FIG. 24 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the front lower part of the electric rice cooker. FIG. 25 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the operation input section in the front part of the electric rice cooker shown in FIG. 24. FIG. 26 is a vertical sectional view of the lower left side of the electric rice cooker shown in FIG. 24. Note that the same or equivalent parts as in Embodiment 1 are given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations are omitted.

The electric rice cooker 100 according to the third embodiment particularly suppresses the temperature rise of the first input operation means 20 located at the front part of the induction heating cooker 10, and also suppresses the temperature rise of the left and right side parts of the rice cooking unit 1. This device has a configuration aimed at providing a rice cooker with high safety.

As shown in FIG. 24, the bottom plate 39 of the rice cooking unit 1 has a rectangular or nearly square shape in plan view, and support legs 2 made of plastic or rubber are fixed to the lower surface of the four surrounding corners. has been done. Since the support leg has a shape that is thick at the top and becomes thinner toward the bottom, the periphery is an inclined surface 2S.

CL is a center line extending in the vertical direction and indicates the center of the support leg 2. As can be seen from FIG. 24, the front surface of the rice cooking unit 1 and the front wall surface 10F of the outer shell of the induction heating cooker 10 are substantially flush with each other. The support legs 2 are arranged at a predetermined distance from the front wall surfaces 1F and 10F.

The sloped surface 2S of the support leg 2 hits the slope part 22A where the top plate 22 swells upward from the middle, and the support leg 2 is difficult to move rearward from this point. In other words, the support legs 2 and the inclined portion 22A serve as stoppers to prevent the rice cooking unit 1 from easily moving backward.
Due to this structure, in order to bring the rice cooking unit 1 closest to the rear vertical part 16 (reference position), move the support leg 2 backward until it hits the inclined part 22A as shown in FIG. Just move it.

Note that the position of the support legs 2 is within the width 20W of the first input operation means 20 in the front-rear direction as shown in FIG. They are spaced apart in the left-right direction so as to avoid the position of the input operation means 20 of FIG. This prevents the support leg 2 from pushing the first input operation means 20 from above. This is also clear from FIG. 25 below.

FIG. 25 will be explained.
The window 37 that transmits infrared signals is hermetically covered with a glass plate or the like that transmits infrared rays. One of the features of this third embodiment is that this window 37 is formed in the inclined portion 22A of the top plate 22.

The infrared signal is not vertical, but tilted forward, as shown by the broken line IR in FIG. Moreover, HZ indicates the maximum outer peripheral range where the rice cooking unit 1 and other metal pots are placed and subjected to induction heating. This range is determined by the maximum outer diameter of the heating coil 14.
When cooking with common cooking utensils such as pots and frying pans on the top plate 22, the window 37 may be covered with overflowing cooking liquid or cooking ingredients, and if left unattended, it will solidify and become dirty. There is a concern that it will get stuck.

Therefore, in this third embodiment, the important window 37 is arranged on the sloped portion 22A of the top plate 22 so as to prevent it from getting dirty. Furthermore, since the window 37 is easily visible from the front side when operating the first input operation means 20 from the front, there is an advantage that even if there is dirt, the user can easily notice it.

Next, FIG. 26 will be explained.
This FIG. 26 is a vertical sectional view of the lower left side of the electric rice cooker shown in FIG. 24. Although not shown, the shape of the lower right side surface is symmetrical to that shown in FIG. 26.
As can be seen from FIG. 26, the top plate 22 is made higher except for a portion of the left and right ends (width WL) in order to enable induction heating as close as possible to the bottom plate 39 of the rice cooking unit 1. . In other words, step portions 22L and 22R (not shown) that stand up almost vertically are integrally formed at the left and right ends.

In FIG. 26, 1P is a protrusion (or also referred to as a "rib") integrally formed inside the lower part of the plastic case that forms the outer shell of the rice cooking unit 1. The protrusions 1P are formed inside the lower part of the case of the rice cooking unit 1 at regular intervals (for example, 30 to 50 mm). The tip of this projection 1P is in contact with or close to the step 22L, as shown in FIG. 26. Therefore, even if the rice cooking unit 1 is placed correctly on the induction heating cooker 10, the protrusion 1P prevents the rice cooking unit 1 from being moved inadvertently in the left and right direction.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 26, a gap S having a predetermined width WL is formed at least in the left and right lower portions of the case of the rice cooking unit 1. Moreover, since the gap is communicated with the outside through the gap having the facing interval G1, hot air is prevented from being trapped in the gap S, and a rise in temperature of the case of the rice cooking unit 1 can be suppressed. Even if the user touches the lower left side of the rice cooking unit 1 during the rice cooking operation, the stepped portion 22L of the top plate 22 will not be touched by the user's hand.

As shown in FIG. 26, in this Embodiment 3, the top plate 22 has a portion that approaches or contacts the bottom plate 39 of the rice cooking unit 1, and a left and right peripheral portion, which are formed of separate members, and the peripheral portion 22T is made of a plastic material with low thermal conductivity, and therefore the temperature rise in the peripheral portions 22T (on the left and right sides) can be particularly suppressed. Note that the front and rear peripheral portions may also be formed from separate members.
The portion of the top plate 22 that approaches or contacts the bottom plate 39 of the rice cooking unit 1 needs to be made of a material that has high heat resistance and that allows the lines of magnetic force from the heating coil 14 to easily pass therethrough. On the other hand, if the left and right peripheral parts are formed from separate members, it is not necessary to use such a highly heat-resistant material, which is advantageous in terms of cost.

Since the basic operation of the third embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be expected.
Furthermore, in this Embodiment 3, the temperature rise of the outer case of the rice cooking unit 1 can be suppressed, and the effect of increasing the installation stability of the rice cooking unit 1 can be expected.

Embodiment 4.
27 to 32 relate to Embodiment 4 of the present invention. FIG. 27 is an explanatory diagram showing an overall image of one house (household). FIG. 28 is a longitudinal sectional view of the electric rice cooker shown in FIG. 27. FIG. 29 is a plan view of the lid of the electric rice cooker shown in FIG. 27. FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram showing in chronological order the cooperative relationship between the induction heating cooker and the power command device in the household shown in FIG. 27. FIG. 31 is a flowchart showing the steps of the reservation rice cooking operation of the electric rice cooker. FIG. 32 is a flowchart showing the monitoring and notification operation of the induction heating cooker. Note that the same or equivalent parts as in Embodiment 1 are given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanation will be omitted.

The electric rice cooker 100 according to the fourth embodiment has a configuration particularly aimed at further improving user convenience through the communication function provided in the induction heating cooker 10.

Furthermore, the internal structure of the induction heating cooker 10 has been improved to improve the cooling efficiency of the heating coil.
Embodiment 4 will be described below with reference to FIGS. 27 to 32.

In this Embodiment 4, "household appliances" EE refer to electrical appliances designed primarily to be used at home, including household appliances in the kitchen such as the electric rice cooker 100, and television receivers. This includes, but is not limited to, video equipment such as machines, air conditioners, vacuum cleaners, electric washing machines (including those with a drying function), hot water supply equipment used in baths, etc. In addition, in the following description, when the home appliance EE is used, the electric rice cooker 100 is included unless otherwise specified.

In this fourth embodiment, the "identification information" of the home appliance EE is information for identifying the home appliance EE, and is information unique to the home appliance EE, which is necessary for performing accurate repairs and inspections. This is important information. For example, specifically, the following information is included in the identification information, but is not limited to these. Note that the home appliance EE will be explained in detail later.
(1) Manufacturer name of the home appliance (2) Model name (3) Model number (4) Rated power consumption (5) Date of purchase (often the starting date of the manufacturer's or distributor's quality guarantee period) )
(6) Date of start of use (for dishwashers, this is the starting date of the legal inspection period)
(7) Quality guarantee number

The "integrated management device" 200 in this Embodiment 4 refers to a device for operating two or more home appliances EE in cooperation. For example, it refers to a device that allows the electric rice cooker 100 that is the subject of the present invention to cooperate with other home appliances EE, such as an air conditioner or a ventilation device. "Cooperation" refers to the use of information indicating the operating status of one device and acquired data by the other home appliance for operation, display, etc. For this reason, the integrated management device 200 has a function of acquiring information regarding the current status of the home appliance EE, such as operation, stoppage, standby state, etc., from the home appliance EE using a wired or wireless signal.

The “power command device” in this fourth embodiment is a device of the “integrated management device” 200 that has a function of limiting power consumption and has a function of regulating the upper limit of total power consumption in one household. means. In one home appliance, the "integrated management device" may also serve as the "power command device." Furthermore, the "power command device" for one home appliance is not necessarily the power command device for other home appliances. In the following description, reference numeral 200 is used for both the power control device and the integrated management device.

The term "resident" as used in this fourth embodiment refers to a person who lives in one house, which will be described later, and includes blood-related parents and children, brothers, sisters, etc., and who temporarily resides in the living space HA, which will be described later, for a predetermined period. This includes visitors staying overnight and other people living with them. This also includes those who rent one or more living spaces to one or more people. Note that when the electric rice cooker 100 or other home appliances EE are used, the resident is referred to as a "user."

In this Embodiment 4, a "household" means one house managed by a specific manager, and may also include an apartment complex with multiple rooms and housing multiple families. . In other words, even in such an apartment complex, as in the case of a single house, if the upper limit of commercial power is one power cutoff device (one breaker BK or multiple power circuit breakers, etc.) and centrally managed, , is considered a family here.

In the fourth embodiment, the "operation information" of the integrated management device (also referred to as "power command device") 200, which will be described later, refers to information indicating the total amount of electricity at the upper limit set for one household, information indicating the amount of power used, information representing the difference between the total amount of power and the amount of power used, information such as a name that specifically identifies the home appliance EE that is controlled by the power command device 200, and the home appliance concerned. Information indicating the usage status of the equipment EE, information on the amount of power used by each home appliance EE (for example, average amount of power per minute), etc., but is not limited thereto.

In the fourth embodiment, "power limit information on the home appliance side" refers to information regarding some kind of signal related to power consumption received by the home appliance from the power command device 200, including the power reduction request signal AS1 and the power reduction request signal AS1, which will be described later. This refers to information that includes information regarding commands such as the command signal AS2. This information includes information indicating when the signal was received (year, month, and time in seconds) and the meaning of the signal. For example, information such as "Reception time: 17:00, May 1, 2017, reduce the instantaneous maximum power consumption by 2%" regarding the power reduction command signal AS2 for the electric rice cooker 100 to be described later at a certain point in time. Note that this power restriction information on the home appliance side is stored in chronological order in the storage means 80R of the main control device 80 that controls the entire home appliance, such as the electric rice cooker 100, and is stored in chronological order in the storage means 80R of the main controller 80 that controls the entire appliance. Even if I do, it won't go away. Considering turning on and turning off the main power as one cooking session, at least 10 cooking sessions are stored in memory. Any amount exceeding that limit will be automatically deleted one by one.

In the fourth embodiment, "location information on the home appliance side" is information (code) indicating in which room in the living space HA the home appliance is located; for example, the living room is code 001. , the kitchen is coded 002, the bedroom is code 003, etc., which are set in advance by the central control unit of the power control unit 200, and the home appliances EE are used to become the (power) control target of the power control unit 200. , the location information is registered in the power command device 200 together with the identification information of the home appliance. Note that even if the home appliance EE is not subject to (power) control by the power command device 200, the latest position information indicating its installation position and usage location may be transmitted.

Home appliances that do not change their initial installation location (non-transportable), such as built-in induction heating cookers that are installed inside the kitchen furniture and air conditioners that are fixed to the wall. In the case of device EE, the location information can be used permanently.

In the description of this fourth embodiment, detailed description of means for grasping the latest position of the electric rice cooker 100 and other individual portable home appliances will be omitted.

(overall structure)
FIG. 27 shows an example of one house using the electric rice cooker 100 of the fourth embodiment. In FIG. 27, HA1 indicates a living space (kitchen) of one house. Although other living spaces are not shown in FIG. 27, there may be other rooms such as a "living room" and a "bathroom".

All the living spaces HA are supplied with power at a voltage of, for example, 200V from a commercial power source 71 of an electric power company outside the house. The electric power is drawn into the house via the electricity meter 110. Reference numeral 111 denotes a power line (main line) connected to the commercial power supply 71 with a voltage of 200V via a breaker BK. Various home appliances EE are connected to the power line 111, respectively. Home appliances other than the electric rice cooker 100 are omitted from illustration.

200 is a power control device (also serves as an integrated control device) to which power is supplied via the breaker BK, and is wall-mounted in a place easily accessible to family members, such as the wall of the living space HA (kitchen). installed or placed on the floor.

In FIG. 27, AD is a power tap. In this fourth embodiment, each home appliance EE in the living space HA transmits identification codes such as location information and room information indicating the installed living space HA to the power command device 200. This power strip can be omitted.

In FIG. 27, 112 is a router connected to the power command device 200, and this router is connected to an external organization such as a local power company, public institution, or information provider that transmits power reduction command signals, power shortage information, etc. 113 via a wide area communication network (also referred to as a "communications network" or "Internet") 114 such as the Internet.

115 is an information communication terminal device. The "information and communication terminal equipment" 115 in this embodiment 4 refers to a terminal equipment that a user can easily carry and make calls and communicate data (including e-mail information) indoors, outdoors, or anywhere else. It is. Devices that cannot make telephone calls but can download information from the Internet, send e-mails, and send remote control signals are called "portable communication devices." A small, portable personal computer is also a type of information communication terminal equipment.

The information communication terminal device 115 in the fourth embodiment has a function of allowing the input/output section of each home appliance EE to be brought close to (or in contact with) the input/output section of each home appliance EE by a few centimeters to send and receive signals through short-range communication. There is. Note that this short-range communication is an international standard technology for wireless communication known as Near Field Communication (abbreviation: NFC).

In this NFC communication, a so-called wireless tag (NFC tag) is embedded in the home appliance EE side. The NFC tag is connected to a communication control IC for NFC (hereinafter referred to as "NFC control circuit") and this control circuit, and when it receives radio waves of a predetermined frequency from the outside, power for the control circuit is supplied. It consists of an antenna that generates a signal, and a microchip memory (hereinafter referred to as "NFC storage section") connected to the NFC control circuit.

On the other hand, on the information communication terminal device 115 side, data is read from the NFC storage section (not shown) of the electric rice cooker 100 (of the rice cooking unit 1), which is one of the home appliances EE, via the NFC tag (status Furthermore, conversely, control data (control commands) are sent from the information communication terminal device 115 side to the NFC storage section (not shown) of the rice cooking unit 1, and the control device 50 (such a type of NFC tag is sometimes referred to as an "active tag"). Home appliances EE other than the electric rice cooker 100 also have a similar configuration. In other words, the NFC of the fourth embodiment has a function of reading out information in the internal storage of the home appliance EE on the information communication terminal device 115 side (an NFC tag with such a function is sometimes called a "simple tag"). It also has a function that allows the operation of the home appliance EE to be activated by a control command from the information and communication terminal device 115. In other words, the information communication terminal device 115 has a function of not only reading various information from the home appliance EE but also writing to the NFC storage unit, and has two functions: a reader and a writer.
It is said that the advantage of NFC is that it does not generally limit the format of data that can be exchanged via communication, and that it can exchange not only text data but also video, XML data, etc.

Although not shown in the figure, a base station of an information communication terminal device 115 is connected to the communication network 114 via a relay server, and the information communication terminal device 115 can access the router 112 via the base station. is now possible. In other words, if the information communication terminal device 115 owned by the resident of this household is connected to the communication network 114 from a remote location, it can be connected to the power command device 200.

Moreover, it can be connected to the wireless communication unit 26 (see FIG. 2) of the electric rice cooker 100 via the power command device 200, and can be remotely controlled from a location away from the living space HA. However, in the fourth embodiment, direct remote control of the electric rice cooker 100 and other home appliances EE from the information communication terminal device 115 is not possible. This is because some home appliances EE, such as electric cookers, emit radiant heat directly into the room, so it is impossible to remotely control them from outside the house via the communication circuit that many people use. , is not adopted in consideration of safety, and instead, all operations are performed via the power command device 200.

Inside the house, it may be possible to connect to the electric rice cooker 100 via a router 112, a home server (not shown), or a local network facility (not shown).

Next, FIG. 28 will be explained. FIG. 28 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the entire electric rice cooker 100 when viewed from the side as in FIG. 2 of the first embodiment. Cross-sectional representation (hatching) is omitted for some configurations.

The induction heating cooker 10 has a cooling fan 13, a heating coil 14 wound in a thin disk shape (doughnut shape), a power transmission coil 17, a magnetic shield plate 19 which is circular in plan view, and a control device 50 in its internal space. and outside air temperature detection means 15 for detecting the temperature of indoor air in a kitchen or the like.

The magnetic shield plate 19 has a height that horizontally partitions the internal space of the induction heating cooker 10, and the magnetic shield plate 19 and the horizontally installed plastic partition plate 96 with a large planar area , a circular room 97 is divided in plan view.

Said chamber 97 houses the heating coil 14. The cooling fan 13 is located at the rear of the room 97, and is installed vertically so that the air outlet is at the front and the air intake is at the rear.

Reference numeral 98 denotes a vent, which is formed at the rear of the magnetic shield plate 19 constituting the room 97.
The cooling air blown from the cooling fan 13 passes through the room 97 from the ventilation port 98 and reaches the induction heating cooker 10 via an exhaust port (not shown) provided on the left side. Released to the outside.
Note that the cooling fan 13 may be arranged further to the right in FIG. 28, and the power transmission coil 17 may be cooled first by the cooling air of the cooling fan 13, and then the inside of the room 97 may be cooled.
Alternatively, the air path may be branched into two in front of the room 97, and one air path may be directed to the power transmission coil 17 side, and the remaining air path may be directed to the room 97.

Reference numeral 99 denotes a wind direction plate disposed on the upstream side of the cooling air flow when viewed from the cooling fan 13.
What is shown by thick arrows in FIG. 28 is a flow of cooling air generated in the internal space of the induction heating cooker 10 by the cooling fan 13.

As is clear from FIG. 28, in the fourth embodiment, fresh air is sucked into the living space HA from the intake hole on the rear side of the main controller 80, and the cooling air flows around the main controller 80. It is cooled and then fed into said chamber 97. Therefore, the heating coil 14 is effectively cooled, and the top plate 22 located directly above it is also cooled.

96A is a through hole formed in the center of the partition plate 96. This through hole is formed right above the infrared temperature sensor 5B that senses the temperature in a non-contact manner by sensing the infrared rays emitted from the inner pot 3, and is open to allow the infrared rays to pass through.

A lower space 108 surrounded by a magnetic shield plate 19 is defined below by the partition plate 96, and an infrared temperature sensor 5B fixed by a support substrate 32 is arranged in this space. With this structure, the infrared temperature sensor 5B is less likely to receive high heat from the heating coil 14, so that more accurate temperature detection can be performed.

Further, an infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34, which is a means for transmitting important control information to and from the rice cooking unit 1, is located on the front side of the room 97, and on the opposite side of the heating coil 14 with the magnetic shield plate 19 in between. . Therefore, this infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 is also less susceptible to thermal effects from the heating coil 14. Similarly, the first input operation means 20 is configured to avoid a rise in temperature.

Although the room 97 is partitioned by the magnetic shield plate 19, for example, a plastic plate or the like may be arranged along the magnetic shield plate. In other words, it is not necessary to configure the entire room 97 with the magnetic shield plate 19.

Next, FIG. 29 will be explained. FIG. 29 is a plan view of the lid of the electric rice cooker shown in FIG. 27.
In FIG. 29, 20 is a second input operation means (input operation section) of the rice cooking unit 1 of the electric rice cooker 100, and includes a "rice cooking start switch" 67 that starts the rice cooking operation or confirms the reservation; A "keep warm switch" 75 commands the mode of keeping the cooked rice warm at a constant predetermined temperature, a "menu switch" 65 selects various cooking menus such as regular rice cooking, porridge, and cooked rice, and a menu switch 65 for cooking rice such as white rice and brown rice. ``Rice type switch'' 63 for selecting and inputting the type of rice to be cooked, notifying the status of the rice cooking unit 1 and the next necessary operation by voice, adjusting the volume of the notification, and turning on/off the voice mode. "Switch for voice navigation" 76, "Reservation switch" 68 for setting the reservation rice cooking function, "Off/Cancel switch" 66 for canceling or turning off various input operations and modes, "Normal" for cooking method (cooking doneness) '', ``firm'', and ``cooking method switch (hardness switch)'' 64 for selecting ``rice porridge'' different from normal rice cooking.

Each of these switches may be a mechanical switch or a capacitive touch switch, which when pressed by the user closes a built-in electrical contact and generates an input signal, or may be used in combination. Also good. When the heat retention switch 75 is operated after the unevenness process is finished, the heat retention mode is started.

77 is a power saving switch that can reduce power consumption by a predetermined amount by pressing once. For example, if you press this power saving switch during the preheating process, the power consumption can be reduced for the first few minutes, but the time required for the preheating process will be increased by that much, so the first display screen 11A consisting of a liquid crystal display screen, etc. A notice to that effect is displayed, and a message such as ``Power saving mode has been selected. The preheating process time will be extended for several minutes'' without having to press the voice guide (navigation) switch 76 each time. Guidance will be provided.

78 is a health information display switch that, when pressed once, displays information regarding healthy rice cooking on the first display screen 11A. Note that when this key is pressed, information such as rice and rice cooking method can be obtained from the information server of the external organization 113 via the wireless communication unit 26 of the induction heating cooker 10 and the power command device 200.

Reference numeral 91 denotes an NFC input/output unit for enabling short-range wireless communication by bringing the information communication terminal device 115 having the NFC input/output unit close, and 91 is an NFC input/output unit that is installed close to the top surface of the lid body 1B and embedded therein. It is. Furthermore, on the top surface of the lid body 1B, "TOUCH" indicates the target position to which the information communication terminal device 115 approaches or contacts so that the user can easily visually confirm the position of the wireless tag (NFC tag) 91T of the NFC input/output unit 91. It is displayed in text.

In FIG. 29, reference numeral 81 indicates power priority information displayed on the first display screen 11A, and information regarding commands such as a power reduction request signal AS1, a power reduction command signal AS2, etc. is received by the wireless communication unit 26. In this case, the main control device 80 of the induction heating cooker 10 transfers information to the rice cooking unit 1 by an infrared signal via the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34, and in response, the control device 50 changes the information to the first display screen 11A. A display is commanded to a drive circuit (not shown). However, it is displayed only during the period when the rice cooking unit 1 is executing the preheating process or the rice cooking process.

82 is boiling process display information also displayed on the first display screen 11A. In the state shown in FIG. 28, the rice cooking process is currently being executed and the inside of the inner pot 3 is in a boiling state. The user can easily understand that this is a home appliance (electric rice cooker) that does not take measures to reduce power consumption.

Next, FIG. 30 will be explained. FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram chronologically showing the cooperative relationship between the induction heating cooker 10 and the power command device 200 in the living space shown in FIG. 27.
In FIG. 30, L1 to L10 are operation information signals transmitted from the electric rice cooker 100 to the power command device 200.

In FIG. 30, a square frame indicated by a broken line indicates a range in which the induction heating cooker 10 is related to the rice cooking unit 1.
L1 is a signal indicating that the main power source 71 is connected to the induction heating cooker 10 (ON). Note that, if the induction heating cooker 10 has a power switch for turning on the main power, the signal is transmitted when the switch is pressed to turn on.

L2 is information indicating that the reservation rice cooking mode has been selected. L3 is advance notice information (also referred to as a "start request signal") that is transmitted when the reserved time for starting rice cooking approaches (for example, 5 minutes before the set time for reserved rice cooking).

In FIG. 30, KS is a "rice cooking start permission signal" transmitted from the power command device 200 within a short time (usually within a few seconds) from the start notice information (also referred to as "start request signal") L3. . Unless this signal reaches electric rice cooker 100, main controller 80 of electric rice cooker 100 does not transmit an actual heating start command signal to inverter circuit 73.

L4 is one of the operation information signals, and indicates that the inverter circuit 73 is actually driven, starts the induction heating operation, and starts the preheating process.

L5 is an operation information signal indicating that the rice cooking process has started. L6 is an operation information signal indicating that the rice cooking process has ended. During the execution time of this rice cooking process, power is not reduced by external operations or commands. That is, even if this electric rice cooker 100 actually receives the power reduction command signal AS2, the power is reduced only after the next operation information signal L6. Note that even if the electric rice cooker 100 is registered as an electrical device subject to power reduction in the power command device 200, when the power command device 200 receives the operation information signal L5 indicating that the rice cooking process is in progress, the power command device 200 issues a power reduction command. Even if the signal AS2 is received, a power reduction command signal is not transmitted to the electric rice cooker 100 in response.

L6 indicates an operation information signal when the rice cooking process is completed. L7 indicates that the unevenness step has been completed. L8 is an operation information signal indicating the start of the heat retention process. L9 is an operation information signal indicating the end of the heat retention process. Note that the heat retention step is performed by energizing only two of the lid body heating means 9A and the inner pot side surface heating means 9B.

L10 is a signal indicating main power supply cutoff (OFF) that cuts off the connection between the commercial power supply 71 and the induction heating cooker 10. Each of these pieces of information L1 to L10 includes the current time in seconds. Note that there are also response signals from the power command device 200 side for each operation information signal, but a detailed explanation will be omitted.

The power command device 200 gives the highest priority to the power request of the electric rice cooker 100 (compared to other home appliances EE), and secures the power request of the electric rice cooker 100 with the highest priority. Therefore, even if the rated capacity of the breaker BK is about to be exceeded or the upper limit power capacity specified by the user is about to be exceeded, the power will not be reduced during the boiling process and delicious rice can be cooked. Can be done.

(Reserved rice cooking operation of electric rice cooker)
Next, the reservation rice cooking operation of the electric rice cooker 100, which is one of the features of the fourth embodiment, will be described with reference to FIG. 31.
Steps SE1 to SE8 show the operations up to the setting of reserved rice cooking, and are the operations of the control device 50 of the rice cooking unit 1.

When the user presses the reservation switch 68 of the first input operation means 20, sets the rice cooking time, and finally presses the rice cooking start switch 67, a reservation rice setting confirmation signal is generated, and the reservation rice setting is set. Confirm (SE1).

Upon receiving this confirmation signal, the wireless communication unit 26 transmits an operation information signal L2 indicating the setting of the reservation rice cooking mode to the power command device 200 (SE2). At that time, rice cooking operation start time information is also transmitted in a 24-hour format such as "20:00". Further, it is preferable to include information on the reservation setter (presumed to be the user) in the data, such as a code number indicating "Resident B", and transmit the information.

Next, the time interval between the rice cooking start time set by the user and the current time is calculated. Note that when the user sets the desired rice cooking time, the user sets the "rice cooking completion time". In other words, you want to finish cooking rice by the time you get home, so you set the set time to 20:00, but the control device 50 receives this input and starts the rice cooking process (in this case, the preheating process, the rice cooking process, (including the three unevenness processes) is calculated, and the start time of the preheating process is calculated (SE3).

According to the calculation result in step SE3, if there is a time of 60 minutes or more, the result is "Yes" in the next step SE4, and the process proceeds to the next step SE5. "Standby processing" in step SE5 means that when the standby determination unit built in the control device 50 receives information on the rice cooking start time, the standby processing from the current time to a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes before the designated time) is performed. During this period, the power supply to the control device 50 is cut off, and the operation of the first display screen 11A is also stopped in order to enter a standby state. This eliminates power consumption on the rice cooking unit 1 side. The standby determination unit determines whether or not the current time is a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes) before the designated time for rice cooking (start) for a certain period of time (for example, 1 minute) using time information from the timer 50T. ) are checked at intervals. Description of the subsequent operations will be omitted.

On the other hand, if it is determined from the calculation result of step SE3 that there is no time longer than 60 minutes, the process proceeds to step SE6. In step SE6, it is checked at regular time intervals whether or not a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes) before the designated time, and if "Yes" in this step, the process advances to the next step S7.

In step SE7, an operation information signal (advance signal) L3 indicating the start of rice cooking in the reservation rice cooking mode is transmitted from the wireless communication unit 26 to the power command device 200. At that time, rice cooking operation start time information is also transmitted in a 24-hour format such as "20:00".

In the next step SE8, the voice notification means 90V and the first display screen 11A notify by voice or text that the rice cooking operation has started. Description of the subsequent operations will be omitted.

(Monitoring operation during reserved rice cooking)
Next, FIG. 32 will be explained.
To explain the monitoring operation during reserved rice cooking of the electric rice cooker 100, which is one of the features of the fourth embodiment, steps SU1 to SU8 indicate the steps of the monitoring operation, and the main This is the operation of the control device 80. In the rice cooking unit 1, as described above, during reserved rice cooking, power may not be supplied to the control device 50, so the main control device 80 of the induction heating cooker 10 executes the monitoring operation.

The monitoring operation of the electric rice cooker 100, which is one of the features of the fourth embodiment, is performed not only during reservation cooking but also during rice cooking, so reservation cooking is not described in FIG. 32.

First, the monitoring operation starts from the stage when the rice cooking process or the reserved rice cooking process is started, as shown in step SU1.
If the information communication terminal device 115 is brought close to the short-range wireless communication section 91 in advance and the information communication terminal device 115 is registered in the rice cooking unit 1, when the rice cooking process or reserved rice cooking process is started, the main control The device 80 compares the registered data (stored in the storage means 80R) transmitted in advance from the control device 50 of the rice cooking unit 1 (SU2), and if there is a registered information communication terminal device 115, , the information communication terminal device 115 is designated and the wireless communication unit 26 notifies that rice cooking has started or that rice cooking has been reserved (SU3).

Note that the information communication terminal device 115 may be registered on the induction heating cooker 10 side. Furthermore, there are various known methods for registering the identification information, address, etc. of the information communication terminal device 115 in advance for the electric rice cooker 100 (including the induction heating cooker 10 and the rice cooking unit 1), such as MAC address transmission. Therefore, explanations regarding these will be omitted.

After this, a case will be described in which the rice cooking unit 1 is moved from a predetermined position (reference position) on the upper surface of the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10 for some reason. For example, this applies to a case where resident A has made a reservation for rice cooking in the electric rice cooker 100, but another resident B carelessly moves the rice cooking unit 1 without knowing the circumstances.

In the induction heating cooker 10, during rice cooking and during the reserved rice cooking period (from the time when the reserved rice is set until the actual rice cooking process, the unevenness process, and the warming process are all completed), the figure The reference position determination operation is performed as in step S6 of No. 11.

Therefore, if the rice cooking unit 1 moves from the reference position of the induction heating cooker 10 for some reason, step SU4 becomes "No" and the process proceeds to step SU6. Therefore, even if the pre-registered information communication terminal device 115 is located in a remote location outside the living space HA, the wireless communication unit 26 notifies the information communication terminal device 115 via the power command device 200. be done. If there is any reply from the information communication terminal device 115 (SU7), the process proceeds to step SU8, and the notification means 70 of the induction heating cooker 10 gives a notification in text, voice, or the like. Further, when power is being supplied to the rice cooking unit 1 from the induction heating cooker 10 side, external reply information is also sent from the induction heating cooker 10 to the rice cooking unit 1.

The "reply" referred to here is one that has been selected and registered in advance from multiple types of standard messages and warnings on the information communication terminal equipment 115 side. For example, when a reply designation of "alarm" is given, Since the induction heating cooker 10 and the rice cooking unit 1 are currently in use, the resident at home is asked to check them immediately. This reply may be set in the information communication terminal device 115 so that it is automatically sent promptly (for example, within 10 seconds) unless the user performs a specific operation.

If the rice cooking process, the steaming process, and the warming process are all completed without the rice cooking unit 1 moving from the reference position of the induction heating cooker 10 (SU5), the series of monitoring operations ends. Note that all of this monitoring operation is not performed solely by the main controller 80 of the induction heating cooker 10, and the rice cooking unit 1 may be responsible for some of the operations. As described in Embodiment 1, the rice cooking unit 1 is equipped with a power supply section 95 such as a secondary battery, and can perform information processing for monitoring.

In addition, in this Embodiment 4, the induction heating cooker 10 performs the following operations during rice cooking and during the reserved rice cooking period (from setting the reserved rice cooking until the actual rice cooking process, uniformity process, and warming process are all completed). Although the reference position determination operation was performed as shown in step S6, the heat retention process may not be targeted. In other words, the maintenance of the cooperative relationship between the induction heating cooker 10 and the rice cooking unit 1 is terminated at the stage when the uniformity process is finished, and the position of the rice cooking unit 1 is changed to the induction Even if the induction cooking device 10 is removed from the top of the heating cooking device 10 and moved to another location, such as a dining table, the operation of the induction heating cooking device 10 will not be affected in any way. In this way, when the varnishing step is finished, the input operation function of the first input operation means 20 is not restricted, so the induction heating cooker 10 can be used for another cooking immediately.

Summary of Embodiment 4.
As is clear from the above description, the heating cooking system of the fourth embodiment is as follows:
An induction heating cooker 10 equipped with a top plate 22 on the upper surface; a rice cooking unit 1 that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10 and has a built-in inner pot 3; Equipped with
The induction heating cooker 10 includes a heating coil 14 that inductively heats the inner pot 3, and a first input operation located in front of the heating coil 14 to set the energization conditions for the heating coil 14. means 20;
The rice cooking unit 1 includes a second input operation means 12 for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit 1 covers the upper part of the first input operation means 20 in a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10,
A gap S communicating with the outside is formed between the upper surface of the first input operation means 20 and the lower surface of the rice cooking unit 1,
At the rear of the gap S and opposite to the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 and the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10, there is a device for controlling rice cooking between the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10. forming a window 37 for passing an infrared signal transmitting information for
The induction heating cooker 10 confirms the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 by the infrared signal and moves it to a predetermined reference position during at least one of the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit 1 or the reserved rice cooking period. The configuration is characterized in that it includes a wireless communication section 26 that notifies the outside via wireless when it is determined that the rice cooking unit 1 is not present.

According to the heating cooking system with this configuration, the space S can prevent overheating of the first input operation means 20 disposed at the front part of the upper surface of the induction heating cooker, and the rice cooking unit 1 can If it is detected that the rice has deviated from the reference position during the rice cooking period or during the reserved rice cooking period, a notification is sent to external devices such as the power control device 200 and the information communication terminal device 115, so that the rice cooking can be carried out reliably. This can increase the user's convenience and sense of security.

Since the basic operation of the fourth embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be expected.
Furthermore, in this embodiment 4, if it is detected that the rice cooking unit 1 has deviated from the reference position during rice cooking or during the reserved rice cooking period, the information and communication terminal equipment 115 etc. are notified, so that rice cooking can be ensured. The system can be monitored to ensure that it is being executed properly, increasing the user's convenience and sense of security.

Furthermore, in this fourth embodiment, a lower space 108 surrounded by a magnetic shield plate 19 is defined below by the partition plate 96, and an infrared temperature sensor 5B fixed by a support substrate 32 is disposed in this space. As a result, the infrared temperature sensor 5B is less likely to receive high heat from the heating coil 14, so that more accurate temperature detection can be performed.

Further, since the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 is located on the front side of the room 97 and on the opposite side of the heating coil 14 with the magnetic shield plate 19 in between, the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 also receives thermal radiation from the heating coil 14. Since it is not easily affected by heat, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of malfunctions and abnormalities caused by heat. Furthermore, since the first input operation means 20 is similarly configured to avoid temperature rise, it is possible to suppress breakdowns and shortened lifespans of electronic components disposed there.

Furthermore, in this fourth embodiment, as explained in FIG. 28, a room 97 is formed under the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10, the heating coil 14 is disposed inside the room 97, and the room is covered with a cooling fan. Since the cooling air supplied from the heating coil 13 is used for cooling, the heating coil 14 is prevented from overheating, which contributes to preventing the top plate 22 from overheating.

Furthermore, since the cooling fan also cools the power transmission coil 17, overheating of the power transmission coil 17 can also be prevented.

Embodiment 5.
33 to 36 relate to Embodiment 5 of the present invention, and FIG. 33 is a flowchart 1 showing the control operation of the induction heating cooker and the rice cooking unit. FIG. 34 is a flowchart 2 showing the control operation of the induction heating cooker and rice cooking unit of FIG. 33. FIG. 35 is a flowchart 3 showing the control operation of the induction heating cooker and rice cooking unit of FIG. 33. FIG. 36 is a flowchart showing the control operation of the rice cooking unit of FIG. 33. Note that the same or equivalent parts as in Embodiment 1 are given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanation will be omitted.

In the electric rice cooker 100 according to the fifth embodiment, the operation program when the induction heating cooker 10 is started is changed. In addition, the apparatus is particularly designed to change the operation program of the control device 50 of the rice cooking unit 1 and to improve the operability when the user measures the weight of rice.

The steps of the control operation shown in FIG. 33 are improved from steps S1 to S12 in FIG. 11 of the first embodiment.
Steps that are the same or the same as those in FIG. 11 will be described with the same reference numerals.

First, when the power plug 101 of the induction heating cooker 10 is connected to the commercial power source 71, the reed switch 31 is turned ON (closed) if the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in the correct position (S1).

Then, even if the user does not operate the first input operation means 20 or the second input operation means 12 of the rice cooking unit 1, the main controller 80 can control the infrared temperature sensor 5B and other current sensors (see FIG. (not shown) starts a self-check to see if there is any abnormality in the internal components of the induction heating cooker 10 (S2).

If there is no abnormality, the main controller 80 drives the power transmission coil 17 and starts supplying a predetermined power. The notification means 70 is also activated (S3). On the other hand, the cooling fan 13 is started operating in the "weak" mode (S4). Therefore, the power transmission coil 17 is cooled by the cooling air.

At this stage, the main controller 80 knows that the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in the correct position because the reed switch 31 is ON. The determining means 33A is activated. In the first embodiment, the main controller 80 drives the reference position determining means (B) 33, but in the fifth embodiment, when the power is supplied to the control device 50 from the power supply means 6, the control starts. The operation program of the device 50 is started, and an infrared signal is transmitted from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 to the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 (SM5).

Then, the infrared signal received by the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 is decoded by the reference position determining means 33B, and the result is input to the main controller 80. The main controller 80 makes a final confirmation that the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in the correct position (SM6).

If, after a predetermined regular infrared signal is transmitted from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 to the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34, such a regular infrared signal cannot be received on the reference position determination means 33B side. In this case, even if the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in the correct position, the cooking liquid from the previous cooking may have dripped onto the top surface of the window 37 and become stuck as dirt, interfering with infrared communication. It is assumed that the In this case, the main controller 80 side makes an error determination. The operation after this error determination (SM6) is shown in FIG.

Since operation data, temperature data, etc. are exchanged between the two infrared signal transmitting/receiving units 34 and 35 during the rice cooking operation, even if the window 37 is dirty, the rice cooking operation is not permitted. Note that if the reference position determination result is NG in step SA6, the process proceeds to an abnormality handling step shown in FIG. 14, which will be explained later.

In the next step S7, the main controller 80 performs a process of disabling the generation of the input command signal from the first input operation means 20. Specifically, the signal for generating the input signal of the first input operation means 20 is cut off to prevent the input signal from being generated, but this invalidation means is not limited to this method at all.

By disabling the input operation section from the first input operation means 20, for example, even if the rice cooking unit 1 is momentarily lifted and the first input operation means 20 is operated, such operation is not performed as the main operation. Since the information is not input to the control device 80, it is not possible to stop rice cooking immediately and start using the induction heating cooker 10 independently.

Next, in the rice cooking unit 1, the notifying means 90 such as the voice notifying means 90V notifies that the rice cooking operation will be started (SM8).
In addition, in the first embodiment, the induction heating cooker 10 uses the notification means 70 such as the audio notification means 70V, so this part also differs from the first embodiment.

In the next step S9, the rice cooking unit 1 enters a standby state in order to determine whether a command to start rice cooking has been given. After placing the rice cooking unit 1, it takes time to adjust the amount of water in the inner pot 3, etc. until the actual rice cooking starts. Therefore, the waiting time is measured by the timer 80T (S10).

For example, there is no command signal indicating that rice cooking has started (S11), there is no command signal to start rice cooking via the wireless communication unit 26 (S12), and the predetermined time T1 (for example, 60 minutes) is not received from step 10. If the time has elapsed (S13: see FIG. 34), the main controller 80 determines that rice cooking has been postponed for some reason.

Next, FIG. 34 will be explained.
The steps of the control operation shown in FIG. 34 are improved from steps S13 to S18 in FIG. 12 of the first embodiment. In other words, it shows the operation when time elapses without an important rice cooking command while the rice cooking operation is still prepared to start.

When a predetermined time T1 (for example, 60 minutes) has elapsed since step 10 (S13), the rice cooking unit 1 notifies you that the rice cooking operation has been canceled by the notifying means 70 such as the voice notifying means 70V (SM14). . The difference from the embodiment shown in FIG. 12 is that the rice cooking unit 1 makes a notification in this step.
Next, in the induction heating cooker 10, the control device 50 stops power supply to the rice cooking unit 1 (S15). Specifically, a command is issued to stop power supply to the power transmission coil 17 and cooling fan 13.

If the predetermined time T2 (for example, 61 minutes) has elapsed since step 10 (S16), the main controller 80 cancels the disabling process of the input operation section from the first input operation means 20 (S17) . Therefore, at this stage, for example, if the rice cooking unit 1 is moved to another location, the first input operation means 20 can be operated to start another cooking process using the induction heating cooker 10. Note that if there is no operation of this first input operation means 20, the main controller 80 automatically shuts off the main power supply, and performs an operation that takes safety into account so that the heating operation is not performed inadvertently. (S18).

Next, FIG. 35 will be explained.
The steps of the control operation shown in FIG. 35 are the same as steps SA1 to SA9 in FIG. 15 of the first embodiment. If the determination in step SM6 in FIG. 33 is "No", the process in FIG. 35 is executed by the main controller 80. In other words, FIG. 35 shows the operation when the main controller 80 detects that the rice cooking unit 1 is not at the reference position before starting the rice cooking operation, and steps SA1 to SA9 shown in FIG. Since it is the same as steps SA1 to SA9 shown in FIG.

Hereinafter, FIG. 36 will be explained. The steps of the control operation shown in FIG. 36 are improved from step SR9 and subsequent steps in FIG. 20 of the first embodiment.

As explained in FIG. 20 of the first embodiment, when the user finishes inputting the hardness of the rice to be cooked (SR8), the control device 50 then activates the second display screen 11B and displays the hardness of the rice. Display that weight can be measured. The audio notification means 90V also provides notification (SR9).

In this fifth embodiment, when the lid 1B is open, if the lid 1B is then closed and the rice cooking switch 67 is pressed, rice cooking can be started immediately without going through the rice weight measurement step. This has the advantage that users who are familiar with adjusting the amount of water when cooking rice can quickly proceed with the steps up to the start of rice cooking.

In FIG. 36, when the second display screen 11B is activated (SR9) and measurement of a predetermined time T6 is started (ST1), there is a step of determining whether the lid 1B is open.
As described in Embodiment 1, a microswitch, a reed switch, etc. as the lid opening sensor 93 is provided in the lid opening/closing button that opens the lid 1B and the mechanism that is linked to the opening/closing operation. The control device 50 may detect the opening.

Alternatively, the control device 50 may monitor how the center of gravity of the rice cooking unit 1 moves back and forth before the second display screen 11B is activated, and detect the opening of the lid 1B.
For example, as described in the first embodiment, two weight sensors are provided in the front and rear directions of the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10, and the weight sensors detect the weight of the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10. When the lid 1B is opened, the lid 1B is supported by the rice cooking unit 1 in a vertical or more stable rearward tilted state via a rear hinge (not shown). Ru.

Therefore, when the lid 1B is opened, the measured value of the front weight sensor decreases before and after the lid 1B is opened, and the weight of the lid 1B is applied to the rear hinge (not shown). The measured value of the weight sensor on the rear side increases.

In particular, before the second display screen 11B is started, there is a step (SR7, SR8) in which information on the brand of rice and the doneness of the rice, that is, the hardness of the rice, can be sequentially read out and corrected. Therefore, when operating the second input operation means 12, the user usually needs to close the lid 1B, and the measured value of the front weight sensor and the rear side weight sensor at this time are The balance of the measured values of the weight sensor changes when the lid body 1B is subsequently opened.

Therefore, the control device 50 uses software to analyze the data of the measured values of the plurality of weight sensors as described above, without providing hardware such as a microswitch or a reed switch as the lid opening sensor 93. Opening of 1B can be detected.

In FIG. 36, when opening of the lid body 1B is detected, the control device 50 proceeds to the next operation step ST12. Then, just to be sure, the lid body 1B is checked once again to see if it is open.After this, when it is detected that the rice cooking switch 67 has been pressed (ST13), the first display screen 11A and the audio notification means 90V are displayed. Then, a warning message is issued to keep the lid 1B closed and not to open it (ST15), and when it is detected that the lid 1B is closed (ST16), the steps described above are performed. Proceed to SR10.

Therefore, in step SR10, the voice notification means 90V gives voice guidance such as, for example, ``The measured weight of the rice was 500 g.The appropriate amount of water has been determined, so we will start cooking the white rice in the soft mode.''
Further, the second display screen 11B ends its display operation (turns off).
In this way, rice cooking can be started immediately without going through the rice weight measurement step.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step ST2 that the lid 1B is open, the process proceeds to the next step ST3.
In this step ST3, the operation key 18A arranged on the rice weight measurement operation section 18 is operated, and it is determined whether or not there is a command to weigh rice. When a predetermined operation key 18A is pressed, the weight of the rice is measured with the lid 1B open (ST4).

The rice placed in the inner pot 3 is weighed by the weight measurement means 94, the weight is notified by the voice notification means 90V, and the weight is also displayed numerically on the second display screen 11B (ST5).

Thereafter, the amount of water corresponding to the weight of the rice is announced by the audio notification means 90V, for example, "500 milliliters", and is also displayed numerically on the second display screen 11B (ST6).

Then, with the lid body 1B left open, if the notified amount of water is poured and the predetermined operation key 18A is pressed, rice and water are put into the inner pot 3 by the weight measuring means 94. In this state, the weight is weighed again, and the determination result is notified by the voice notification means 90V and also displayed on the second display screen 11B (ST6).

After that, when it is detected that the rice cooking switch 67 has been pressed (ST13), the first display screen 11A and the audio notification means 90V will tell you to keep the lid 1B closed and not to open it. A warning is issued (ST15), and when it is detected that the lid 1B is closed (ST16), the process proceeds to step SR10 described above.

If, in step ST3, time elapses without any operation of the operation key 18A arranged on the operation section 18 of the rice weight measurement, the elapsed time is checked in step ST8, and the second display screen 11B is activated. If 30 minutes have not elapsed since then, the voice notification means 90V notifies you that a weight measurement command is being waited for, and also displays it on the second display screen 11B (ST11).

Such reminders may be made every few minutes. If it is determined in step ST8 that 30 minutes have elapsed, the user leaves the lid 1B open and is taking time to do some work, or is preparing for another meal, and the rice cooking set is postponed. Since there is a possibility that the error has occurred, an error notification is performed to alert the user (ST9). This error notification is preferably performed using the audio notification means 90 and the second display screen 11B. Then, the control device 50 stops the series of rice cooking condition setting operations, ends the operation of the second display screen 11B and the first display screen 11A, and turns off the screen displays (ST10).

Incidentally, if the rice cooking switch 67 is not pressed in step ST13 and time elapses, the elapsed time is checked in step ST14, and if 30 minutes have not elapsed since the second display screen 11B was started, , the process returns to step ST2 and a check is made again to see if the lid 1B is open. However, if 30 minutes have elapsed, the process proceeds to step ST9 and an error notification is performed. This error notification is preferably performed using the audio notification means 90 and the first display screen 11A. Then, the control device 50 stops the series of rice cooking condition setting operations, ends the operation of the second display screen 11B and the first display screen 11A, and turns off the screen displays (ST10).

Summary of Embodiment 5.
As is clear from the above description, the heating cooking system of this fifth embodiment is as follows:
An induction heating cooker 10 equipped with a top plate 22 on the upper surface; a rice cooking unit 1 that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10 and has a built-in inner pot 3; Equipped with
The induction heating cooker 10 includes a heating coil 14 that inductively heats the inner pot 3, and a first input operation located in front of the heating coil 14 to set the energization conditions for the heating coil 14. means 20;
The rice cooking unit 1 includes a second input operation means 12 for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit 1 covers the upper part of the first input operation means 20 in a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10,
A gap S communicating with the outside is formed between the upper surface of the first input operation means 20 and the lower surface of the rice cooking unit 1,
At the rear of the gap S and opposite to the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 and the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10, there is a device for controlling rice cooking between the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10. forming a window 37 for passing an infrared signal transmitting information for
The induction heating cooker 10 or the rice cooking unit 1 confirms the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 by the infrared signal before starting the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit 1, and determines if the rice cooking unit 1 is not at a predetermined reference position. When it is determined (step SM6 in FIG. 34), the process of stopping the rice cooking operation (step SA8 in FIG. 35) without starting energization of the heating coil 14 is performed, and if there is a problem with the placement of the rice cooking unit 1, This configuration is characterized in that a notification is given in advance (steps SA1 and SA8 in FIG. 35) at a stage after a certain event is detected.

According to the heating cooking system having this configuration, overheating of the first input operation means 20 disposed at the front portion of the upper surface thereof can be prevented.
Further, before starting the rice cooking process using the rice cooking unit 1, the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 is confirmed by the infrared signal, and after detecting that there is a problem with the placement of the rice cooking unit 1, the rice cooking process is performed. Since the user is notified of a malfunction in advance, such as by stopping the operation, there is an advantage that the user can prevent misunderstandings or operational errors during use.

Embodiment 6.
FIG. 37 relates to Embodiment 6 of the present invention and is a flowchart showing the control operation of the induction heating cooker. Note that the same or equivalent parts as in Embodiment 1 are given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanation will be omitted. Further, the following description will be made on the assumption that the configuration of the second input operation means 12 of the lid body 1B is the same as that in FIG. 29 (Embodiment 4).

In the electric rice cooker 100 according to the sixth embodiment, the operation program of the induction heating cooker 10 is changed. Moreover, in particular, the operation program of the control device 50 after the rice cooking process is finished in the rice cooking unit 1 is changed.

The induction heating cooker 10 of the electric rice cooker 100 performs the same operations as the operation steps S1 to S30 shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 of the first embodiment.
The steps after step S30 are improved as shown in FIG. 37.

First, when the rice cooking process is completed (S30), the notification means 70 of the induction heating cooker 10 notifies that the rice cooking process will start (SU1).
On the other hand, in synchronization with this, the rice cooking unit 1 also uses the notification means 90 to notify by voice that the rice cooking process will begin.

Measurement of the elapsed time is started in order to grasp the unevenness time (SU2), and when a predetermined unevenness process time (for example, 5 minutes) has elapsed, the notification means 70 displays, for example, "The unevenness process has ended. A message such as "You can eat now" is announced by voice (SU3).

When the heat retention switch 75 is operated after the unevenness process is finished, it instructs to start the heat retention mode, so in the next step SU4, it is determined whether or not the heat retention switch 75 is pressed by the user. make a judgment.

When the keep warm switch 75 is pressed, the control device 50 of the rice cooking unit 1 requests the main control device 80 to provide data on the temperature measurement results from the outside temperature detection means 15, and starts keeping warm based on the provided data. Calculate the possible time (SU5). Note that a method may also be used in which the control device 50 does not request data provision, but instead calculates the possible heat retention time by the main control device 80 itself, and the control device 50 obtains the result. In the latter case, the control device 50 causes the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 to transmit a specific identification code or data indicating that the heat retention switch 75 has been pressed, and the main control device 80 receives the data, etc. Starts calculation of possible heat retention time.

If the heat retention switch 75 is not pressed within the predetermined time, the process advances to step SU5. For example, even if a user is clearly aware of rice cooking at the beginning of rice cooking, there is a possibility that the user may forget about rice cooking afterwards. If the user forgets to cook rice in this way, the user may not be near the electric rice cooker 100, and may not notice the end of the rice cooking process and may be left alone.

In step SU5, for a predetermined period of time (for example, 15 minutes), a check is made to see if the heat retention switch 75 has been pressed, for example, every minute, but after this grace period has passed, the process proceeds to step 10.

In step 10, the notification means 70 of the induction heating cooker 10 notifies that the warming process has been completed.
During steps SU4 to SU10, the lid heating means 9A, the inner pot side heating means 9B, and the induction heating coil 14 may be heated with the minimum heating amount (heating power) or may not be energized at all. In winter, when the temperature in the living space is low, the outside air temperature detection means 15 inputs the low temperature room temperature data to the main controller 80, so that the rice cooking unit 1 cools down during the above-mentioned predetermined time (for example, 15 minutes). There is a possibility that it will be stored away.

Therefore, assuming such a situation, the main controller 80 drives all or part of the lid heating means 9A, the inner pot side heating means 9B, and the induction heating coil 14, so that the total power is about 30W to 100W, for example. It is also programmed to temporarily perform thermal insulation operation using less power.

In step SU7, a heat-keeping operation is started for the calculated heat-keeping possible time TX (for example, 3 hours). Also, the notifying means 70 notifies that the warming process is to be started (SU7).
Unlike the first embodiment, the heat retention step in the sixth embodiment is performed by driving the induction heating coil 14. For this reason, the bottom of the inner pot 3, which is difficult to raise its temperature with only the lid heating means 9A and the inner pot side surface heating means 9B, can be maintained at a predetermined heat retention temperature (for example, around 70° C.).

Then, a check (SU8) to see if the heat retention time TX (e.g. 3 hours) has elapsed and a check (SU9) to see if the rice cooking unit 1 exists at the reference position are repeatedly performed (e.g. at intervals of a few seconds). in).

Therefore, a user different from the user who instructed the rice cooking operation does not notice that the rice cooking unit 1 is in the warming operation and moves the induction heating cooker 10 to use it for another cooking operation. In this case, the determination in step SU9 is "Yes". Then, the notification means 70 of the induction heating cooker 10 notifies that the warming process has been completed. Also, at approximately the same time, the notification means 90 on the rice cooking unit 1 side similarly notifies that the warming process has been completed (SU10).

Furthermore, the input function of the first input operation means 20 of the induction heating cooker 10 is restored. In other words, the prohibition against input to the main controller 80 is canceled (SU11).
Therefore, the user can immediately operate the first input operation means 20 of the induction heating cooker 10 to start desired heating cooking.

In the heat retention step, if the induction heating coil 14 is being driven, the inverter circuit 73 is stopped from being driven (SU12). Further, if the lid heating means 9A and the inner pot side heating means 9B are being heated by the power from the power supply means 6, the control device 50 of the rice cooking unit 1 stops heating them (SU12).

Furthermore, when the induction heating coil 14 is being driven and power is being supplied from the power transmission coil 17, the operation of the cooling fan 13 that was cooling them is also stopped (SU13).

Then, the main controller 80 itself shuts off the main power circuit. On the other hand, on the side of the control device 50 of the rice cooking unit 1 that has been moved, it is known by the reference position determination means 33 that the rice cooking unit 1 is not at the reference position, so the control device 50 stops power supply to the power transmission coil 17, and the second The function of the input operation means 12 is stopped.

Summary of Embodiment 6.
As is clear from the above description, the heating cooking system of the sixth embodiment is as follows:
An induction heating cooker 10 equipped with a top plate 22 on the upper surface; a rice cooking unit 1 that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10 and has a built-in inner pot 3; Equipped with
The induction heating cooker 10 includes a heating coil 14 that inductively heats the inner pot 3, and a first input operation located in front of the heating coil 14 to set the energization conditions for the heating coil 14. means 20;
The rice cooking unit 1 includes a second input operation means 12 for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit 1 covers the upper part of the first input operation means 20 in a state where the rice cooking unit 1 is placed on the induction heating cooker 10,
A gap S communicating with the outside is formed between the upper surface of the first input operation means 20 and the lower surface of the rice cooking unit 1,
An infrared signal is transmitted between the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10 at a portion rearward of the gap S and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit 1 and the top plate 22 of the induction heating cooker 10. forming a window 37 for passage;
The induction heating cooker 10 monitors the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 using the infrared signal while the rice cooking unit 1 is placed in a predetermined position and is performing the heat retention process, and also monitors the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 by the infrared signal and performs the first input operation. Continue to disable the input operation of means 20,
Further, when the induction heating cooker 10 cannot detect the presence of the rice cooking unit 1 at a predetermined position by the infrared signal, the induction heating cooker 10 terminates the warming process of the rice cooking unit 1 and inputs the input from the first input operation means 20. The configuration was to cancel the invalidation of the operation.

According to the heating cooking system having this configuration, overheating of the first input operation means 20 disposed at the front portion of the upper surface thereof can be prevented.
Further, during the heat keeping process by the rice cooking unit 1, the placement of the rice cooking unit 1 is confirmed by the infrared signal, and when it is detected that there is a problem with the placement of the rice cooking unit 1, the warming operation is stopped, and Since the invalidation of the input operation of the first input operation means 20 can be canceled, there is an advantage that misunderstandings and erroneous operations by the user can be prevented.

Embodiment 7.
38 to 43 relate to Embodiment 7 of the present invention, and FIG. 38 is a perspective view of an electric rice cooker according to Embodiment 7 of the present invention. FIG. 39 is a plan view 1 of the lid of the rice cooking unit. FIG. 40 is a plan view 2 of the lid of the rice cooking unit. FIG. 41 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control means of the rice cooking unit of FIG. 38. FIG. 42 is a flowchart showing the control operation when the rice cooking unit of FIG. 38 performs stewing cooking. FIG. 43 is an explanatory diagram of a control pattern in simmering cooking of the rice cooking unit of FIG. 38. Note that the same or equivalent parts as in Embodiment 1 are given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanation will be omitted.

In the electric rice cooker 100 according to the seventh embodiment, the cooking menu of the rice cooking unit 1 is particularly enriched. That is, the rice cooking unit 1 is capable of "stewing" cooking, "porridge" cooking, and "steaming" cooking. In order to realize this, the operation program of the control device 50 of the rice cooking unit 1 is changed.
Furthermore, the operation program of the main controller 80 of the induction heating cooker 10 has also been partially changed.

Furthermore, a steam discharger (sometimes called a steam recovery device) is used to release water vapor generated during the rice cooking process, etc. inside the inner pot 3, so that water can be poured into the inner pot 3. This improves the convenience of adjusting the amount of water before starting rice cooking.

Furthermore, the second input operation means 12 has been improved so that the visibility of the first display screen 11A disposed thereon and the confirmation of rice weight measurement instructions and results can be easily made.

The electric rice cooker 100 in this Embodiment 7 is the same as the Embodiment 1 in that it is composed of an induction heating cooker 10 and a rice cooking unit 1.

Before entering into a specific description of Embodiment 7, an outline of "stewed" cooking, "porridge" and "steamed cooking" will be explained.
(1) "Stew" cooking: An electric rice cooker that can cook simmered food by heating ingredients such as vegetables and meat in soup with water and seasonings is described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-296366, for example. This is proposed by Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2007-181521 and Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-329488. Furthermore, it has been proposed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-329488 to prepare special inner pots for cooking rice and simmering food, and to use the inner pots interchangeably depending on whether the rice is cooked or simmered.

(2) "Porridge": A configuration in which an electric rice cooker can prepare a "porridge" menu and make porridge has been proposed, for example, in JP-A-2007-135884 and JP-A-8-164065. As shown in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-135884, there are thick porridges made by heating for a relatively long time, and thin porridges made by a relatively short heating time. When making porridge, it is necessary to use a different heating pattern and firepower than when cooking rice.

"Steaming" cooking: Put a steaming table or net with many ventilation holes into the inner pot 3, put vegetables etc. on top of it, boil the water in the bottom of the inner pot, and use the steam generated. It is used to heat vegetables, etc. For this reason, unlike when cooking rice, there is no need to close the lid 1B to cook, but rather it is better to cook with the lid 1B open.

The rice cooking unit 1 of this Embodiment 7 has the following configuration based on the characteristics of each cooking as described above.
In FIG. 38, reference numeral 12 denotes a second input operation means provided on the lid 1B, and includes a second display screen 11B composed of a liquid crystal display screen or the like.
122 is a steam exhaust device having a circular planar shape. This steam discharger has a first passage (not shown) formed therein for discharging steam generated inside the inner pot 3 during rice cooking. That is, the internal space of the inner pot 3 and the external space of the rice cooking unit 1 are communicated with each other.

The steam exhaust device 122 has been proposed, for example, in JP-A-9-187371 and JP-A-2014-83203.
Next, FIG. 39 will be explained.
In FIG. 39, reference numeral 12 denotes a second input operation means provided on the lid body 1B, and includes a second display screen 11B composed of a liquid crystal display screen or the like.

The steam exhaust device 122 is located behind the second display screen 11B, and is removably installed in a circular concave portion 123 recessed in the shape of a mortar.
Reference numeral 124 denotes a circular lid, which is made of plastic material and shaped like a disk. This lid 124 closes the top opening of the steam exhaust device 122. This lid 124 can be easily opened by the user for cleaning or pouring water as will be described later. 125 is a hinge shaft that rotatably supports the rear portion of the lid 124. The hinge shaft 125 is a member that connects the lid 1B and the lid 124. With this configuration, the lid 124 is in a substantially vertical state with the hinge shaft 125 as a fulcrum in the most open state.

Reference numeral 126 designates a plurality of steam exhaust holes formed vertically through the lid 124, and in the seventh embodiment, a total of five steam exhaust holes are provided.
Reference numeral 127 denotes a water inlet that is exposed when the lid 124 is opened, and this water inlet passes vertically through the inside of the steam exhaust device 122. In other words, this steam discharger has a second passage (not shown) formed therein for discharging steam generated inside the inner pot 3 during rice cooking. Note that the first passage and the second passage may also be used, but usually the first passage is used to suppress the amount of steam generated during rice cooking inside the inner pot 3. A constrictor or control valve mechanism may be installed to maintain the pressure at the time of boiling in step 3, and a check valve may be installed to prevent cold air from entering from the outside when rice cooking is complete, so it is compatible with these intended functions. They may be formed separately as shown in FIG.

In FIG. 39, the surface (upper surface) of the second display screen 11B also serves as a touch-type input screen that allows input by capturing changes in capacitance when the user touches the screen with a finger or the like.
In FIG. 39, 120 is a touch type key, which may also be called an icon. The touch-type keys are displayed by the control device 50 in correspondence with the display on the display screen 11B so that the touch keys can be viewed by the user whenever necessary. Incidentally, since such touch-type input keys are well known, detailed explanation will be omitted.

120A is a "cooking key" that commands the control device 50 to cook rice, 120B is a "porridge key" that is commanded to make porridge, and 120C is a "stewing key" that is commanded to perform simmering/stewing cooking. ”, 120D is a “steam cooking key” that commands steam cooking. Reference numeral 121 denotes an operation start switch, which is composed of a touch type key. This operation start switch 121 disappears from the surface of the second display screen 11B after an operation such as rice cooking is started.

These keys 120A to 120D appear as a list on the second display screen 11B when the menu switch 65 is pressed when the rice cooking unit 1 is activated by the induction heating cooker 10. do. Further, after touching any one of these keys 120A to 120D, an operation start switch 121 appears on the second display screen 11B.

FIG. 40 is a plan view of the lid of the rice cooking unit, similar to FIG. 39. In FIG. 40, 120R is a touch type key for returning to the previous screen, and when this is touched, the display screen will be in the state shown in FIG. 39.

A touch key 128 is used to instruct the control device 50 to measure the weight of rice.
Once the key 121 for starting heating is pressed, this key 120R immediately disappears and no weight measurement instruction can be given.

Reference numeral 129 denotes a water amount display section, which displays an image of the amount of water that is insufficient relative to the optimum water amount based on the weight calculated by the weight measuring means 94. Therefore, triangular figures (indicators) 129A are displayed in a vertical line, but as water is added to the inner pot 3 and its weight increases, the number of blue glowing figures 129A increases. A state where all five figures 129A are glowing blue indicates the appropriate amount of water. Note that if too much water is added, the blue-lit figure 129A changes to a red figure 129A, and all of them blink at the same time to warn the user that there is an excessive amount of water.

In FIG. 41, 12T is a touch type input means constituting the second input operation means 12, and includes touch type keys 120A to 120D and 120R shown in FIGS. 39 and 40.
A microcomputer (not shown) constituting the control device 50 operates according to a control program for cooking rice and a control program for performing the stewing, porridge, and steaming operations. These control programs are stored in the storage means (ROM) of the microcomputer or the storage means 50R.

Next, a case where a command signal to start stewing cooking is received by the second input operation means 12 will be described with reference to FIG. 42.
FIG. 42 is a flowchart showing the control operation when the rice cooking unit 1 performs stewing cooking.

Step SW1 is a case where the stew key 120D is pressed and then the operation start switch 121 is pressed.
The control device 50 notifies the start of stewing cooking using the audio notification means 90V (SW2).

The control device 50 confirms that the lid 1B is closed using the lid open sensor 93, and if it is closed, outputs a measurement command signal to the weight measuring means 94 to start the rice cooking process immediately before starting the simmering process. Measure the weight of unit 1 (SW3).

The control device 50 receives the measurement result signal from the weight measurement means 94, and stores the weight value indicated therein in the storage means 50R.
Further, the measurement result is notified by the notification means 90. Specifically, the voice notification means announces, for example, "Current weight is 1500g", and also displays "Measurement result: 1500g" on the second display screen 11B (SW4).

Next, the control device 50 transmits basic information necessary for performing stewing cooking to the induction heating cooker 10 using an infrared signal from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35. For example, in order to perform the operation pattern shown in FIG. 43, an execution program for sections A to X is transmitted so that the simmering step and the low-temperature heating step can be executed sequentially.

Note that control programs for various types of cooking such as stewing and rice cooking are not sent from the rice cooking unit 1 to the induction heating cooker 10 each time, but are prepared in advance in the induction heating cooker 10 (stored in the storage means 80R). ), and the rice cooking unit 1 may transmit the progress of each process, the temperature data of the inner pot 3, etc.

In the induction heating cooker 10, upon receiving a command signal to start stewing cooking from the rice cooking unit 1, the heating coil 14 is driven by the inverter circuit 73, and the cooling fan 13 also starts operating.

In the next step SW5, the inner pot of the rice cooking unit 1 is heated by induction by the heating coil 14, and the temperature rises, so it is determined whether the inner pot has reached the boiling temperature.
As shown in FIG. 43, it is necessary to maintain the boiling temperature level TY for a predetermined period of time. The length of this time varies depending on the ingredients to be cooked, but is, for example, 30 minutes or more.
This time TY can be specified using the second input operation means 12 before the start of stewing cooking. Alternatively, when the material to be simmered is selected, the time is set by the control device 50.

The timing at which a measurement command signal is issued to the weight measuring means 94 and the weight of the rice cooking unit 1 is measured (hereinafter referred to as "measurement timing") is determined in advance by the control device 50. Also, by pressing the key 128, a measurement command can be issued each time.
As described above, the stage P1 when the operation start switch 121 is pressed is one (first) of the measurement timings.
Further, the stage at which the key 128 is arbitrarily pressed is also one of the measurement times.

In the following description, a situation will be described in which the weight is automatically measured by the control device 50 even if the key 128 is not pressed arbitrarily.
There are a total of four automatic measurement times, as shown by symbols P1 to P4 in FIG.
In step SW6, measurement of the elapsed time from the time when the boiling temperature level is confirmed is started. This time is necessary when determining whether the "predetermined time TY" described later has been maintained. The length of this time varies depending on the ingredients to be cooked, but is, for example, 30 minutes or more.

When it is determined in step SW7 that it is time for measurement, the process proceeds to step SW8, and the control device 50 instructs the weight measurement means 94 to perform a measurement operation. Then, it receives the measurement result signal from the weight measuring means 94, compares the weight value indicated therewith with the previous weight value stored in the storage means 50R, and determines whether the weight has decreased (SW9). .

Here, the "reduction in weight" is based on a predetermined weight value (for example, 100 g), and if the weight has not decreased to this extent, step SW9 becomes "No", and in the next step SW14, boiling It is determined whether the process (section B in FIG. 41) has been completed.

If it is determined that the step weight has decreased (SW9), then the weight reduction rate is calculated (SW10).
For the initial weight (for example, 1500 g as described above), a percentage (%) is calculated to see the degree of influence of reduction. For example, if the weight is reduced by 100g, it is equivalent to 6.6% of 1500g, so it is rounded up to 7%.

If the determination in step SW10 is "No", the process advances to step SW14. If the determination is "Yes", the weight value and the rate of change (rate of decrease) at that time are stored in the storage means 50R (SW12).

In the next step SW13, the second display screen 11B displays a message such as "Measurement result: 1300g. Weight reduced by 200g". Similar information is also notified by voice by the voice notification means 90V.

Next, the control device 50 transmits a command signal requesting the induction cooking device 10 to urgently stop the stewing cooking using an infrared signal from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 (SW13). As a result, the boiling cooking by the rice cooking unit 1 is stopped.

In step SW14, it is determined whether the boiling process (section B in FIG. 41) has been completed, and if it has been completed, the process moves to the next low-temperature heating process.

Next, FIG. 43 will be explained. FIG. 43 is an explanatory diagram of a control pattern in stewing cooking of the rice cooking unit 1. The vertical axis shows the temperature of the inner pot 3, and the horizontal axis shows the elapsed time from the start of stewing cooking. The temperature of the inner pot 3 is measured by the inner pot temperature detection means 5.

As can be seen from FIG. 43, in section A, the heating coil 14 is heated at the maximum heating power, and the temperature of the inner pot 3 rises at once to 100°C.
When the inner pot temperature detection means 5 detects that the temperature of the inner pot 3 has reached 100° C., this temperature data is transmitted to the induction heating cooker 10 as an infrared signal from the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35.

The induction heating cooker 10 is controlled to lower the heating power of the inverter circuit 73 and maintain that state for a predetermined time (TY). Note that, in reality, the temperature does not always have to be 100°C, but it is sufficient if the temperature is maintained at 98°C or higher.

When it is determined in step SW14 in FIG. 42 that the boiling step (section B in FIG. 43) has been completed, the process proceeds to step SW15 of the low-temperature heating step in FIG.
In section C, the inverter circuit 73 is stopped in the induction heating cooker 10, and no induction heating is performed at all. Then, the rice cooker waits until the inner pot temperature detection means 5 of the rice cooking unit 1 detects that the inner pot 3 naturally cools down to 85°C.

When the inner pot temperature detection means 5 detects that the inner pot 3 has naturally cooled down to 85° C., the induction heating cooker 10 starts the inverter circuit 73 in response to an infrared signal indicating the temperature detection data. The inner pot 3 is heated. The temperature is then maintained at around 80°C to 85°C.

As shown in Fig. 43, intermittent heating is repeated several times or more, such as induction heating in section D, natural heat dissipation in section E, and induction heating again in section N. This allows the liquid to penetrate and make it delicious. Note that instead of repeating energization and de-energization as in sections D and E, there is also a method of lowering the energization rate to reduce the amount of heating per unit time, but in this seventh embodiment, heating is By doing this intermittently, it is expected that convection will be generated in the cooking liquid inside the inner pot 3.

The length of the low-temperature heating process is not constant and varies depending on the type and amount of boiled food. It can take several hours or more to slowly boil the meat and vegetables to allow the broth to penetrate inside.
Finally, the induction heating by the heating coil 14 is stopped and the device is waited until it cools down naturally.
In FIG. 43, the time when the temperature finally drops to about 70° C. is considered to be the completion of cooking the boiled food, and at this point, the notification means 90 of the rice cooking unit 1 and the notification means 90 of the induction heating cooker 10 indicate that the cooking is finished. An announcement of the end will be made.

P1 to P4 shown in FIG. 43 are timings (measurement timings) at which the rice cooking unit 1 issues a measurement command signal to the weight measuring means 94 to measure the weight of the rice cooking unit 1, as described above. It is set once each in the section B, the section E in which the heating by the heating coil 14 is temporarily stopped (suspended), and the section X in which the heat is naturally dissipated.

Among these, if a large decrease in weight is detected at measurement time P2 in section B of the simmering process as in step SW11, the possible cause is intense boiling and excessive evaporation of water. It is assumed that the cooking liquid has overflowed from the inner pot 3 due to intense boiling.

In addition, in this stew cooking, when entering section C, for example, at the stage of step SW14 in FIG. Even if the opening of the inner pot 3 is detected, it is not treated as an error in the sections C to X, so it is assumed that the amount of water evaporated from the inner pot 3 will increase.

In such stewing cooking, in the seventh embodiment, the weight measuring means 94 grasps at a predetermined measurement time that the amount of broth or seasoning liquid has decreased, and if the amount has decreased excessively, the heating operation is stopped midway. Can be stopped automatically. For this reason, the user can cook with peace of mind even if he or she is not constantly watching over the stew cooking, which requires a relatively long time.

Moreover, in this Embodiment 7, as the timing (measurement timing) at which the weight measuring means 94 automatically measures the weight of the rice cooking unit 1, a period during which heating by the heating coil 14 is stopped (pause) is selected. Therefore, during the heating stop period, there is no influence of convection or slight vibrations due to boiling of the food to be cooked inside the inner pot 3, and measurement can be performed in a quiet state, so that accurate weight measurement can be expected.

In addition, in this embodiment 7, water can be poured into the inner pot 3 by using a steam discharger, so for example, as a rough guide, after pouring water into the inner pot 3, the lid body 1B is closed. In this state, the lid 124 can be opened and water can be refilled from above the water inlet 127 with a cup or the like. Moreover, if the user presses the weighing instruction key 128 in this state (without opening or closing the lid 1B), the weight measuring means 94 measures the weight at that point. Therefore, if you enter the amount of rice using the second input operation means 12 beforehand, the total weight including the amount of water that matches the amount of rice, and the total weight of the inner pot 3 as a result of pouring water. The difference can be recognized from the graphic 129A displayed on the water amount display section 129.
In addition to or instead of the graphic 129A, for example, a numerical value indicating the insufficient amount of water may be displayed.

As described above, the seventh embodiment has a configuration that improves the convenience of adjusting the amount of water before starting rice cooking.

Furthermore, although the effect of detecting weight changes by the rice cooking unit 1 has been explained only in the case of the simmering process, "porridge" which requires a process of heating for a relatively long time with the lid 1B open, and also in the inner pot 3. A similar effect can be expected when applied to "steaming" cooking, which requires continuous steam generation by heating water.

Other embodiments and modifications.
In the first and second embodiments, the reference position determining means 33 is the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 34 on the induction heating cooker 10 side, and the infrared signal transmitting/receiving section 35 on the rice cooking unit 1 side. Then, an infrared signal is first transmitted from the induction heating cooker 10 side, and the response of the infrared signal from the rice cooking unit 1 side is checked to determine whether the mounting position of the rice cooking unit 1 is at the reference position. However, it is not necessary to adopt a form in which information is transmitted separately in both directions using infrared signals. For example, a method may be adopted in which an infrared signal is first transmitted from the induction heating cooker 10 side, and the state of the reflected light is determined on the induction heating cooker 10 side.

In the first to seventh embodiments, the storage means 50R of the control device 50 on the side of the rice cooking unit 1 stores a basic rice cooking control operation program (computer software) that can execute the rice cooking operation. Although rice has been cooked, the rice cooking unit does not necessarily have to prepare an operation program that can autonomously execute the rice cooking operation. In that case, a rice cooking control operation program (computer software) is stored in the main controller 80 on the induction heating cooker 10 side, and this operation program is used to control the induction heating coil 14 to perform rice cooking (preheating). , rice cooking, uneven cooking) and to judge the progress of the rice cooking process, control data such as the temperature of the inner pot 3 may be obtained from the rice cooking unit 1 side using an infrared signal at any time.

Further, as shown in Embodiments 1 and 2, the rice cooking unit is The installation position of rice cooking unit 1 and induction heating cooker 10 may be confirmed, and only information transmission between rice cooking unit 1 and induction heating cooker 10 may be performed using infrared signals. Note that the induction heating cooker 10 uses high-frequency power and generates an alternating magnetic field, so there is a concern that wireless communication may be affected by electrical noise, so communication using infrared signals is advantageous in this respect as well.

Furthermore, in Embodiments 1 to 7, the window 37 is formed in the portion where the rice cooking unit 1 and the induction heating cooker 10 overlap and are closest to each other, and the infrared signal is transmitted. It is possible to realize communication in a close-contact or close environment that is not affected by disturbance light such as visible light or sunlight, and it is expected that signal transmission will be ensured. Note that the first input operation means 20 may be provided with an infrared transmission hole, and the infrared signal may be transmitted to the rice cooking unit 1 through the transmission hole. In this case, it is preferable to arrange the transparent hole so as to avoid the button (key) part or the touch switch part that the user presses.

Furthermore, in Embodiments 1 to 7, the induction heating cooker 10 has a rear vertical portion 16, so when inductively heating cooking utensils such as ordinary pots and frying pans, the rear vertical portion 16 is on the rear side. It was designed to prevent cooking utensils from falling backwards. However, rear vertical section 16 is not essential to practicing the present invention. That is, the induction heating cooker 10 may have an outer shape whose entire upper surface is flat.

The electric rice cooker and heating cooking system according to the present invention can be widely used not only in kitchens of ordinary homes but also in cooking areas of public facilities, stores, and the like.

1 Rice cooking unit 1A Main body 1B Lid 1F Front wall 1P Projection 2 Legs 2S Inclined surface 3 Inner pot 4 Weight sensor 4S Strain sensor 5 Inner pot temperature detection means 5A Thermistor 5B Infrared temperature sensor 6 Power supply means 7 Power receiving coil 8 Lid opening/closing Button 9A Lid heating means 9B Inner pot side heating means 10 Induction cooking device 10A Main body case 10F Front wall 11 Display means 11A First display screen 11B Second display screen 12 Second input operation means 12P Press-type input means 12T Touch type input means 12V switch 13 Cooling fan 14 Induction heating coil 15 Outside temperature detection means 16 Rear vertical section 17 Power transmission coil 18 Operation section 18A Operation key 19 Magnetic shield plate 20 First input operation means 21 Projection (projection)
22 Top plate 22A Inclined portion 22L Stepped portion 22T Peripheral portion 23 Inner lid 24 Seal packing 25 Inner trunk 26 Wireless communication module (wireless communication section)
27 Support plate 28 Window 29 Window 30 Permanent magnet 31 Placement detection sensor (reed switch)
32 Support board 33 Reference position determination means 34 Infrared signal transmitter/receiver 35 Infrared signal transmitter/receiver 36A First signal processor 36B Second signal processor 37 Window 38 Window 39 Bottom plate 40 Support board 41 Electronic switch 41A Operation unit 42 Circuit board 43 Protective sheet 44 Through hole 45 Support frame 46 Through hole 50 Control device 50R Memory means 50T Time measuring means 60 Rice type display section 61 Hardness display section 62 Menu display section 63 Rice type switch 64 Hardness switch 65 Menu switch 66 Off/Keep warm Switch 67 Rice cooking switch 68 Reservation switch 69 Time switch 70 Notification means 70D Display means 70V Audio notification means 71 Commercial power supply 72 Power supply section 73 Inverter circuit 74 Top plate temperature detection means 75 Heat retention switch 76 Voice navigation switch 77 Power saving switch 78 Health information Display switch 80 Main control device 80R Storage means 80T Timing means 81 Power priority information 82 Boiling process display information 90V Audio notification means 91 Short-range wireless communication section 93 Lid open sensor 94 Weight measurement means 95 Power supply section (secondary battery)
96 Partition plate 96A Through hole 97 Room 98 Vent 99 Wind direction plate 100 Electric rice cooker 101 Power plug 102 Power cord 103 IC tag 104 Reader (IC tag information reading section)
105 Support leg portion 106 Projection portion (fitting portion)
107 Ventilation hole 108 Lower space 110 Energy meter 111 Power line 112 Router 113 External institution 114 Communication network 115 Information and communication terminal equipment 120 Touch type key 121 Operation start switch 122 Steam exhaust device 123 Recess 124 Lid 125 Hinge shaft 126 Steam exhaust hole 127 Water inlet 128 Measurement instruction key 129 Water amount display section 129A Indicator (shape)
130 Cooling fan 194 Weight measuring means 200 Integrated management device (power command device)
AD Power tap BK Breaker H Opposing spacing HA Living space HZ Maximum outer circumference S Gap SS Gap G1 Opposing spacing.

Claims (6)

An induction heating cooker equipped with a top plate on the upper surface, and a rice cooking unit that is used by being placed close to or in contact with the top plate of the induction heating cooker and has a built-in inner pot,
The induction heating cooker includes a heating coil that inductively heats the inner pot, and a first input operation means located in front of the heating coil for setting energization conditions for the heating coil,
The rice cooking unit includes a second input operation means for setting rice cooking conditions,
The rice cooking unit covers an upper part of the first input operation means when the rice cooking unit is placed on the induction heating cooker,
A gap communicating with the outside is formed between the top surface of the first input operation means and the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit,
Information for rice cooking control is transmitted between the rice cooking unit and the induction heating cooker at a portion rearward of the gap and facing the bottom surface of the rice cooking unit and the top plate of the induction heating cooker. forming a window for passing infrared signals,
comprising a reference position determining means for determining whether the rice cooking unit is placed at a predetermined position of the induction heating cooker;
The induction heating cooker or the rice cooking unit is configured such that the rice cooking unit is positioned at a predetermined reference position by the reference position determining means during the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit or during the reserved rice cooking period. When it is determined that there is no rice cooking process, a process is performed to determine whether to continue or stop the rice cooking operation depending on the progress of the rice cooking process, and a notification operation is performed in advance at the stage of continuing or canceling the rice cooking operation. A heating cooking system featuring: When the lid of the rice cooking unit is opened before the rice cooking process by the rice cooking unit, the induction heating cooker or the rice cooking unit checks whether the amount of water is appropriate for the weight of rice. The heating cooking system according to claim 1, wherein the determination is made based on the weight or the weight of the induction heating cooker including the weight of the rice cooking unit. The induction heating cooker or the rice cooking unit notifies you if the amount of water is not the appropriate amount as a result of determining whether the amount of water is the appropriate amount;
Claim 2, wherein the induction heating cooker or the rice cooking unit notifies that the appropriate amount of water has been determined if the amount of water is the appropriate amount as a result of determining whether the amount of water is the appropriate amount. The cooking system described in . The rice cooking unit further includes a display screen for displaying whether the amount of water to be poured into the inner pot containing rice and water is appropriate, and audio notification means,
The induction heating cooker or the rice cooking unit notifies at least one of the display screen or the audio notification means if the amount of water is not the appropriate amount as a result of determining whether the amount of water is the appropriate amount;
As a result of determining whether or not the induction heating cooker or the rice cooking unit has the appropriate amount of water, if the amount of water is the appropriate amount, the appropriate amount of water is determined at the stage where the brand or the amount of water has been adjusted. 4. The heating cooking system according to claim 2, wherein the measurement of the temperature is notified by the audio notification means and the display screen. The induction heating cooker may check the placement of the rice cooking unit using the infrared signal before starting the rice cooking process using the rice cooking unit, and thereafter disable the input operation of the first input operation means. The heating cooking system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized by: The induction heating cooker is characterized in that when it is detected by the infrared signal that the rice cooking unit has completed a predetermined rice cooking process, the input operation of the first input operation means is released from an invalid state. Item 5. The cooking system according to item 5.

Images