JPH02154708A - Rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the operability of a control part for executing operations related to a rice cooking operation and the visibility of the whole of a control panel having the control part by engaging and providing the control panel on the upper surface part of a cover from an external part. CONSTITUTION:A control panel 19 having control parts 35 and 36 for executing the operations related to the rice cooking operation is engaged and provided on the upper surface part of a cover 2 from the external part. As the result, a projecting part such as a conventional control panel is eliminated from the outer circumference side surface part of a body, installing space for the body can be made smaller, and the appearance of the body can be improved. Further, when the body is placed on ordinary space such as a table and a sink, the visibility of the whole of the control panel and the operability of the control parts can be improved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to a rice cooker with an improved arrangement structure of an operation panel having an operation section for performing operations related to rice cooking operation.

[Technical Background of the Invention] In conventional rice cookers, the operation panel is generally attached to the lower part of the outer peripheral side of the rice cooker main body so as to protrude from the bottom.
This operation panel is provided with an operation section that can be operated from the outside, and a display lamp or a light emitting element such as a light emitting diode is disposed inside the operation panel, so that the operation section can be operated to perform rice cooking operation. At the same time, the process of the rice cooking operation can be confirmed by visually confirming the light from the light emitting element based on the operation through a window provided in the operation panel.

[Problems with Background Art] However, in the above configuration, since the operation panel protrudes from the outer peripheral side of the main body, not only does the installation space become large, but the design is also unsightly.

In addition, rice cookers are generally placed on low places such as tables or sinks in order to scoop out the rice in the pot after cooking, and therefore the user's eye position is limited. is also usually higher than the main body. However, with the above-mentioned device, the control panel is located at the bottom of the outer periphery of the main body, so if you are standing, your line of sight is too diagonal to the control panel. Moreover, in this case, the user can only operate the operation part from a position around the main body that is almost directly facing the operation panel, and the lamp display etc. can only be seen from that direction. The disadvantage is that it cannot be used.

[Object of the Invention] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to reduce the installation space of the main body, improve the appearance, improve the visibility of the operation panel and the operability of the operation part, and further improve the appearance of the operation panel. To provide a rice cooker which can be installed together with the assembly of a lid provided on the main body.

[Summary of the Invention] The present invention provides a lid comprising an outer lid plate and an inner lid plate, and an operation panel having an operation part for performing operations related to rice cooking operation is engaged with the outer lid plate from the outside. and the operation panel is fixed to the inner cover plate from the inside with screws to connect the outer cover plate and the inner cover plate via the operation panel, This eliminates a protrusion like a conventional operation panel on the outer peripheral side of the rice cooker body, and improves the operability of the operation part and the visibility of the entire operation panel by providing the operation panel on the outer cover plate of the lid. In addition, the operation panel, which is engaged with the outer cover plate from the outside, is fixed to the inner cover plate from the inside with screws, and the outer cover plate and the inner MS are connected through the operation panel. from,
The operation panel can be attached at the same time as the lid is assembled.

[Embodiment of the Invention] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1
is the main body of the rice cooker, 2 is a well-known hinge mechanism 3 for the main body 1
As shown in the enlarged cross section of FIG. 2, this lid is provided to be openable and closable through the outer lid plate 4 and the inner lid plate 5. is integrally formed, and a handle cover 7 is attached to the handle base 6 so as to cover the upper part thereof.
is attached. A plurality of engagement protrusions 8 are formed on the inner peripheral edge of the outer cover FM, 4, while a plurality of engagement protrusions 8 are formed on the outer circumferential edge of the inner cover plate 5 in correspondence with the engagement protrusions 8. An engagement recess 9 is formed, and the engagement protrusion 8 is held in the engagement state by the elasticity of the inner cover plate 5 and the outer cover plate 4 themselves. It is a stepped cylindrical steam venting cylinder having a portion 10a and a small diameter portion 10b at the top and bottom, and has flanges 11 and 12 formed at both upper and lower ends, and further has a small diameter portion 10b. A threaded portion 13 and a steam vent hole 14 are formed to be located vertically.Such a steam vent cylinder 10 has an insertion hole portion 15 formed to protrude downward from one side of the outer cover plate 4.
The nut member 17 is inserted into the hole 16 correspondingly formed in the inner cover plate 5, and the nut member 17 is inserted from below the inner cover plate 5 with the flange 11 in contact with the upper surface of the outer cover plate 4. is the threaded part 13
The nut portion 17 is pressed into contact with the inner cover plate 5, and due to the mounting structure of the steam vent cylinder 10, the outer cover plate 4 and the inner cover plate 5 are tightened at one side thereof. It is pinched.

Although not shown, an engagement protrusion for engaging the inner cover is provided on the lower surface of the inner cover plate 5, and this engagement protrusion and the steam venting cylinder 10 are provided.
The small diameter portion 10b of the medium M (
(not shown) are engaged and held. Reference numeral 18 denotes a lid heater for keeping the inner lid warm, which is provided at the center of the inner lid plate 5 of M2.

Reference numeral 19 denotes an operation panel, which will be described in detail below.

That is, the I/Ni-made panel 19 is made of ABS resin, for example, and has four nameplate mounting parts 20 formed on its upper surface that slope toward the sides of the main body 1.
For example, there are two operating openings 21 as shown in FIG.
．． 22 and four display openings 23 to 26 are formed, and a U-shaped engagement groove 27 is formed on the outer edge (left outer edge in FIG. 2). At the lower part of the periphery other than the above, there is a fitting protrusion 2 located slightly inside from the periphery.
8 is formed, and a boss portion 29 is integrally provided downwardly protruding from the lower surface portion, and a female thread portion 30 is formed in this boss portion 29. The operation panel 19 configured in this manner has the engagement groove 27 engaged with the edge of the opening 31 formed in the portion of the outer cover plate 4 located on the opposite side of the steam venting cylinder 10. Make the fitting protrusion 28 make an IK sound and press the operation panel 1.
9 is abutted and engaged with the upper surface of the outer cover plate 4, and in this state, the two bosses of the operation panel 19 are inserted from below into the screw holes 32 formed protrudingly on the inner cover plate 5. Taneji 3
3 to the inner cover plate 5, and thereby a clamping force is applied between the outer cover plate 4 and the inner cover plate 5 via the operation panel 19, thereby binding them together. 34 is a printed circuit board disposed between the operation panel 19 and the inner cover plate 5;
On the top surface of this desk, there are operating sections 35 and 36 (for example, two operating switches (not shown) for operating operations related to rice cooking operation.
(see FIG. 3) and four light emitting elements 37 to 40 for displaying the process of the rice cooking operation are arranged so as to face the respective openings 21 to 26 for operation and display of the operation panel 19, respectively. Lead wires (not shown) led out from the operation switches and light emitting elements 37 to 40 on the printed circuit board 34 are connected to lead wires introduced into M2 from the main body 1. 41 is the nameplate mounting part 20 of the operation panel 19
An elastically deformable nameplate affixed to the holder, which has an instruction mark 42.4 for indicating the position of the operating part 35.36 on the part facing the operating opening 21.22, as shown in FIG.
3 are formed, and transparent window portions 44 to 47 are formed in portions facing the display openings 23 to 26. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 48 designates a clamp for releasing the lid 20 provided on the handle cover 7.

In the case of this embodiment having such a configuration, since the operation panel 19 is provided on the outer cover plate 4 of the lid 2, there is no protrusion like a conventional operation panel on the outer peripheral side surface of the main body 1. As a result, the installation space for the main body 1 can be reduced, the shape of the main body 1 can be made smarter, and the appearance can be improved. Moreover, the main body 1 can be placed at a lower level than the user's eye level when normally used on a table or a sink. If installed in a location,
Although the entire operation panel 19 is not necessarily located almost directly in front of the user, it can be easily seen from above the main body 1 while standing without bending over, and the operation panels 35, 36.
It is possible to improve the visibility of the characters such as "keep warm" attached to one operation panel and the light emitted from the light emitting elements 37 to 40, and of course, the operating pressure of the operation parts 35 and 36 can also be improved. .

Incidentally, such an effect can also be obtained with a configuration in which the operation panel is integrally formed on the outer cover plate, but in this case, in order to repair the electrical components on the printed circuit board 34, it is necessary to remove the inner cover plate. It is necessary to remove the handle from the outer cover plate, which is really troublesome.In addition, in this case, if the operation panel is configured to protrude from the outer cover plate as in this embodiment, the handle base is separated from the outer cover plate due to the structure of the mold. This creates a problem that it must be formed separately. It is also possible to consider a configuration in which a separate operation panel is screwed to the outer cover plate, but in this case, if the operation panel is screwed to the outer cover plate from above,
Although it is easy to remove, the screw heads are exposed to the outside and look bad.However, if you screw the operation panel to the outer M board from the inside, it will look better, but the outer cover will be damaged when removed. The operation panel cannot be removed unless the inner cover plate is removed from the plate, making it really troublesome to remove the operation panel.

However, in this embodiment, since the operation panel 19 is fixed to the inner cover plate 5 from below with the screws 33, the screws 3
3 is not exposed on the operation panel 19, which gives it a good appearance. When removing the operation panel 19, just remove the screws 33 and then attach the operation panel 19 to the opening of the outer cover plate 4. The operation panel 19 can be easily removed from the lid 2 by simply lifting it outward from the portion 31, and the operation panel 19 can be easily removed. Furthermore, when installing the operation panel 19, the engagement groove 27 of the operation panel 19 is engaged with the edge of the opening 31 of the outer cover plate 4, and then the fitting protrusion 28 is fitted into the opening 31. Simply place the peripheral edge of one operation panel on the top surface of the outer cover 4, and in this state insert the screws 33 into the screw holes 32 of the inner cover plate 5 and tighten them to the two bosses of the one operation panel. Since the installation of the operation panel 19 is completed, the installation of the operation panel 19 is excellent.

Moreover, by fixing the operation panel 19 to the inner cover plate 5 with the screws 33 in this manner, a clamping force is created between the outer cover plate 4 and the inner cover plate 5 via the operation panel 19 at the same time as the operation panel 19 is attached. Since the structure is such that the lid 2 itself, including the operation panel 19, can be easily assembled, the operation panel 19 can apply a clamping force to the central portion of M2. Therefore, even if the engagement force between the engagement protrusion 8 of the outer cover plate 4 and the engagement recess 9 of the inner cover plate 5 decreases due to deformation of the outer cover plate 4 and the inner cover plate 5 during long-term use,
Compared to the conventional structure, the bonding state between the outer cover plate 4 and the inner cover plate 5 can be maintained stably, and since the peripheral edge of the operation panel 19 is pressed against the upper surface of the outer cover plate 4, Operation panel 1
The peripheral edge part 9 of the outer lid plate 4 is securely adhered to the upper surface of the outer lid plate 4 without being raised, and has a good appearance. In addition, especially in this embodiment, since the operation panel 19 is made of ABS resin,
Not only does the nameplate 41 have good adhesive properties, but even if the boss portion 29 is integrally protruded from the bottom surface of one operation panel, unlike the polypropylene that generally forms the outer cover plate, for example, the boss portion 29 is not attached to the top surface of the operation panel 19. The appearance of the operation panel 19 can be kept beautiful without causing flesh marks.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown in the drawings, but can be modified in various ways without departing from the scope of the invention.

[Effects of the Invention] It is composed of an outer cover plate and an inner cover plate, and an operation panel is provided on the outer cover plate and has an operation part for performing operations related to rice cooking operation, and is engaged from the outside. The operation panel is fixed to the inner cover plate with screws, and the outer cover plate and the inner cover plate are connected via the operation panel.
Since there is no protruding object such as a conventional operation panel on the outer peripheral side of the main body, the installation space for the main body can be reduced and the appearance can be improved, and the main body can be placed in a normal installation place such as a table or sink. In this case, the visibility of the entire operation panel and the operability of its operation section can be improved. Furthermore, since the operation panel that is engaged with the outer cover plate from the outside is fixed to the inner cover plate with an internal screw, the outer cover plate and the inner fl1M are connected through the operation panel.
At the same time as the operation panel is attached, the outer cover plate and the inner cover plate can be connected via the operation panel, improving the ease of assembling the entire cover including the operation panel, and the operation panel can be pressed into contact with the outer cover plate. The operation panel can be firmly attached to the outer cover plate, and the screw heads are not exposed on the operation panel, giving it a good appearance. It has many excellent practical effects, such as being able to attach and detach the operation panel with just a hand, improving the ease of attaching and detaching the operation panel.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view, FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the lid, and FIG. 3 is an enlarged plan view of the operation panel. In the drawings, 2 is a lid, 4 is an outer lid plate, 5 is an inner lid plate, 1 is an operation panel, 31 is an opening, 33 is a screw, 35 and 36 are operation parts, and 37 to 40 are light emitting elements. Figure 1

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. The lid consists of an outer lid plate and an inner lid plate, and an operation panel having an operation part for performing operations related to rice cooking operation is provided on the outer lid plate to be engaged from the outside, and a screw is inserted from the inside. A rice cooker characterized in that the operation panel is fixed to the inner cover plate, and the outer cover plate and the inner cover plate are connected via the operation panel.