JPH06217866A - Rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To decrease a leakage of steam by cooling the steam descending and flowing in a cooling tube with a cold air flow in a cold air tube. CONSTITUTION:Steam ejected into a steam chamber 20 through a hole opened in an inner cover 19 is guided by a leading-in tube 41 and fed out to a descending spiral cooling tube 43 of a main body 1 side through a closed and connected connector 42. On the other hand, a cold air tube 44 arranged along the cooling tube 43 is affected by a rice cooking temperature in the main body 1 and reaches a temperature a little higher than an outside temperature. Therefore, a convection action is generated inside the cold air tube 44 and from an opening of the lower end part, cold air in the vicinity of a water receiver 46 is sucked in, and an air flow for exhausting warm air to the vicinity of a hinge mechanism 23 from an opening of the upper end part is generated. As a result, by a cold air flow inside the cold air tube 44, steam descending and flowing spirally in the cooling tube 43 is cooled. The cooled steam is condensed, becomes waterdrops, flows down in the cooling tube 43, drops down into the water receiver 46 from the tube end of the lower part, and the steam is prevented from being leaked to the periphery.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a rice cooker, and more particularly to a rice cooker provided with a steam dissipation prevention mechanism for preventing the dissipation of steam generated during rice cooking.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the construction of a conventional rice cooker of this type. In FIG. 10, 1 is an outer wall of the body, 2 is an inner wall, 3 is a lid, 4 is an inner pot, 5 is an inner lid, 6 is a handle of the lid, 7 is a space, 8 is a heating source, and 9 is a heat exchanger. As shown in the figure, the heat exchanger 9 is provided with radiating fins over the entire length. Reference numeral 10 is a water storage tank, 11 is a steam introduction hole, 12 is a drain hole, and 13 is a vent hole formed in an annular gap around the outer wall 1 of the body.

In the conventional rice cooker having such a structure, the water in the inner pot 4 becomes steam during rice cooking to push up the inner lid 5 to fill the space 7. Then, the filled water vapor enters the heat exchanger 9 through the introduction hole 11 and moves downward while radiating heat, and the liquefied water droplets are collected from the drain hole 12 to the water storage tank 10 and discharged to the outside of the device. Discharge of the heat exchanger 9 causes the fuselage outer wall 1
The air warmed in the space between the inner wall 2 and the inner wall 2 is diffused to the outside from the annular ventilation hole 13 in the peripheral portion, and instead, cold air comes in from the lower portion to cool the heat exchanger 9.

[0004]

As described above, in the conventional rice cooker, the steam generated in the inner pot 4 during rice cooking is introduced into the introduction hole 1
It is liquefied from 1 by the heat exchanger 9 and is collected as water droplets. Therefore, since hot steam is not diffused around the rice cooker, there is an advantage that burns, stains on nearby shelves, and rise in indoor humidity can be prevented. However, in such a conventional rice cooker, as described above, the inner lid 5
Is pushed up to introduce the steam filled in the surrounding space 7 into the heat exchanger 9 through one thin introduction hole 11, so that the introduction amount of the steam is limited and excess steam is opened to the peripheral portion of the outer wall 1 of the fuselage. There is a case where it leaks out from the annular ventilation hole 13 and is diffused.

Moreover, the air warmed by the heat emitted from the heat exchanger 9 in the space between the outer wall 1 and the inner wall 2 of the body joins with this steam and is diffused from the vent hole 13. Therefore, there is a concern that the structure of the recovery system using water droplets using the heat exchanger 9 at a corner becomes meaningless. Further, since the heat exchanger 9 having the radiation fins is wound around the body over the entire length, there is a problem that the structure is large and complicated and the cost is increased.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the problems of the conventional rice cooker, and realizes a rice cooker having a simple structure, a small amount of steam leakage and a high cooling efficiency. The purpose is.

[0007]

According to the present invention, a steam chamber is formed between a main body and a lid, and in which steam generated in an inner pot by heating of a heating means is jetted, and the steam chamber is jetted. The introduction path that guides the steam to the main body side, the cooling path into which the steam that is introduced to the main body side through the introduction path is introduced, and the spiral path that descends spirally around the inner pot, and the steam that flows inside the cooling path A vapor diffusion prevention mechanism provided with a cold air duct for sucking cooling air from an intake port at the lower part and exhausting it to an exhaust port at the upper part, and a water receiver for receiving condensed water of steam cooled in the cold air duct It is a part of a rice cooker.

Further, a steam chamber formed between the main body and the lid body, into which steam generated in the inner pot by heating of the heating means is jetted, and an introduction path for guiding the steam jetted into the steam chamber to the main body side. And a relay path for relaying the steam guided to the main body side through the introduction path to the outside of the back surface, and a steam that is connected to the relay path and is provided in the main body with a gap to cool the steam flowing inside with the ambient air. The rice cooker is provided with a steam dissipation prevention mechanism that includes a cooling path that descends in a substantially folded manner and a water receiver that receives the condensed water of the steam cooled in the cooling path.

Further, a steam chamber which is formed between the main body and the lid body and into which steam generated in the inner pot by the heating of the heating means is ejected, and a steam chamber which surrounds the inner pot in the main body are opened in the steam chamber. A plurality of cooling paths formed in a basket shape that guides the steam ejected downwards, an annular chamber where the cooling channels are gathered to collect water with condensed steam inside the main body, and an annular chamber The rice cooker is provided with a steam dissipation prevention mechanism provided with an exhaust passage for guiding the collected water and air to a drain outlet and an exhaust outlet, and a water receiver for receiving water flowing out from the exhaust passage.

[0010]

[Function] When rice cooking progresses and the temperature of water in the inner pot rises, steam is generated from the surface. When the boiling point is reached, the steam pressure in the upper space of the inner pot increases, and steam is ejected into the steam chamber through the hole opened in the inner lid. The steam in the steam chamber is guided to the introduction pipe and sent out to the descending spiral cooling pipe on the main body side. In the cold air pipes arranged along the cooling pipe, an air flow of cold air sucked from the opening at the lower end is generated.

As a result, the cold air flow inside the cold air tube cools the vapor flowing downward in the cooling tube.
The cooled steam is condensed into water droplets and flows down, and then drops into the water receiver from the lower pipe end. The water that has been dripped into the water receiver and stored is appropriately discarded. In this way, the steam generated in the inner pot accompanying the rice cooking is condensed into water by the steam diffusion prevention mechanism and prevented from being diffused to the surroundings.

[0012]

【Example】

Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is a structural explanatory view of an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the same or corresponding parts as those of the conventional example are designated by the same reference numerals, but some of them have different structures and will be described in detail.

In FIG. 1, 1 is a rice cooker body, 1a is an outer case of the body 1, and 1b is an upper frame. Reference numeral 2 is an outer hook attached to the main body 1, 3 is an inner hook, 3a is a flange formed by bending the upper end of the inner hook 3 in two steps, and 4 is a shielding plate. The gap between the outer pot 2 and the upper part of the outer case 1a is the upper frame 1b.
Is blocked by. Further, a water level line or the like indicating the amount of water is engraved on the inner surface of the inner pot 3 (see also FIG. 6 hereinafter), and a covering layer is formed on the surface layer so that the inner pot 3 is housed in the main body 1 in a removable manner.

Reference numeral 5 is a rice cooking heater for heating the inner pot 3, and 6 is a temperature sensor. An upward spring pressure is applied to the temperature sensor 6 by a spring, and the temperature sensor 6 contacts the bottom surface of the inner pot 3 to detect the rice cooking temperature. 7 is a cord reel. A cord is wound around the cord reel 7 and stored, and a plug is connected to the tip of the cord. 9 is a latch mechanism, 10 is a push button, and 11 is a latch.

Reference numeral 13 is a lid for covering the upper portion of the main body 1, 14 is a lid frame, 15 is a reflecting plate, and 16 is a shaft fixed to the reflecting plate 15. Reference numerals 17 and 18 denote an annular packing and a tubular packing, and 19 denotes an inner lid. The reflector 15 is an annular packing 17
It is fixed to the lid frame 14 via the inner lid 19 and the shaft 16
It is detachably attached and is elastically attached by the tubular packing 18. When the lid body 13 is in the closed state, the annular packing 17 is provided on the contact surface between the lid frame 14 and the flange 3a of the inner pot 3 to prevent vapor leakage. 20 is a steam room. The steam chamber 20 is formed in the space between the reflection plate 15 and the inner lid 19, and the steam generated in the inner pot 3 during rice cooking is jetted out.

Reference numeral 22 is a latch receiver formed by a part of the front cover frame 14, 23 is a hinge mechanism provided on the other end side, 2
Reference numeral 4 is a hinge shaft, and 25 is a hinge spring. 30 is a lid 1
3 is an operation unit disposed on the upper surface, 31 is an operation sheet, 32
Is an operation key, 33 is an LED or liquid crystal display, and 34 is an operation board (see FIG. 4). A flexible operation key 32 is formed on a portion of the operation sheet 31 which is partitioned by characters or figures, and a translucent portion constitutes a display window of an LED or liquid crystal display 33. The display 33 is attached to the operation board 34 and faces the display window through the through hole.

Reference numeral 40 is a vapor diffusion preventing mechanism, and 41 is a mountain-shaped introduction pipe having a high midway. The introduction pipe 41 is provided in the lid 13 to guide the steam ejected into the steam chamber 20 into the main body 1,
And prevent backflow of water droplets. 42 is a connector, 43 is a cooling pipe, 44 is a cold air pipe, and 45 is an upward exhaust pipe. Further, 46 is a water receiver using, for example, a measuring cup, and 47 is a detector. The cooling pipe 43 and the cold air pipe 44 are composed of two air passages that are in contact with each other and are formed by a conduit having a θ-shaped cross section, and the upper ends thereof are branched to open on the respective surfaces of the upper frame 1b and the outer case 1a.

When the cooling pipe 43 is closed, the cooling pipe 43 is communicated with the introduction passage 41 in a sealed state by the connector 42. Halfway between the cooling pipe 43 and the cold air pipe 44 is formed in a spiral shape surrounding the inner pot 3 and descending in order, and the lower ends thereof are connected and open above the water receiver 46. A switch of the detector 47 is opened / closed depending on the presence or absence of the water receiver 46, and a contact signal is output to a control unit described below. In addition to this, a printed circuit board (not shown) is provided on the bottom of the main body 1, and electronic components such as a microcomputer constituting the control unit 8 are mounted on the printed circuit board. Then, various rice cooking operations are controlled using the contact signal of the detector 47, the detection signal of the temperature sensor 6, and the like. r is the rice in the inner pot 3,
w is water.

The operation of the present invention having the above configuration will be described below. First, the rice r weighed with the attached measuring cup
Put in a bowl and sharpen the rice. After transferring the sharpened rice r into the inner pot 3, pour water w up to the water level line corresponding to the measured amount of rice. The inner pot 3 is housed in the main body 1, the lid 13 is closed, the power cord is pulled out from the cord reel 7, and the plug is connected to the outlet. Here, when the power switch is turned on, the control unit 8 and the operation unit 30 are electrically connected to the power source via the cord reel 7 and become operable. Then, while watching the display of the display unit 33 on the operation unit 30, a key is operated to touch-input a menu or the like.

When the rice cooking start key is pressed, the rice cooking heater 5 is energized to start rice cooking. The rice cooking heater 5 generates heat when energized, and the radiant heat is transferred to the inner pot 3 so that the water inside
Temperature rises. When the cooked rice progresses and the water boils to reach the cooked rice finish temperature, the temperature sensor 6 operates to automatically stop the power supply to the cooked rice heater 5 to cook the cooked rice. And
When the push button 10 of the latch mechanism 9 is pushed, the latch 11 and the latch receiver 22 are disengaged, the lid 13 rotates about the hinge shaft 24, and the main body 1 is opened.

When the temperature of the water w in the inner pot 3 rises as the cooking of rice progresses, steam is generated from the surface of the water. When the boiling point is reached, the steam pressure in the upper space of the inner pot 3 increases, and the steam generated through the hole formed in the inner lid 19 is jetted into the steam chamber 20. The steam jetted into the steam chamber 20 is guided to the introduction pipe 41 and is sent out to the descending spiral cooling pipe 43 on the main body 1 side via the connector 42 which is hermetically connected.

On the other hand, the cold air pipes 44 arranged along the cooling pipes 43 are affected by the temperature of cooked rice in the main body 1 and are in a temperature state slightly higher than the external temperature. Therefore, the cold air tube 4
A convection action is generated inside 4, and cold air in the vicinity of the water receiver 46 is sucked in through the opening at the lower end, and an air flow for exhausting warm air is generated near the hinge mechanism 23 through the opening in the upper end.

As a result, the cold air flow inside the cold air tube 44 cools the steam spirally descending in the cooling tube 43. The cooled steam is condensed into water droplets, flows down in the cooling pipe 43, and drops into the water receiver 46 from the lower pipe end. The water dropped and stored in the water receiver 46 is appropriately discarded. If the power supply circuit is turned on / off by the contact signal of the detector 47 that detects the water receiver 46, it is possible to prevent the water droplets dripping into the water receiver 46 from flowing down. In this way, the steam generated in the inner pot 3 along with the rice cooking is condensed into water by the steam diffusion prevention mechanism 40 and prevented from being diffused to the surroundings.

Although the cooling pipe 43 and the cold air pipe 44 are integrally formed in a θ-shape, they may be constructed as shown in FIGS. 2 (a) to (c). (a) shows separate conduits p1 and p2 glued in a figure-8 shape with an adhesive, (b) shows a concentric double conduit consisting of p1 and p2, and (c) shows a spiral pipe around the straight pipe p1. It is configured by p2, and in any case, the p1 side is used as the cooling pipe 43.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the structure of Embodiment 2 of the present invention. Figure 4
Is a top view and FIG. 5 is a rear view. 3 to 5, reference numeral 48 is a relay pipe of the vapor diffusion preventing mechanism 40, and 49 is a cooler. The relay pipe 48 is the hinge mechanism 2 in the main body 1.
3 is provided below and one end communicates with the introduction pipe 41 via the connector 42. The other end of the relay pipe 48 is the outer case 1a.
The steam that has been extended to the main body side 1 is relayed to the outside of the rear surface.

Further, the cooler 49 is detachably mounted on the back surface of the main body 1 with a gap, and a cooling pipe 43 that descends in a zigzag shape is provided inside. Although not shown in detail, a normally-closed lid is provided at the connection port on the outer case 1a side of the relay pipe 48 so that the normally-closed lid automatically opens and closes in accordance with the attachment / detachment operation of the cooler 49. Has become. When the cooler 49 is attached to the back surface of the main body 1, the relay pipe 48 is communicated with the cooling pipe 43 of the cooler 49. Reference numeral 51 in FIG. 4 is a ventilation groove through which cooling air flows. The second embodiment is different from the first embodiment except that the steam flowing in the cooling pipe 43 of the cooler 49 separated from the main body 1 is naturally cooled by the outside air.
With the same operation as above, the steam is prevented from being emitted outside the rice cooker.

Embodiment 3 The configuration of Embodiment 3 of the present invention is shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. In FIG. 6, the invention of the third embodiment is applied to the induction heating type rice cooker using the heating coil 12 as the heating means. 52 is a basket-shaped cooler, 53 is a motor, 54
Is an air blower. The cooler 52 includes an annular chamber 55 surrounding the plurality of cooling pipes 43 and the temperature sensor 6 and an exhaust pipe 45.
It is composed of. The upper end of each cooling pipe 43 is opened on the upper frame 1b which is concentric with the inner pot 3, the middle is gathered toward the center along the shape of the inner pot 3, and the lower end is connected to the annular chamber 55. . The exhaust pipe 45 is led out obliquely from the bottom of the annular chamber 55, a drain port is provided near the terminal end, and the exhaust pipe 45 facing slightly upward is connected to the tip. Fan 5 for blast
Reference numeral 4 causes the air sucked from an intake port (not shown) on the bottom surface of the main body 1 to come into contact with each cooling pipe 43 and then exhaust from the exhaust port on the side surface.

In the third embodiment, the steam blown into the steam chamber 20 through the hole formed in the inner lid 19 is basket-like in the main body 1 through a plurality of openings provided in substantially the entire periphery of the inner pot 3. Are sent to the respective cooling pipes 43. Then, the steam sent into the plurality of cooling pipes 43 is forcibly cooled by the cool air sent by the fan 54 and rapidly condensed into water droplets. The amount of air blown by the fan 54 is appropriately selected from breeze, strong wind or intermittent air blow depending on the amount of cooked rice, that is, the amount of steam generated. According to the third embodiment, the cooler 52 has a basket shape and a large amount of steam is introduced, and is forcedly cooled by the fan 54 driven by the motor 53. Therefore, the cooler 52 that is rapid and has a high heat exchange efficiency can be configured, so that the steam dissipation prevention device 40 that has no leaked steam is realized.

In the above embodiment, the case where the inside of the cooling pipe 43 is in a hollow state has been described as an example, but as shown in FIG. 9, the cooling pipe 43 may be covered with the porous substance 56 whose cooling area is increased. However, the cooling device 49, the cooling device 52, and other structures are not limited to those in the embodiment.

[0030]

According to the present invention, the steam chamber which is formed between the main body and the lid body and into which the steam generated in the inner pot by the heating of the heating means is jetted, and the steam jetted in the steam chamber are provided on the main body side. To the main body side through the introduction path, the cooling path spirally descends around the inner pot, and air for cooling the steam flowing inside along the cooling path. A rice cooker is equipped with a steam dissipation prevention mechanism that has a cold air duct that draws in air from the lower intake port and exhausts it to the upper exhaust port, and a water receiver that receives the condensed water of the steam cooled in the cold air duct. did.

Further, a steam chamber which is formed between the main body and the lid body and into which steam generated in the inner pot by heating of the heating means is jetted, and an introduction path for guiding the steam jetted in the steam chamber to the main body side. And a relay path for relaying the steam guided to the main body side through the introduction path to the outside of the back surface, and a steam that is connected to the relay path and is provided in the main body with a gap to cool the steam flowing inside with the ambient air. A rice cooker provided with a steam dissipation prevention mechanism having a cooling path that descends substantially in a zigzag shape and a water receiver that receives condensed water of steam cooled in the cooling path.

Further, a steam chamber which is formed between the main body and the lid body and into which steam generated in the inner pot by the heating means is ejected, and a steam chamber which surrounds the inner pot in the main body and are respectively opened in the steam chambers. A plurality of cooling paths formed in a basket shape that guides the steam ejected downwards, an annular chamber where the cooling channels are gathered to collect water with condensed steam inside the main body, and an annular chamber A rice cooker provided with a steam dissipation prevention mechanism having an exhaust path for guiding collected water and air to a drain port and an exhaust port, and a water receiver for receiving water flowing out from the exhaust path.

As a result, since the water vapor filled in the space is not introduced into the heat exchanger through the single thin introduction hole as in the conventional case, the amount of the introduced water vapor becomes large and the excess vapor leaks out and is dissipated. There is nothing. In addition, if the cooling pipe and the cold air pipe are integrally formed or are naturally cooled as in the first and second embodiments, a compact rice cooker having a simple overall structure can be provided. Furthermore, according to the third embodiment in which the basket-type cooler and the forced cooling fan are provided, the amount of steam introduced increases, the heat exchanging operation is quick, and the exchanging efficiency can be remarkably enhanced.

Thus, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a rice cooker having a simple structure, a small amount of steam vapor leakage, and a high vapor cooling mechanism for preventing vapor vaporization.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of another cooling pipe according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a top view showing a configuration of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a rear view showing the configuration of the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the structure of a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a top view of the main body according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the essential parts of Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a modified example of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a conventional rice cooker.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Main body 1a Outer case 1b Upper frame 3 Inner pot 5 Rice cooker 6 Temperature sensor 8 Control part 9 Latch mechanism 12 Heating coil 13 Lid body 14 Lid frame 19 Inner lid 20 Steam chamber 23 Hinge mechanism 30 Operating part 32 Operation key 33 Indicator 40 Vapor Dispersion Prevention Mechanism 41 Inlet Path (Pipe) 42 Connector 43 Cooling Path (Pipe) 44 Cold Air Path (Pipe) 45 Exhaust Path (Pipe) 46 Water Receiver 47 Detector 48 Relay Pipe 49 Cooler 50 Control Unit 51 Vent Groove 52 Cooler 53 Motor 54 Fan for ventilation 55 Annular chamber

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A steam chamber which is formed between a main body and a lid and into which steam generated in the inner pot by heating of the heating means is ejected,
An introduction path that guides the steam ejected into the steam chamber to the main body side, and a cooling path in which the steam introduced to the main body side through the introduction path flows in and spirally descends around the inner pot, A cool air duct that sucks air that cools the steam flowing inside along the cooling passage from a lower intake port and discharges the air to an upper exhaust port, and receives condensed water of the vapor cooled in the cold air duct. A rice cooker characterized by being provided with a steam dissipation prevention mechanism having a water receiver. 2. A steam chamber which is formed between the main body and the lid and into which steam generated in the inner pot by the heating of the heating means is ejected,
An introduction path for guiding the steam ejected into the steam chamber to the main body side, a relay path for relaying the steam guided to the main body side via the introduction path to the outside of the rear surface, and the main body connected to the relay path. A cooling path that is provided with a gap between and that descends in a substantially convoluted manner to cool the steam flowing inside with the ambient air; and a water receiver that receives the condensed water of the steam cooled in the cooling path. A rice cooker characterized by having a vapor emission prevention mechanism provided. 3. A steam chamber which is formed between the main body and the lid, and from which steam generated in the inner pot by the heating of the heating means is ejected,
A plurality of basket-shaped cooling passages, which surround the inner pot in the main body, are opened into the steam chamber and guide the jetted steam downward, and the plurality of cooling passages are gathered together to form the steam inside the steam chamber. An annular chamber that collects condensed water in the lower portion of the main body, an exhaust path that guides the water and air collected in the annular chamber to a drain port and an exhaust port, and a water receiver that receives water flowing out from the exhaust path. A rice cooker characterized by having a vapor emission prevention mechanism provided.