JPH01254120A - Automatic rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent water from flowing backward and overflowing even when power supply is interrupted during pump operation by parallelly providing a pan which receives rice and a water tank at an almost same height and feeding the water in the water tank from the upper surface aperture part of the pan through a water feeding tube into the pan with the pump. CONSTITUTION:A bottomed cylindrical pan 41 containing the rice is heated by a heating body 41 and the upper surface aperture part of the pan 40 is covered with a cover body 42. By pump 50, the water in a water tank 48 is fed from the upper surface aperture part of the pan 40 through a water feeding tube 51 into the pan 40. Further, by a rice moving device 63, the rice is moved from a rice bin part 66, which receives the rice, into the pan 40. The water tank 48 is parallelly provided at the almost same height as the pan 40 and after the water is fed into the pan 40, the rice is moved. As a result, even in case that the service interruption is generated when the rice and water are sent into the pan, the rice and water are prevented from flowing backward and the output of the pump can be made small. Further, the water, in which the rice is washed, is prevented from being stuck to the water feeding tube and further more, sound which is generated when the rice is moved into the pan, can be lowered.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to an automatic rice cooker that automatically performs everything from washing rice to cooking rice.

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional automatic rice cooker of this type is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 49-13.
As shown in Japanese Patent No. 2273, it had a structure as shown in FIG.

That is, in Figure 6 of Jin, 1 is the main body of the automatic rice cooker, 2 is the rice stock case, 3 is the rice measuring device, and 4 is the electromagnet that operates the rice measuring device 3, and the measurement is determined by the number of operations. 6 is a water reservoir provided below the rice measuring device 3;
This water reservoir 6 communicates with the adjacent water tank 6 through a number of holes 7 that do not allow rice grains to pass through. 8 is a water pipe that sends water to the water tank 6, 9 is a valve, 1o is a float, and this float 1o
is to maintain the water level in the water tank e constant. 11 is a water level, 12 is a screw for washing rice and feeding the washed rice, 13 is a motor that drives the rice cooker 1-, 14 is a transport pipe, and 16 is an outlet of the transport pipe 14.
6 is disposed on a lid 18 that seals the pot 17 housed in the main body 1, and is exposed inside the lid 18. 16
is a backflow prevention lid that seals the outlet 16 of the transport pipe 14;
This backflow prevention lid 16 allows the transportation pipe 14 to be exposed inside the pot 17 which is sealed by the lid body 18, so that even if rice is cooked in the pot 17 in that state, steam and pressure from the rice will be transported. This is to prevent backflow to the vibrator 14 side. Reference numeral 19 denotes a hole bored in the peripheral wall of the pot 17, and the hole 19 is small enough to prevent rice grains from flowing out.

20 is a backing attached to the periphery of the lid 18; 21
is a sealing body that seals the hole 19 made in the peripheral wall of the pot 17;
When cooking rice in the pot 17, this closed body 21 is connected to the hole 19.
By sealing, rice can be cooked without water flowing out from the holes 19 even in the pot 17 where the holes 19 are present. 22 is a spring that presses the sealing body 21 against the pot 17;
3 is an electromagnet that separates the sealing body 21 from the pot 17, 24 is a tubular drainage channel, and a backing 2 is attached to the opening of this drainage channel 24.
6 is attached, and this backing 26 is attached to hole 1 of hook 17.
By coming into close contact with the outer wall around the pot 9, excess water contained in the pot 17 overflows and flows out.

Reference numeral 26 denotes a drainage and water level adjustment pipe, which is attached to the drainage channel 24 so that it can move up and down without leaking water. Reference numeral 27 denotes a water hole drilled in the drain/water adjustment pipe 26, and by aligning the lower end of the water hole 27 with the height of the water contained in the pot 17, the amount of water for cooking rice can be adjusted. 2
Reference numeral 9 indicates a rack installed in the drainage/water level adjustment pipe 26, and 3o indicates a binion that engages with the rack 29. This binion 30 is linked with the activation switch of the electromagnet 4 of the rice measuring device 3 to determine the water level at the same time as rice measurement. It is something to do.

32 is a drain pipe, 33 is a malfunction prevention switch for preventing water flow from flowing into the pot installation area during dry cooking and when the pot 17 is not present, and 34 is a heat insulating board, which connects the pot 17 to the pot 17 on the heat insulating board 34. A heater 36 is installed at the portion where the bottom of the heater 36 comes into contact. 36 is the lid of the rice stock case 2.

Next, the operation of the automatic rice cooker configured as above will be explained. First, measure an arbitrary amount of rice by activating the electromagnet 4, and raise and lower the drain/water adjustment pipe 26 so that the lower end of the water passage hole 27 matches the height of the water contained in the pot 17. Then, the rice weighed by the rice measuring device 3 falls into the water reservoir 5 which stores water at a constant level. At the same time, or after a while, the motor 13 is driven to rotate the screw/knee 12. As the screw 12 rotates, the rice that has fallen into the water reservoir 6 is washed and the rice is washed away from the screw.
With the rotation of 12, the water rises up the transport pipe 14, and the water moves up the transport pipe 14 of the
Water flows into the pot 17 from the outlet 16. The rice grains sent together with this water also ascend the transport pipe 14 and are sent into the pot 17 at the same time. In this case, according to the experimental results, if the flow rate of the water reservoir 6 is 6 units per second,
The rice rises vertically through the transport pipe 14. Of the water that has flowed into the pot 17 together with the rice, excess water is drained from the hole 19 through the drainage channel 249 and the water passage hole 27. Drainage and water adjustment pipe 26. When the water is drained in the order of the drain pipe 32 and all the rice is sent to the pot 17, if the motor 130 rotations are stopped using a timer or the like built into the main body 1, the water will stop flowing into the transport pipe 14. ;The water in the pot 17 is at the lower end 2B of the water passage hole 27.
Anything above the position will be discharged through the hole 19. At this point, the attractive force of the electromagnet 23 is released,
The sealing body 21 completely seals the hole 19 of the stationary member 7 by the force of the spring 22. After that, the rice was soaked in water for about 10 minutes using a timer built into the main body 1, and then the rice was cooked using the heater 36.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention In the conventional automatic rice cooker described above, the rice and water are raised at the same time by the screw 12. In particular, the water reservoir 6 is located at the bottom of the main body 1, and the pot 17 is located at the bottom of the main body. Because it is located on the upper side of the water reservoir 6, if there is a power outage etc. while the screw 12 is operating, water and rice will flow backwards and overflow from the bottom of the water reservoir 6, causing the main body 1
There was a problem with the inside getting dirty.

Since it is necessary to increase the flow rate of the water reservoir 6 by the screw 12 rotated by the motor 13 to 63 per second or more, not only is the output of the motor 13 required to be quite large, but also because this flow rate is extremely large, There was a problem in that the rice started absorbing water and broke into small pieces at the cracks.

Furthermore, since the rice and water are transported through the transport pipe 14, it is inevitable that the water from the rice will adhere to the transport pipe 14. For example, when cleaning, etc., the route is long, which is extremely inconvenient. Moreover, when the rice falls into the pot 17, a sound is generated, which is extremely inconvenient when used at night.

The present invention was made to solve the above problems,
Even if a power outage occurs while feeding rice and water into the pot,
They will not flow backwards, the pump output can be reduced, the water from washing will not stick to the water supply pipes, and the noise made when transferring the rice into the pot can be reduced. The purpose is to provide automatic rice cookers.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a bottomed cylindrical pot for storing rice, a heating element for heating the pot, and a lid body for covering an upper opening of the pot. , a water tank, a pump for supplying water from the water tank into the pot from an opening on the top of the pot via a water supply pipe, a rice bin part for storing rice, and a rice bin part for storing rice into the pot from the rice bin part. The water tank is arranged in parallel with the pot at approximately the same height, and the rice is transferred after water is supplied into the pot.

Function According to the above structure, a cylindrical pot with a bottom for storing rice and a water tank are arranged side by side at almost the same height, and a pump supplies water from the water tank to the pot via a water supply pipe. Since water is supplied from the top opening, even if a power outage occurs while the pump is operating, water will not flow back and overflow into the container, and the pump output will be approximately equal to the water tank and pot. By placing them side by side at the same height, it can be made extremely small and saves energy.Also, since the rice is transferred after water is supplied into the pot, the rice does not get absorbed into the pot. When the rice is poured, the rice is placed in the water, which reduces the sound of rice being added and prevents the rice from spilling.Moreover, the water supply pipe only allows water to pass through it. This also eliminates the problem of rice washing water etc. adhering to the rice cooker as in the past.

Embodiment Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the accompanying drawings.

In Figure 1, 4o is a cylindrical pot with a bottom that stores rice.
This pot 4o is placed on a heating element 41 and heated.

42 is a lid body that covers the upper opening of the pot 4o, and this lid body 42
is rotatably supported on one end, and is detachable from the other end. 43 is the inside of the lid 42, that is, the pot 4o
A heat sink provided on the side, this heat sink 43 has a lid heater (
(not shown) is fixed, and this heat sink plate 43 is made of aluminum to prevent dew condensation. The backing is a pot backing that is held between the lid body 42 and the heat sink 43 and fixed with screws 45. This pot backing 44 is made of elastic resin such as silicone rubber, and the pot 4o This prevents steam from leaking from the gap between the heat sink and the heat sink 43. 46 is an outer lid that covers the outer shell of the lid 42. d47 is a rice cooking frame that houses the above-mentioned rice cooking section. On the top surface of this rice cooking frame 47, there is a rotatable shaft on one end of the lid 42. When supported, the hinge part 47a and the outer cover 46
The lever 46 on the other end and the hook on which the lever 46 & on the detachable side are attached and detached is the part 47.
b is provided. 48 is a water tank that stores water.
This water tank 48 is arranged parallel to the pot 4 degrees at approximately the same height, and is detachably housed in a water tank receiving portion 470 at the rear of the rice cooking frame 47.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 49 is a pump joint provided below the water tank 48, and is connected to the water inlet side of the pump 6o.

A water supply pipe 61 has one end connected to the drain side 50a of the pump 6o and the other end facing the center of the heat sink 43. The water supply pipe 61 is usually made of aluminum material, but the lid 42 The hinge portion 47a side may be made of flexible resin such as silicone rubber. Reference numeral 62 denotes a water outlet through which water is poured toward the pot 4° from near the center of the lid of the water supply pipe 61. This water outlet 62 is provided with a gasket 63 to prevent steam generated during rice cooking from flowing in.

Further, in FIG. 1, reference numeral 64 denotes an operating section for controlling the amount of rice to be cooked, etc. This operating section 64 is fixed to the rice cooking frame 47 with screws 65, and can be freely inserted into and removed from the cabinet 67 of the automatic rice cooker shown in FIG. It is something that is stored. Also bonde 6
The operation of the rice cooker 0 is stopped by a microcomputer etc. in the operation unit u, but the rice cooking control etc. are the same as in a conventional rice cooker.

48a represents the water level upper surface of the water tank 48, and 40a represents the water level inside the pot. 66 is an inner lid that covers the top opening of the pot 4o;
In the center of this inner lid 66 is a passage hole and insertion hole 5 for the water outlet 62.
6& is provided.

The cabinet 67 is provided with drawers, the upper drawer 62 is provided with a rice cooking section 63 and a water tank 48, and the lower drawer 66 has a rice bin section 6 inside.
It is 6. Also, below the rice bin part 66 is a rice washing device 6.
7, and a rice transfer device 63a using air blowing to send the rice to the upper rice cooking section 63 after washing the rice (only the hose is shown in the drawing)
A device (not shown) is installed to collect the bran produced during rice polishing. In this embodiment, the rice washing device 67 is composed of a lath mesh-like rice polishing body 67 & and a polishing body eyb having a brush etc. on the surface, and the rice is polished using both of them. I have to. Further, a steam processing device 68 is provided above the rice cooking section 63, and this steam processing device 68 cools the steam generated during rice cooking with a fan provided inside, and is installed at the upper front of the cabinet 67. It is designed to be discharged from an exhaust port 69. The rice cooking section 63 has an additional structure whose weight can be measured by a weight sensor 6o.

Next, the structure of the rice cooking section 63 will be explained in more detail based on FIGS. 3 and 4. 74 is a handle provided on the outer lid 46. The rice cooking section 63 includes a removable pot 40, a heater 41, a casing 79 housing a heat insulating material 78, a temperature sensor 80, and the like. Further, a gasket 44 is attached to the inner surface of the outer lid 46, and when the outer lid 46 is closed, the gasket 44 comes into pressure contact with the upper end of the pot 40. 82 is a sliding member, and this sliding member 82 slides up and down along a mounting plate 83 erected on the bottom plate of the upper drawer 62. 84 is a guide that guides the vertical movement of the sliding member 82. Further, a rack gear 82a is provided at the lower end of the sliding member 82, and this rack gear 82a is connected to the gear donor 5.
It meshes with the pinion gear aSa attached to the 860 rotating shaft. Furthermore, limit switches 87&, 87b are provided at positions where the sliding member 82 comes into contact with the small piece 86, so that the outer lid 46 can only be opened halfway, without being fully opened. Furthermore, the projection 88 at the upper end of the sliding member 82 normally engages with the tip of the hook lever 46b, but can be attached or detached when necessary. Each of the members 82 to 88 constitutes a lid opening/closing device. 89 is a rice transfer nozzle installed at the tip of the hose that constitutes the rice transfer device 63a, and this rice transfer nozzle /L/89
Outside! ! When the lid 46 is closed, the lid 46 is placed at a position facing the gap between the outer lid 46 and the pot 4o.

The operation of the above configuration will now be described.

When operating the automatic rice cooker, transfer the rice and water to the pot 40,
In the process of measuring each weight, first, when the guard motor 86 rotates in the forward direction, the sliding member 82 rises, and the outer lid 46 begins to open with the hook lever aeb and the protrusion 88 engaged. When the small piece 86 and the limit switch 87a come into contact with each other due to the opening of the outer cover 46,
The guard motor 86 is stopped, and the outer lid 46 is held partially open as shown in FIG. This outer lid 4
6, the suppression of the packing 44 on the pot 40 is eliminated. In this state, the pot is 40. The weight including the heater 41, the casing 79, etc. is measured by the weight sensor 60. After this, the rice cooking water required for cooking the rice is supplied in a slightly smaller amount than the specified amount. This is to adjust the amount of water to the amount of rice later and to eliminate the noise when transferring rice. Thereafter, the rice is sent from the rice bin section 66 to the rice washing device 67, and after being washed in the rice washing device 67, the rice is transferred to the rice transfer nozzle l'L/89 by the rice transfer device 63a.
It is then delivered to the pot 4o through the gap between the outer lid 46 and the pot 40. After the rice is transferred, the weight of the rice cooking section 630 is measured, and the difference from the previous measurement is calculated to determine the weight of the rice. Next, water for rice cooking that is insufficient for the weight of rice is supplied, but in this case, the ratio of rice to water is calculated so that the amount of water is set at the beginning, and the amount of water is adjusted several times during the water supply. While measuring, water is sent from the water tank 48 into the pot 40 via the water supply pipe 61 by the small pump 6o. When the transfer and measurement of rice and water is completed, the guard motor 86
rotates in the opposite direction to lower the sliding member 84. Due to this lowering, when the small piece 86 and the limit switch 87b come into contact with each other, the guard motor 86 is stopped and the outer cover 46 is also closed. After this, the rice cooking process begins. After this, the outer lid 46 is closed by the lid opening/closing device, and the drawer can be freely pulled out.

Effects of the Invention As is clear from the description of the above embodiments, according to the present invention,
A cylindrical pot with a bottom for storing rice and a water tank are placed side by side at almost the same height, and a pump is used to supply water from the water tank into the pot from the opening on the top of the pot via a water supply pipe. Therefore, even if a power outage occurs while the pump is in operation, water will not flow back and overflow into the container, and the pump output will also be reduced because the water tank and pot are installed side by side at almost the same height. This makes it possible to make it extremely small and save energy.Also, since the rice is transferred after water is supplied into the pot, when the rice is put into the pot, the rice is As a result, the sound of rice being added can be reduced, and rice can also be prevented from spreading.Furthermore, since the water supply pipe only allows water to pass through, it is possible to reduce the noise of rice being added. This also eliminates the possibility of staining with cleaning fluid, etc.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an automatic rice cooker showing an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the automatic rice cooker, Fig. 3 is a partial sectional view of the automatic rice cooker, and Fig. 4 is a partial sectional view of the automatic rice cooker. A perspective view of the automatic rice cooker,
FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of a conventional automatic rice cooker. 40... Pot, 41... Heating element, 42.
...Lid, 48...Water tank, 5o...
... Pump, 51 ... Water supply pipe, e6 ...
...Rice bin section, 63a...Rice transfer device. Name of agent: Patent attorney Toshio Nakao and 1 other person56
--Key P mouth open/) ≦3--Cooking section - Unsecured road exhibition 1 66-One rice Mefuto 67- Washing rice temporary storage 2nd t! 1 Must-11 row 4-Ichio s4 噌ki No. 351 Figure 4 Must Figure 5

Claims (1)

[Claims] A cylindrical pot with a bottom for storing rice, a heating element for heating the pot, a lid covering an opening on the top of the pot, a water tank, and a water supply pipe for supplying water in the water tank to the pot. It has a pump that supplies water from the upper surface opening of the pot through the pot, a rice pot section that stores rice, and a rice transfer device that transfers the rice from the rice pot section into the pot, and the water tank is configured to be approximately the same as the pot. An automatic rice cooker that is arranged in parallel at different heights and that transfers rice after water is supplied into the pot.