JPH04218114A - Fully automatic rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent rice in a rice washing tank of a rice washing unit from being adversely affected by the heat of the rice cooker during cooking rice. CONSTITUTION:A rice cooker 44 having a freely opening and closing upper lid 29 is arranged right under the shaft of the rice washing tank 5 in the rice washing part. The rice washing tank 5 is provided with a conical valve 14 at the lower position thereof. And a vertical space is provided between the conical valve 14 and the upper lid 29 of the rice cooker 44.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Industrial Application Field] The present invention was proposed with the aim of completely reducing the labor involved in rice cooking, which has hitherto been labor-intensive. The present invention relates to a new fully automatic rice cooking device that can automatically process a series of work steps leading to rice cooking using an accurate program.

0002

[Prior Art] Various proposals regarding automatic rice cooking devices have been made in the past, but most of them are for small home use, and in terms of frequency of use, throughput, and operability, they are not suitable for commercial use, which is the object of the present invention. There is a huge difference, and they are on a different level from the point of view of practicality and continuity.

[0003] Therefore, as a fully automatic rice cooking device that can be used for commercial purposes, there is a technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-26031. This fully automatic rice cooking device consists of a rice storage section that stores rice, a measuring section that measures and discharges the rice in the rice storage section, a rice washing section that washes the rice discharged from the measuring section, and a rice washing section that washes the rice discharged from the rice washing section. The rice cooker is equipped with a rice cooking section for cooking rice, and the rice cooking section employs a rice cooker having a top lid that opens and closes using a hinge as a fulcrum.

[0004] However, in a fully automatic rice cooker, the top lid opens and closes around a hinge, so the rice washing section and the rice cooker must be placed vertically and horizontally apart even during rice cooking.
The disadvantage is that the entire structure becomes larger. Therefore, it has been considered to provide a rice cooker that is horizontally movable and to move the rice cooker outward from below the rice washing section to take in and out the inner pot. In this way, the rice cooker can be placed coaxially under the rice washing section during rice cooking, and there is an advantage that the entire rice cooker can be made smaller.

[0005]

[Problem to be solved by the invention] When the rice cooker is placed coaxially below the rice washing section, the entire size can be reduced, but the heat of the rice cooker has a negative effect on the rice waiting in the rice washing tank of the rice washing section. New problems such as In view of these points, the present invention is fully automatic, which can reduce the overall size, prevent the influence of heat on the rice in the rice washing section during rice cooking, and facilitate operation confirmation and cleaning of the conical valve of the rice washing section. The purpose is to provide rice cooking equipment.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention includes a rice storage section for storing rice, a measuring section for weighing and discharging the rice in the rice storage section, and a rice washing section for washing the rice discharged from the measuring section. a rice cooking section for cooking rice discharged from the rice washing section, the rice washing section comprising:
A rice washing tank having a conical lower part is provided with an outlet that can be opened and closed freely with a conical valve at the bottom, and the rice cooking section is equipped with a rice cooker and a rice cooker placed in a rice cooking position directly below the same axis of the rice washing tank during rice cooking. The rice cooker has a top lid that opens and closes, and a space in the vertical direction between the conical valve of the rice washing section and the top lid of the rice cooker at the rice cooking position.

[0007]

[Function] During rice cooking, the rice cooker 44 is placed at the rice cooking position directly below the coaxial portion of the rice washing section, so that the entire apparatus can be miniaturized. In addition, since there is a space in the vertical direction between the conical valve 14 of the rice washing section and the top lid 29 of the rice cooker 44 in the rice cooking position, the heat of the rice cooker 44 during rice cooking has an adverse effect on the rice waiting in the rice washing tank 5 of the rice washing section. It will not affect you. Moreover, it is easy to check the operation around the conical valve 14, and cleaning is also facilitated.

[0008]

[Example] To explain the present invention with reference to drawings showing examples thereof, raw materials are stored in a rice storage tank (part) 1 arranged at the top in Fig. 1, and the rice storage tank 1 is formed in a hopper shape. A metering device (measuring section) 2 is installed in series at the bottom. The metering device 2 shown in this embodiment is a drum type that is rotated in one direction by an electric motor 3, and the internal volume is kept constant, and the required amount of raw material is divided into quantitative portions according to the rotational speed and dropped downward. This is based on a pulse counting method controlled by the transmission of a set value pulse of a counter set by 21.

On the other hand, a funnel-shaped raw material chute 4 is disposed directly below the metering device 2, and a raw material supply port 7 is opened through the top plate 6 of a rice washing tank 5 serving as a rice washing section. The rice washing tank 5 is made of a cylindrical body with an inverted conical lower part, and the top plate 6 has a hollow rotating shaft 9 on which a plurality of stirring blades 8 each having a different radius of rotation are installed at the axis of the tank.
It is rotatably arranged by an electric motor 11 via a bearing 10 that is provided through the shaft. On the other hand, at the bottom of the rice washing tank 5, there is a shaft rod 13 inserted coaxially with the hollow shaft 9 and movable vertically by a rotary cam mechanism 12 provided above the top plate 6, and a lower end of the shaft rod 13. An outlet 15 for raw material and cooking water is provided which can be opened and closed by a conical valve 14 fixed to the outlet.

Furthermore, above the outlet 15, there is a separation plate 16 formed in the shape of an inverted cone having a large number of water passage holes, an annular drainage jacket 17 provided to hermetically surround the separation plate 16, and a top plate 16. An overflow port 18 is provided continuously at the bottom. A side pipe 19 is opened in communication with the outer circumferential surface of the drainage jacket 17, and a float 20 for detecting a rise in the water level inside the pipe is enclosed. It is configured to be detected and adjusted by a movable sensor 22. Furthermore, a plurality of water sprinkling ports 23 are provided at the top of the rice washing tank 5 by opening through the top plate 6.

As shown in FIG. 2, in addition to the side pipe 19, the drain jacket 17 has a drain pipe 25 and a rice washing tank 5 on the outer peripheral surface for draining washing water out of the system through a drain valve 24 that can be opened and closed.
In order to generate an upward flow inward and discharge suspended pollutants out of the system from the overflow port 18, a water supply port 27 is provided, which communicates with the water supply port 27 through a solenoid valve 26. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a pair of guide plates 28 are fixed to the side surfaces of the drain jacket 17 and a shutter rail 30 is fixed to the shutter rail 30 whose lower end is attached to the upper surface of the upper lid 29, as shown in FIG. The upper lid can be opened and closed in the vertical direction by a member 31 configured to be slidable up and down, and an opening/closing arm 34 extending forward by hanging a pin 33 provided on the member 31 with a fulcrum 32. 29 is installed directly below the rice washing tank 5.

The upper lid 29 is opened and closed with a stroke H by an opening/closing arm 34, as shown by the dotted line in the figure, and is configured to seal the inserted inner pot 35 and hold it in the open position with a hook 36. 3
No. 4 constitutes a top cover opening/closing means. Therefore, during rice cooking, a vertical space of at least the stroke H is created between the top lid 29 of the rice cooker 44 and the conical valve 14 of the rice washing tank 5.

As shown in FIG. 3, an inlet 37 for rice and water is opened in the center of the upper lid 29, and this opening has a fulcrum 39 and can be opened and closed by a swing arm 40 driven by an electric motor 38. It has a structure that can be opened and closed by a shutter 41. The shutter 41 moves along a stroke H1 using the shutter rail 30 provided on the top cover as a guide, and closes the opening 3.
7 is slidably sealed, and a sensor 42 is provided to detect opening and closing of the shutter.

In the apparatus of the present invention, when the conical valve 14 provided at the bottom of the rice washing tank 5 is opened, the outflow curve of the rice and water flowing out has a parabolic shape as shown by the dotted line 43 in FIG. 2, which is an extension of the conical surface. . Therefore, the opening 37 provided in the upper lid 29
The diameter is determined so that it does not intersect with the parabola in the closed position of the top cover. The operation mode of the apparatus of the present invention constructed as above will be explained with reference to the drawings showing the embodiments. In FIG. The rice cooker is moved to a rice cooking position coaxial with the axial center of the rice cooker 29, and the upper lid is lowered by the opening/closing arm 34 to seal the inner pot. Here, the inner pot 35 is detected by the sensor 46.

Next, by setting the metering dial 21 to the required amount of rice to cook, the pulse counter that controls the rotation speed of the metering device 2 is selected, and the sensor 22 that detects the water level detection float 20 in the side pipe 19 is moved. Then, the water level adjustment point 47 in the rice washing tank 5 necessary for rice cooking is determined. By pressing the start button, the metering device 2 rotates to quantitatively divide the raw material in the rice storage tank 1 and drop it into the rice washing tank 5 via the chute 4 through the raw material supply port 7. At the same time, the electric motor 11 is started to slowly rotate the stirring blade 8, and the solenoid valve 48 connected to the pressure water system is opened to start supplying water from the plurality of water sprinkling ports 23, and the rice washing process begins. The wastewater that has passed through the raw material layer that is accumulated and stirred in the rice washing tank and becomes rice washing polluted water passes through a separation plate 16 provided at the bottom and is then discharged to a drainage jacket 17, a drainage pipe 25, and a drainage valve 24.
The water is drained out of the system through the drain port 49.

[0016] Next, water supply is temporarily stopped according to a rice washing program inputted in advance, and the rice polishing process is started, and after a predetermined rice polishing process has elapsed, water sprinkling is started again to drain the rice washing polluted water. After repeating the above steps, the drain valve 24 shown in FIG.
When the drain jacket 17 is closed, water supply starts from the water supply port 27 which is open and communicated with the drainage jacket 17 via the solenoid valve 26. By sealing the drain valve 24, the supplied water flows upward in the rice washing tank 5, overflows from the overflow port 18, passes through the drain pipe 50 and the drain box 51, and is drained out of the system from the drain port 49. When a predetermined overflow time has elapsed, the electromagnetic valve 26 closes, the drain valve 24 opens, and the cleaning water that has been stored up to the overflow point in the tank is drained out of the system all at once.

After the rice washing process is completed, the drain valve 24 is closed and the solenoid valve 48 is opened to begin supplying water in the water adjustment process. In this step, the circuit of the water level detection sensor 22 is turned on, and as the water level in the rice washing tank 5 rises, the float 20 in the side pipe 19 rises, and at the water level detection point 47, the solenoid valve 48 is closed to stop the water supply. Then, in response to the output signal of the sensor, the cam-type opening/closing mechanism 12 provided above the shaft 13 rotates, causing the conical valve 14 that seals the outlet 15 at the bottom of the rice washing tank to fall by a predetermined stroke, and the raw materials and cooking water are placed in the upper lid 29. The water is allowed to flow down into the inner pot 35 through the opening 37.

Note that the opening 37 is closed to the shutter 41 during rice cooking.
The opening is closed by a motor 38, temporarily opened by an electric motor 38 in response to an output signal from the sensor 22, and automatically closed after a predetermined period of time. When the raw material has finished flowing out, the conical valve 14 returns to its original position by the rotation of the cam opening/closing mechanism 12 and seals the outlet 15. Next, the water absorption time of the raw material is restricted by a timer which is activated upon detection of the completion of rice removal, and after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, a burner (not shown) of the rice cooker 44 is ignited by an output signal from the timer to begin the rice cooking process. The combustion gas is supplied using a gas solenoid valve (not shown).
The electromagnetic valve is configured to be opened by the output signal of the timer and shut off by a thermostat (not shown) that detects the bottom temperature of the inner pot 35.

Completion of the rice cooking process is detected by the thermostat, the burner is extinguished, and a separate timer is activated to limit the steaming time. After a predetermined steaming time has elapsed, the output signal of the timer notifies the completion of rice cooking, thereby completing the series of operating steps in the apparatus of the present invention. In the rice cooker placed below the rice washing tank, during the various processes such as water absorption, cooking, and steaming of the raw materials, and after the rice has been drained, lift the top lid, pull out the inner pot, and set the empty inner pot. Until then, the shutter 41 is electrically interlocked to prevent it from being opened, and the conical valve 14 is opened using the output signal of the sensor 42 that detects the opening of the shutter, thereby preventing human errors such as double discharge. can be completely prevented.

[0020] Furthermore, the apparatus of the embodiment makes it possible to completely automatically process a series of operations from measuring raw materials to completing rice cooking just by inputting a start signal, and also to continuously and automatically process a large amount of rice cooking. It also has the ability to That is, the output signal of the water level detection sensor 22 indicating the completion of water addition, a sensor (not shown) for detecting the opening of the conical valve 14, and a sensor (not shown) for detecting the sealing of the conical valve are used in a cascade. By generating the start pulse mentioned above and restarting the device automatically, the rice washing process in the upper rice washing section is carried out while the lower rice cooker is in operation, and the rice washing process is continued in the rice washing tank until the rice cooking is completed. Since the raw materials can be given a waiting time for water absorption, both rice washing and rice cooking operations can be performed continuously in a single device.

[0021]

[Effects of the Invention] The present invention is as described above, and since the rice cooker is disposed at the rice cooking position directly below the coaxial line of the rice washing tank during rice cooking, the entire rice cooker can be miniaturized. Additionally, since there is a vertical space between the conical valve of the rice washing section and the top lid of the rice cooker in the rice cooking position, it is possible to prevent the heat of the rice cooking section during rice cooking from having an adverse effect on the rice in the rice washing section. At the same time, it is possible to check the operation of the conical valve in the rice washing section, and cleaning is also facilitated.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the present invention showing the arrangement of internal mechanisms.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway plan view illustrating an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Rice storage department 2　Measuring part 5　Rice washing tank 14 Conical valve 15 Outlet 29 Top lid 34 Top lid opening/closing means 41 Shutter 44 Rice cooker

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A rice storage section for storing rice, a measuring section for weighing and discharging the rice in the rice storage section, a rice washing section for washing the rice discharged from the measuring section, and a rice cooking section for cooking the rice discharged from the rice washing section. , the rice washing section is provided with an outlet that can be opened and closed by a conical valve at the bottom of a rice washing tank whose lower part is formed into a conical shape, and the rice cooking section is arranged at a rice cooking position directly below the same axis of the rice washing tank during rice cooking. fully automatic rice cooking, characterized in that the rice cooker is equipped with a top lid for opening and closing the rice cooker, and a vertical space is provided between the conical valve of the rice washing section and the top lid of the rice cooker at the rice cooking position. Device.