JPH0119752B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a thawing cooking method using a high-frequency heating device, and particularly to one configured to automatically perform thawing and cooking sequentially.

Configuration of conventional examples and their problems Thawing of frozen foods by microwave heating is completed in an extremely short time, resulting in good quality after thawing, and has been put into practical use more widely than ever before. Here, we will refer to the so-called thawing cooking method, which involves heating frozen cooked foods and frozen vegetables such as Mitsu Vegetables all at once after thawing them.
Conventionally, such defrosting cooking methods generally involve heating at a constant power from defrosting to cooking. Then, using gas sensors, infrared sensors, etc., it detects when the food is heated and automatically finishes cooking. This conventional thawing cooking method requires less heating time, but on the other hand, cold spots tend to appear in the center of the food, and uniformity is lost in areas that start to melt early and areas that start to melt slowly, resulting in temperature fluctuations. Even if there is no difference in the quality, the problem is that the finish is sluggish. This is especially noticeable when there is a large amount of food. Therefore, when thawing and cooking large quantities of curry or stew,
If you don't move the food to the refrigerator or indoors to thaw it before cooking, you won't be able to defrost it properly.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, and aims to provide a heating pattern that can reduce the temperature difference of food during thawing and cooking, improve homogeneity, and enable prompt cooking.

Structure of the Invention In order to achieve the above object, the high frequency heating device of the present invention includes a weight sensor that detects the weight of the frozen object to be heated, and a finish sensor that detects the completion of heating of the object that has been frozen. The system automatically selects the optimal heating pattern according to the weight of the heated object and automatically performs defrosting and cooking, allowing quick and uniform defrosting and minimizing temperature differences.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a high-frequency heating device according to the present invention. A door body 2 is pivotally supported on the front surface of the main body 1 so as to be freely openable and closable, and an operation panel 3 is arranged. An auto key is provided on the operation panel 3, and a thawing/cooking key 4 according to the present invention is provided therein.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of the configuration of the present invention. Commands input from the thawing/cooking key 4 on the operation panel 3 are decoded by the control section 5. Then, the control unit 5 starts defrosting and cooking the frozen food, which is the object to be heated 7 placed in the heating chamber 6 . The heating is controlled by being supplied with power via a driver 8 to a magnetron serving as high frequency generating means 9.

Two heating patterns are selected depending on the weight. If the weight is greater than a predetermined value, heating is performed in two modes: thawing at low power and then cooking at high power. This allows for highly homogeneous defrosting cooking with small temperature differences.
On the other hand, if the weight is smaller than the predetermined value, heating is performed in one mode, and heating is performed suddenly at high output at once. In other words, it is heated using the traditional thawing method. This is because small amounts of frozen food, especially frozen delicacies and frozen vegetables, tend to overheat when thawed in two modes, and the long heating time may cause oil to ooze out of the food or a large amount of moisture to come out. This is due to the fact that you end up feeling stiff and stiff. These small quantities of cold food are better served by heating them in the traditional way, with a temperature difference between the surface and the center all at once. This is because when cooked until the surface is cooked,
The temperature in the center is still a little low, but since the shape is small, this temperature difference is easily eliminated.

Now, the weight of the food 7 is detected by the weight sensor 10. Reference numeral 11 denotes a mounting plate, which is rotationally driven by a motor 12 to alleviate uneven heating. Reference numeral 13 denotes a finishing sensor, and in this embodiment, a gas sensor that reacts to steam or gas generated from the object to be heated is used. The gas sensor 13 is disposed within the exhaust guide 14 and detects steam or gas exhausted by the ventilation fan 15.

Note that the weight sensor 10 can employ a capacitance method or a strain gauge method to detect the displacement amount of the mounting plate 11, or a vibration method to measure the natural frequency. Further, as the gas sensor 13, a relative humidity sensor "Hyumi Ceram" manufactured by Matsushita, an absolute humidity sensor "Neo Huyumi Ceram", a gas sensor manufactured by Figaro, etc. can be used. 16 is a detection circuit for these sensors.

Furthermore, a non-contact temperature sensor can also be used as the finishing sensor. FIG. 3 shows such an embodiment, in which a non-contact temperature sensor 17 is utilized as a finishing sensor. Specifically, a pyroelectric infrared sensor or a SAW sensor that applies surface acoustic waves can be used.

FIG. 4 shows a heating pattern for thawing cooking showing one embodiment of the present invention using a gas sensor, and shows a large quantity case. Figure a shows the state of microwave output, and figure b
The figure shows the amount of steam generated from food. Heating consists of a defrosting mode "DEF" and a cooking mode "COOK", and the defrosting mode is further divided into three small modes. First, at T ₁ , the microwave is heated at full power, and K ₁ W (K ₁ : constant, W: food weight)
It ends when . In this mode, the temperature of the frozen food is raised all at once, and before the surface reaches a boil, it shifts to the next _T2 mode, or rest mode. T ₂ time is calculated by K ₂ W (K ₂ : constant), and carryover heating is performed during this time to eliminate temperature unevenness.

The following T ₃ mode is a mode in which the power is reduced to prevent the surface from boiling while thawing the center of the food, and the time is calculated by T ₃ = K ₃ W (K ₃ : constant). In other words, the time is controlled based on the weight detected by the weight sensor.

Once defrosting is completed through these steps, the next step is to move to the cooking mode "COOK". Here, the time t ₄ until the amount of steam generated from the food reaches a predetermined value △h is counted, and based on this, T ₄ = t ₄ + K ₄ t ₄
(K ₄ : constant) is calculated. K ₄ may be zero.

Next, a heating pattern for a small amount will be explained with reference to FIG. At this time, there is only one heating mode, and the "DEF-COOK" mode defrosts and cooks all at once. Then, the time t until a predetermined amount of steam Δh is detected is counted, and based on this, T
The heating time is determined by =t+Kt (K: constant).

As described above, the thawing cooking of the present invention uses a weight sensor and a finished sensor to automatically cook frozen food in an optimal pattern depending on the amount of frozen food.

Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

(1) It is possible to defrost and cook large quantities of curry, stew, chunks of meat, etc. that are prone to localized boiling or cold spots in the center with a small temperature difference and with high uniformity without becoming mushy.

(2) Small amounts of shiiyu mai or frozen vegetables, which tend to become overcooked due to oil ooze and water content release,
You can quickly defrost and cook food in a short time and finish it at the appropriate temperature.

(3) By focusing on the weight of various frozen foods, you can automatically thaw and cook various frozen foods using one thawing cooking key.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the main body of a high-frequency heating device showing one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of the same configuration, FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing another embodiment, and FIG. The figure shows an example of a heating pattern for a large amount, and FIG. 5 shows an example of a heating pattern for a small amount. 4... Thawing cooking key, 5... Control unit, 6... Heating chamber, 7... Item to be heated, 9... High frequency generation means,
10... Weight sensor, 13... Finish sensor (gas sensor), 17... Finish sensor (non-contact temperature sensor).

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A heating chamber that stores a frozen object to be heated, a high-frequency generating means coupled to this heating chamber, a control unit that controls power supply to this high-frequency generating means, and a weight sensor that detects the weight of the object to be heated. and a finish sensor that detects the completion of heating of the object to be heated, and a key that commands thawing cooking, and the control section detects the weight of the object to be heated using the weight sensor in response to input from the key, If the weight of the object to be heated is smaller than a predetermined value, power is continuously supplied to the high frequency generation means, and if the weight of the object to be heated is greater than a predetermined value, power is intermittently supplied to the high frequency generation means to defrost the object, and then the power supply is switched to continuous power supply. The high-frequency heating device is configured as follows, and in either case, the finish sensor detects the completion of heating.