JPS6031711A - Display apparatus of rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Technical Field) The present invention relates to a rice cooker that allows rice to be cooked at a desired time.

(Prior Art) Recently, rice cookers have been designed with a timer that allows you to set a desired finishing time so that the rice is finished at that time. By making it possible to perform the cooking of side dishes to coincide with the 9-hour period when the rice is finished, the side dishes can be deliciously eaten with the rice without the side dishes becoming cold if the cooking of the side dishes is delayed. That is what is being considered.

However, in order to put such a rice finishing timer into practical use, there is a need to develop a rice cooker that can finish cooking rice in a fixed amount of time from the start of cooking, and the development of this type of rice cooker is currently underway. For example, a preheating process,
a capacity determination step of collecting rice cooking capacity determination data and determining the rice cooking capacity based on the data; a cooking step of cooking the rice with a heating power according to the determination result in the previous step;
There is a rice cooker that sequentially executes the unevenness process in which the rice is finished unevenly, and by making each of the preheating process, capacity determination process, and unevenness process constant, the time from the start of cooking until the rice is finished is fixed. However, since the cooking process detects changes in the temperature of the pot and ends when the temperature of the pot reaches the predetermined cooking temperature, the process includes an element of temporal instability. It turns out. Therefore, although the time from the start of rice cooking until the rice is finished at 9 is approximately constant, it is unavoidable that there is some degree of time variation.

Therefore, if you implement a rice finishing timer on such a rice cooker to start cooking rice a certain amount of time before the end of the set time, if you simply display the remaining time until the set finishing time, the remaining time will be displayed. There is a time lag between when the time display reaches [01] and when the rice is actually finished after the swarming process is finished, so even if the remaining time is displayed as [-〇].
In cases where the rice is still undergoing the grainy process when the rice is finished, the user will think that the rice is finished and eat it pretending to be rice. If this was not done, it would lead to the problem of eating sticky and lackluster rice, which could also be the cause of lowering the reliability of the product.

(Purpose) The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it solves the above-mentioned problems by making the finish display on the time display coincide with the time when the rice is actually cooked. This is to improve reliability.

(Example) Examples of the present invention shown in the drawings will be described in detail below.

First, FIG. 1 shows a schematic structure of the rice cooker of the present invention.

In the figure, 1 is the main body of the rice cooker, 2 is an outer pot, 3 is a hot plate type rice cooker heater installed at the inner bottom of the outer pot 2, and 4 is a rice cooker that can be moved in and out of the outer pot 2 and stores cooking items such as rice and water. Within! +8.5 is a heat-retaining heater installed on the outer surface of the outer pot 2; 6 is a thermosensor such as a thermosensor that is in contact with the center of the outer bottom of the inner pot 4 and detects all temperature changes in the food; 7 is a thermosensor installed on the outer surface of the outer pot 2. 8 is an operation panel provided on the outer surface of the rice cooker main body 1, and 9 is a control board built into the operation panel 8. Although not shown in the drawings, it goes without saying that an inner lid for opening and closing the opening of the inner pot 4 and an outer lid for covering the outside of the inner pot 4 are provided as is well known in the art.

As shown in the second diagram, the operation spring /L/8 has number display elements 11, 1.1. Colon 121 Hour display section 10 with hour display lamp 13 and minute display lamp 14 and preheating. Rice cooking indicator lamp 16. Operation display section 15 with 1 degree cooking/unevenness indicator lamp 17 and heat retention indicator lamp 18, burnt setting display section with burnt density indicator lamp 19, 20, rice cooking/timer start key 21, burnt rice Various control keys such as an adjustment key 22, a heat retention key 23, a cancel key 24, a time set key 25, and a minute throat key 26 are arranged.

Next, FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram in which the present invention is implemented by a microcomputer, in which the rice cooking heater 3 is connected to the AC power supply 28 through the contacts of the rice cooking relay 27, and
A series circuit consisting of contacts of a heat-retaining heater 5, a heat-retaining thermal reed switch 7, and a heat-retaining IJL/-29 is connected in parallel to the contact 7.

The rice cooking relay 27 and the heat-retaining relay 29 are controlled to be turned on and off by a microcomputer, which will be described later, and control the power supply to the rice-cooking heater 3 and the heat-retaining heater 5 to perform rice cooking or heat-retaining operation.

Both relays 27 and 29 are provided on a control board 9, which is also provided with a microcomputer, the aforementioned numeric display element, a display lamp (light emitting diode), various control keys, and the like. Incidentally, the power for the control section as described above is obtained from an AC power source via a transformer 30.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the entire control circuit. 41st pH
The C7.31 is a microcomputer, mainly consisting of a central processor (hereinafter referred to as CPU) 32, an electronic timer 33, a read-only memory (hereinafter referred to as ROM) 34,
It is composed of an arbitrary access memory (hereinafter referred to as RAM) 35 and an interface (input/output signal processing circuit) 36. The ROM 34 stores a control program for the CPU 32, and the RAM 35 is used as a data memory for the CPU 32.

Therefore, the CPU 32 reads the status of each part on the input side via the interface 36, and also reads the control program from the ROM 34 to perform preheating, capacity determination, cooking, once cooking/uniform cooking, warming, etc. The process is determined and the heating unit necessary to execute the process is controlled via the interface 36, and the process transition is performed by an electronic timer 33 in cooperation with the CPU 32.

Incidentally, the electronic timer 33 counts a predetermined time according to instructions from the CPU 32 and outputs a signal after the predetermined time.

Explain in detail.

First, FIG. 5 is a main flowchart of the rice cooker of the present invention, in which the steps of primary heating, secondary preheating, capacity determination, finished cooking, once-cooking/uniformity, and heat retention are sequentially executed from the start of rice cooking. Each process other than the cooking process and the warming process is executed for a predetermined time (constant). Further, the cooking process is completed by detecting the temperature of the food to be cooked, but the temperature remains approximately constant by employing a control method that will be described in detail later. Incidentally, FIG. 6 is a curve diagram showing the relationship between the elapsed time from the start of rice cooking to keeping it warm and the temperature adjustment of the thermosensor 6. Control of each process will be explained below.

〇 -Next, when the second preheating process rice cooking/timer start key 21 is turned on, the CPU
32, and by reading out the control program contents in the ROM 34 corresponding to the stored contents, the flowchart of the primary heat process shown in FIG. 7, followed by that shown in FIG. Control is performed as shown in the flow chart of the secondary preheating step.

In the primary heat process, rice cooking/timer start key 2
When 1 is turned on, the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 is set to a predetermined temperature t1, and the contact of the rice cooking relay 27 is turned on.
Then, electricity is started to be supplied to the rice cooking heater 3, and the food to be cooked is preheated for a certain period of time T1. The temperature setting of the thermosensor 6 and the determination as to whether the set temperature has been reached are performed as follows. The temperature detected by the thermosensor 6 is converted into a digital signal by digital-to-analog conversion and sent to the CP.
The digital signal is read into U32, where the digital signal is compared with the set temperature stored in ROM 34, and a match or mismatch is determined.

The rice cooking heater 3 is continuously energized at 1, when the temperature of the thermosensor 6 that detects the temperature of the food reaches a predetermined temperature tl. However, if the temperature of the thermosensor 6 does not reach the predetermined temperature even after the T1 time has elapsed, the wet hair of the thermosensor 60 will reach the predetermined temperature within 1 hour. When the temperature reaches t1, the remaining time is switched to intermittent control of ON-~LAX for 10 seconds (for example, 15 seconds) and OFF-Fix for several seconds (for example, 5 seconds) to maintain the predetermined temperature t1 as much as possible. Control. This intermittent control will be explained.

Now, if the temperature of the thermosensor 6 reaches the predetermined temperature t1 due to continuous energization to the rice cooking heater 3 and the energization to the rice cooking heater 3 is stopped, the temperature determination means B in the CPU 32 stops the energization to the rice cooking heater 3. The temperature of the thermosensor 6 reaches the predetermined temperature 1.5 seconds after 5 seconds have passed. It is determined whether or not the temperature is too high, and if it is high, the electricity supply to the rice cooking heater 3 is continued to be stopped, and the temperature of the thermosensor 6 is again judged after a further 5 seconds have elapsed. Conversely, if the temperature of the thermosensor 6 is lower than the predetermined temperature by 1°, the power supply to the rice cooking heater 3 is restarted, and the temperature of the thermosensor 6 is lowered to the predetermined temperature of 1°. When reaching the temperature, the power to the rice cooking heater 3 was stopped again, and after 5 seconds had passed since the power was stopped, the temperature of the thermosensor 6 was checked again. Even after Jf, if the temperature of the thermosensor 6 does not reach the predetermined temperature t1, the power supply to the rice cooking heater 3 is stopped after 15 seconds have elapsed, and the temperature of the thermosensor 6 is judged again after 5 seconds have elapsed, and the temperature of the thermosensor 6 is determined as necessary. If so, the rice cooking heater 3 is energized.

As described above, if the temperature of the thermosensor 6 reaches the predetermined temperature [1] within time T1, the ON-MAX for 15 seconds, 5
It performs intermittent control of seconds 0FF-Fix, and an example of the control state is shown in FIG. In addition, the above 15 seconds or 5 seconds
The time of seconds is not particularly limited, and may be determined at any time depending on the size of the rice cooker, the size and structure of the rice cooking heater, etc.

Therefore, this -Tsujiko heat process is aimed at correcting the temperature of the food to be cooked with respect to the water temperature and air temperature at the beginning of rice cooking, and it also applies when the water temperature at the start of rice cooking is low or the air temperature is low. This is to ensure that the temperature rise of the food to be cooked can keep up with the control mode described below.

The reason why the intermittent control of 15 seconds ON-MAX and 5 seconds 0FF-Fix was adopted will be explained in detail in the next stage of the secondary preheating process.

In the secondary preheating process, a predetermined temperature of 1. The temperature of the food is raised to t2 over a certain period of time T2, and the intermittent control method of 15 seconds ON-MAX and 5 seconds OFF-Fix is executed for the entire T2 period. At the same time, the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 is increased by, for example, 2° C. every time a certain period of time, for example, 52 seconds has elapsed.

Now, when the -second heating process is completed and the process proceeds to the secondary preheating process, the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 is set to (t, +2°C), and the temperature interval time T.

Set to 52 seconds, 15 seconds ON-MAX, 5 seconds 0FF-
By controlling the power supply to the rice cooking heater 3 using the intermittent control method of Fix, secondary preheating of the food to be cooked is started. Then, every time 52 seconds elapse, the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 is increased by 2°C, and eventually, after a certain period of time T2 has passed from the start of secondary preheating, the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 reaches the t'z temperature. , flag area C of RAM35
Once specified, the process moves to the next stage capacity determination step.

Such a secondary preheating process promotes water absorption of rice,
The purpose of this method is to ensure that the temperature of the cooked food is constant and uniform when moving to the next stage of volume and determination process, so that the volume can be determined accurately regardless of the rice cooking capacity. There is. Therefore, it is desirable to set the t2 temperature to around 60°C, and it is desirable to set the t2 temperature to about 8 to 10 minutes for 12 hours.

Here, the reason for adopting the continuous control method of 15 seconds ON-MAX and 5 seconds OFF-Fix will be described. As in the present invention, in a device that gradually increases the setting of 614 degrees of the thermosensor 6, if the rice cooker heater 3 is continuously energized for a long time, the thermostat will change after stopping the energization to the rice cooker heater 3. Overshoot of sensor temperature is the first
As shown in Figure 10 (a), when the overshoot becomes too large and ideal control is no longer possible, by adopting an intermittent control method, the overshoot can be kept small as shown in Figure 10 (1). The humidity of the sensor 6 does not deviate greatly from the set temperature, and good control can be performed. In addition, each time the rice cooking heater 3 is turned off, the electricity is stopped for at least a certain period of time (5 seconds), so during this time, the temperature of the food to be cooked becomes uniform, especially the temperature of the parts near and far from the rice cooking heater 3. The difference is reduced, and the degree B difference can be significantly reduced compared to when the rice cooking heater 3 is continuously energized. Furthermore, there is a slight time lag in the temperature rise and temperature difference between the thermosensor 6 and the food being cooked due to differences in heat capacity, etc.
In the energization stop period in the intermittent control as described in 1 above, the time difference is absorbed, and the temperatures of the two are brought closer to each other to reduce the difference between them, resulting in highly accurate and better control.

The preheating control means for executing the primary and secondary preheating steps as described above is the rice cooking/timer start control key 21.
, storage means A in the CPU 32, humidity determination means B, control program contents in the ROM 34 corresponding to the contents stored in the storage means A, a thermosensor 6, a rice cooking relay 27, etc.

0 Volume ■ 11 Judgment process When moving from the secondary preheating process to the capacity judgment process, RAM3
Based on the designation of the flag area C of No.
Control is performed as shown in the flowchart shown in FIG.

In this capacity determination step, the temperature of the cooked food that has risen to temperature t2 is lowered to temperature t3 over a certain period of time T4. MAX, 5 seconds 0FF-Fix is executed, and the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 is increased by, for example, 2 degrees Celsius every time a certain period of time, for example, 40 seconds, as shown in Figure 12, is elapsed. The energization time to the rice cooking heater 3 is stored in the rice cooking capacity determination data storage area in the RAM 35 and is accumulated.

Now, proceeding to the capacity determination step, the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 is set to (, t2 + 2°C), the temperature interval time T5 is set to 40 seconds, and the ON-MAX for 15 seconds is set.
, executes an intermittent control method of 0FF-Fix for 5 seconds. During this time, if the temperature of the thermosensor 6 is lower than the set temperature, the rice cooking heater 3 is energized for a maximum of 15 seconds to heat and raise the temperature of the food, while adding up the energization time to the rice cooking heater 3. go. In this way, every time 40 seconds elapse, the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 is increased by 2°C, and the power supply time to the rice cooking heater 3 is calculated, until 14 hours have passed since the start of the capacity determination process. When the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 becomes the IJ humidity temperature and the flag area of the RAM 35 is specified after , the rice cooking capacity is determined based on the cumulative energization time of the rice cooking heater 3. Incidentally, in the capacity determination step, the timing of energizing the rice cooking heater with respect to changes in setting and measured temperature is illustrated in FIG. 13.

In the capacity determination step, [3] The temperature is not particularly limited, but is preferably determined within the range of 85°C to 90'C. That is, in the structure of the rice cooker as shown in the first diagram, from t2 (around 60'C) to t3 (85-9
The temperature range (0° C.) is the temperature range where the rice cooking heater energization time changes the most with respect to the size of the rice cooking capacity, and is the most preferable as the collection period for the rice cooking capacity determination data.

Next, determination of rice cooking capacity will be explained. The rice cooking capacity is determined by reading out the rice cooking capacity determination program stored in the ROM 34 in advance based on the designation of the flag area, determining the rice cooking capacity as shown in the flowchart shown in FIG. Determine the heating sequence during the cooking process. This heating sequence is a heating power adjustment, specifically a fixed period (for example, 64 seconds)
How to adjust the time to energize the rice cooking heater 3, where
Adopt so-called duty control. The heating tutee in the next stage of cooking and heating process, which is determined as a result of capacity determination, applies a heater voltage suitable for the rice cooking capacity, but in order to completely gelatinize the rice, it is necessary to The conditions are that the rice should be kept for at least 30 minutes, that there should be no boiling over, and that the cooking time should be constant.

In addition, the rice cooking capacity is determined by taking into consideration the accumulated time of energizing the rice heater, the power supply voltage when the rice heater is energized, and whether the rice is cooked by a timer or by instant cooking, thereby making the determination more accurate. That is, as can be seen from the experimental data in FIG. 15, even if the rice cooking heater energization time is the same, the rice cooking capacity determination result varies greatly depending on the level of the power supply voltage and whether or not timer rice cooking is used. For example, when the cumulative time is 240 seconds, the rice cooking capacity determination value varies over a range of 3 to 8 cups.

For this reason, it is possible to perform accurate capacity determination by performing program processing based on the above three conditions, and the mechanism is shown in the flowchart of FIG. 14. The above timer rice cooking will be explained in detail later, but in the case of timer rice cooking, from the time of setting +/r fri time, it is necessary to set the timer (11'l' flat (size, 111σ) in the immersion state. Since the rice absorbs a certain amount of water at the start of cooking, the amount of water absorbed by the rice is different compared to when rice is immediately cooked.This causes a difference in the cumulative energization time of the rice heater even if the rice cooking capacity is the same. By including a condition as to whether the rice is cooked immediately or immediately, the water absorption amount of the rice is corrected.

In FIG. 14, the rice cooking capacity is determined at the end of the capacity determination process. First, by reading out the timer rice cooking determination contents temporarily stored in the RAM 35, it is determined whether the rice cooking currently being executed is timer rice cooking or instant rice cooking. still,
The time setting means E reads whether or not the time has been set using the timer set key before operating the rice cooking/timer start key, and temporarily stores the information in the RAM 35 in advance.

After this determination is completed, the value of the current power supply voltage is compared with the value stored in the ROM 34 to determine whether the power supply voltage is in the low voltage, standard voltage, or high voltage range. After that, the rice cooking capacity is determined as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 16 based on the rice cooking heater energization cumulative time. The rice cooking capacity is divided into 6 categories depending on timer rice cooking and instant rice cooking, and the state of the power supply voltage for each rice cooking, and each category is further divided into 10 stages according to the unique time width and cumulative rice heating energization time. A heating duty (01), which will be described later, is set for each capacity, and the programmed contents of these are stored in advance in the ROM 34.

After determining the power supply voltage, read the rice cooking heater energization cumulative time TR temporarily stored in the RAM 35, and
By reading the rice cooking capacity determination program in the ROM 34, the rice cooking capacity is determined as shown in the flowchart shown in FIG.
The rice cooking capacity when the relationship of <0 is reached is determined, and the heating duty is determined based on this determined capacity Go. In this way, after T1 time has elapsed, the flag area F of the RAM 35
When specified, the process moves to the next stage of cooking.

As described above, in the capacity determination process, while increasing the set temperature of the thermosensor 6 by 2 degrees Celsius every 15 hours, the ON-
By executing the intermittent control method of MAX, 0FF-Fix for 5 seconds, the temperature of the food to be cooked is raised from t2 temperature to t3 temperature over 16 hours, the time during which electricity is applied to the rice cooking heater 3 is accumulated, and this Based on the cumulative energization time, the rice cooking capacity is determined in consideration of the state of the power supply voltage and whether the rice is cooked on a timer or immediately, and the heating duty in the cooking process is determined.

As can be seen from Figure 14, the number of rice cooking capacity determinations is 60 types in 6 categories and 10 stages, all with different heating duties set.
■It is based on the formula.

The above formula 0 is a formula that calculates the heating power until boiling, and the formula (2) is a formula that calculates the heating power after boiling. Here, by keeping the cooking and burning time (0+■) constant, the heating power (■+■) can be charged according to the ■■ formula. and,
A heater of a size that has a margin for the maximum value of the heating power (■ + ■) determined in this way is adopted as a rice cooking heater,
By controlling the duty of this heater, heating power suitable for each capacity is generated.

In this duty control, the time T6 for energizing the rice cooking heater 3 within a certain period is determined by the following equation (0) (see FIG. 17).

Although the cycle of the duty control is set to 64 seconds, this is a value set in consideration of the lifespan of the rice cooking relay 27, and is not particularly limited to this value.

O Cooking process When moving to the cooking process, the heating program contents corresponding to the heating duty determined in the previous capacity determination process are stored in the ROM3 based on the designation in the flag area F of the RAM35.
4, the rice cooking heater 3 is duty-controlled to raise the temperature of the food to the cooking temperature t4 (approximately 124°C), and when it exceeds the temperature t4, it is detected by the thermosensor 6. Then, the process is ended, and the flag area G of the RAM 35 is designated, and the process proceeds to the next stage of once-cooking/shading process (see the flowchart in FIG. 18).

Unlike the previous steps, this cooking and aging process ends when the temperature of the thermosensor 6 reaches the t4 temperature, so it includes an element of temporal instability.
By determining the rice cooking capacity, determining a heating duty suitable for this, and executing duty control of the rice cooking heater in the relevant process based on this, the lk'jllI] T7 required for the rice cooking process varies. is extremely small, and is approximately a constant time of 1.

〇1-degree cooking and unevenness process In the 1-degree cooking and unevenness process, the burn setting contents temporarily stored in the RAM 35 are read based on the designation of the flag area G of the RAM 35, and the contents of the ROM 34 corresponding to the setting contents are read out. By reading out the contents of the control program, control is performed as shown in the flowchart shown in FIG. By pressing "Standard" - "Light J4 Standard" → "
It can be set repeatedly in the following order: "Dark" → "Standard" → "Light J -y..." Burning degree determining means I counts the number of times the key 22 is pressed, and determines the number of times the key 22 is pressed (the setting contents) is temporarily stored in the RAM 35. Then, once the cooking/smoothing process is started, the burn setting content is read out from the RAM 35, and the control program content in the ROM 34 corresponding to this content is read out, thereby controlling as shown in the flowchart shown in FIG. . Each figure in FIG. 20 is a diagram showing the relationship between the temperature change of the thermosensor and the energization state of the rice cooking heater in the same process, and (a)
When set to ``Light'', (b) when set to ``Standard'', (C) when set to ``Dark''
Indicates the time of setting.

If it is currently set to "Light", it detects that the temperature of the thermosensor 6 has reached the t4 temperature (124℃) and starts counting the time, and when one minute has passed, the rice cooker heater 3 is switched on. Electricity is applied for a period of time (5 seconds) to add thorns to the food to be cooked, that is, rice, and then electricity to the rice cooking heater 3 is stopped.

When set to "Standard", it detects that the temperature of the thermosensor 6 has become less than 14 degrees and starts counting the time, and when one minute has passed, the thermosensor 6 The food to be cooked is heated until the temperature reaches t4 temperature, and when the temperature reaches t, the power supply to the rice cooking heater 3 is stopped and the rice cooking heater 3 is kept in a stopped state from then on.

When set to "IJ", the temperature of the thermosensor 6 becomes less than t4 temperature and 1
After a minute, turn on the power to the rice cooking heater 3 and return to the temperature 4.
However, after that, once again, the temperature of the thermosensor 6 is counted for 1 minute from when it becomes less than the t4 temperature, and after 1 minute has elapsed, the rice cooking heater 3 is energized, and once again the temperature of the thermosensor 6 is lower than t4. , heat the food until it reaches the desired temperature, and then turn off the electricity.

Thus, the one-time cooking and shading process is completed from the start by T81 hemorrhoid swirl +A and I-, and the flag area H of the RAM 35 is designated and the process moves to the warming process.

This one-cooking/smoothing process finishes the rice by draining the cooked rice and adjusting the charring, and by the end of this process, the rice has been sufficiently smoothed and the rice is ready to eat. can get.

Incidentally, the setting of the thorns can be done arbitrarily before proceeding to the cooking and shading process, and subsequent setting operations will be invalid.

As described above, the rice cooking control means includes the preheating control means, each flag area of the RAM2S, the program contents in the ROM 34 corresponding to each area, the electronic timer 33, the ROM 34, and the RA M2S.
This includes other memory contents in M35, etc., and determines the capacity of the food to be cooked based on the signal from the thermosensor 6, and controls the energization to the rice cooking heater 3 based on the determination result. It is depicted that the rice cooking is completed in a substantially constant cooking time from the start of rice cooking (start of -tsujiko heat), and that the rice is finished after a certain uneven time after the rice cooking is completed.

O Warmth Keeping Step When the heat keeping step is started, the heat keeping relay 29 is turned on, and this ON state continues until the cancel key 24 is pressed. Control in the heat retention process is performed by a heat retention thermal reed switch 7 that detects changes in the temperature of the food to be cooked, and as shown in FIG.
N and OFF control the power supply to the rice cooking heater 3 and the warming heater 5 to keep the rice to be cooked warm. The temperature setting of the thermal reed switch 7 is set to a temperature suitable for keeping rice warm, for example, 70°C.

Next, one means of the rice finishing timer will be explained. This timer means is only for executing the timer rice cooking, and is configured to arbitrarily set the finishing time and cause the rice cooking control means to start the rice cooking a certain period of time before the end of the set time. .

The rice finishing timer means includes a time setting means E in crua 2, a rice cooking start determination means including program contents specified by the flag, a display control means including program contents specified by the flag, time setting program contents in the ROM 34, □Electronic timer 33, RAM35.
Time display section 10, rice cooking/timer start key 21. Hour cent key 25 and minute set key 26 ≠ 2] 11)
This will be explained step by step with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 22 to 24.

When the power is turned on now, each part of the microcomputer 31 starts up, the flag area J of the RAM 35 is specified,
By reading out the program contents in the ROM 34 corresponding to this, the number display element 11.11 in the time display section 10 displays "88" and the colon 12 blinks, indicating that the power has been turned on. Displays that there is a power outage.

In the cancel mode, only colon I2 lights up. Cancellation key 24
is valid in all modes after the power is turned on, and when the cancel key 24 is turned on, each part is stopped by storing it in the storage means in the C, PU 32 and reading out the program contents in the ROM 34 corresponding to the stored contents. year,
Only colon 12 is lit.

Next, the time is set by pressing the hour set key 25 and the minute set key 26 in the power-on mode or cancel mode, and the time setting means E reads the input states of both set keys 25 and 26, and ROM3
By reading the contents of the time setting program and the contents of the display program from 4, the process is carried out as shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 22 and 23.

Now, when the time set key 25 is pressed, the colon 12 and the hour display lamp 13 are turned on, and while the cell 1 key 25 is pressed, the time data is counted up by one hour at a constant cycle. fil, 2 to the number display element 11
．． The time is set up to a limit of 12 hours using numerical displays such as 3. Next, when the minute set ° key 26 is pressed, the minute display lamp 14 lights up and the display on the hour display section 10 is switched to the minute display, and the minute data is displayed in 10 minutes at a constant cycle while the set key 26 is pressed. The count is counted up minute by minute, and the numerical display element 11 indicates 10,20°30.
. . . Finally, by pressing the rice cooking/timer start key 21f, the hours and minutes are set, the colon 12 blinks, and the timer is put into operation. The time display section 1o is normally in a time display state, and switches to minute display only when the minute set key is pressed.

If the key is not operated for a certain period of time (for example, 4 seconds) before pressing the rice cooking/timer start key 21, the display switches to timer start standby mode (for example, hours and minutes are displayed alternately). If the process continues for a certain period of time (for example, 3 minutes), the mode is switched to the cancel mode.

When the timer is in actual operation, the display control is performed by counting down the time data over the set time and reading out the display program contents, as shown in the flowchart shown in FIG. That is, as time passes, the time display by the numerical display element counts down in units of one hour to display the remaining time until the end of the meal, and when the remaining time becomes less than one hour, the number displays. The C6 display, in which the display element switches from the time display to the CO (abbreviation for COOK) display, continues until the cooking process is completed. Then, the time until the end of the set time is T. When the time (time shorter than 1 hour) is reached, this is determined and the rice cooking control means starts cooking the rice.
The preheating/rice cooking indicator lamps 16 are blinked to indicate that the rice cooking operation has started and the second heating step has started, and this display continues until the second preheating step is completed. Then, when T 1+ 72 hours have passed from the start of rice cooking and the process moves to the capacity determination process, the Co display and the preheating/cooking indicator lamp 16 are switched from blinking to continuous lighting, and the capacity determination process and the subsequent cooking process are started. is running.

Then, at the same time that the temperature of the thermosensor 6 reaches the t4 temperature and the cooking process shifts to the once-cooking/uniforming process, the once-cooking/uniformity display lamp 17 is turned on, and the C8 display on the time display section 10 is displayed. Switch to minute display, display the execution time T8 of the cooking/smoothing process, that is 12 minutes, and then count down in 1 minute increments, and display the remaining time until the rice is finished. The displayed time coincides with the end of the first cooking and shading process. When moving to the heat retention process, the heat retention display lamp 18 is lit, the hour display lamp 13 is lit, the time display is switched to the time display, the time data is incremented, and the time display section 10 displays the elapsed heat retention time. , counts up in hourly increments.

Here, the above T. To explain the time, these 10 hours are determined based on the total time of T1, T2, T, and T7 and T8. In making this decision, T1, T2, T
,・T8 is a constant time, so there is no problem, but 17 hours includes unstable elements as explained in the previous cooking process, so it is necessary to consider how much of the 17 hours should be expected. be.

However, as explained earlier, although there is some variation in 17 hours, it is a nearly constant time, so it was determined based on experimental data, and 17 hours, including each time of TI T2 T4 Ts.
If you decide on 0 hours, there will be a difference between 10 hours and the actual time required from the start of cooking until the rice is finished.
The difference is T. From the perspective of the entire time, it can be kept extremely small.

Also, in the time display section 10, from Co display to
The time from the start of the unevenness process to the switching to minute display is calculated to be 48 minutes, but in reality it does not necessarily match because the unstable time T7 is included. However, the time period including T7 is displayed using Co and does not display time, and the time difference is extremely small. Furthermore, the end of the cooking and shading process coincides with the 0 display, so the user cannot It is possible to almost certainly obtain the most ripe rice at the desired set time without impairing the reliability of the rice.

In addition, when the rice is not cooked even after one hour has passed from the start of cooking (when the temperature of the thermosensor 6 does not reach the t4 temperature), the numerical display element 11.11 displays rEEJ,
It becomes error mode. At this time, power supply to the rice cooking heater 3 is also stopped.

Furthermore, when 25 hours or more have passed since the start of heat preservation, the time display in the time display section 10 disappears and the heat preservation display lamp 18 is turned off.
only lights up.

In the case of instant cooking, the time and operation display is performed during the once-cooking/uniformity process and the warming process, just like timer cooking, but only the operation display is displayed from the -second heating process until the end of the cooking process. The preheating/cooking indicator lamp 16 is blinked during the next and secondary preheating steps, and the lamp 16 is lit continuously during the capacity determination step and the cooking step.

Here, rice cooking using a rice finishing timer means, ie, timer rice cooking, will be briefly explained with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

If you want to finish 4 cups of rice after 12 hours under standard voltage and brown it to the standard degree, first wash the 4 cups of rice, place it in the inner pot 4, and add water accurately to the specified water level. After filling, the inner pot 4 is placed inside the outer pot 2 and the lid is closed. Next, insert the power plug into the outlet and turn on the power.
Set the time to 12 hours by pressing the time set key 25, and then press the rice cooking/timer start key 21.
By pressing , the timer goes into actual operation.

Then, as time passes, the remaining time is 1 on the time display section 1o.
The time is displayed in time increments, and when 11 hours have passed and the remaining time is less than 1 hour, the time display section 10 displays C8.
is displayed, indicating that the rice cooking has entered the standby state.

Furthermore, when the remaining time reaches 10 hours,
When rice cooking starts, the primary rice heating process is executed, and after T1 time has elapsed, the process has shifted to the secondary rice heating process, and after 12 hours have elapsed, the process has moved to the capacity determination process. In this capacity determination step, the set temperature is increased by 2°C at every fixed time T5, and an intermittent control method of ON-MAX for 15 seconds and OFF-Fix for 5 seconds is executed, so that the temperature of the rice cooking heater 3 during this period is increased. The energization time is accumulated, and this accumulated time is collected as data for determining the number of rice cookers. Then, when 14 hours have passed, the rice cooking capacity is determined based on the power supply voltage, timer rice cooking/immediate rice cooking, and the rice cooking heater's cumulative energization time, the corresponding heating duty is determined, and the next stage of cooking is started. Move on to the process. In addition, in the case of this rice cooking example, (2
When entering the region -4) and proceeding to the heating duty cooking step corresponding to the region (2-4), the rice is cooked by heating at the previously determined heating duty. Then, when the temperature of the thermosensor 6 reaches the t4 temperature and the rice is cooked, the time goes to the first cooking/mixing step, and at the same time, 18 hours, that is, 12 minutes is displayed on the time display section 10. Incidentally, before entering the cooking/unshading process, the degree of thorniness is set to "standard" by operating the charring adjustment key 22.

In the once-cooking and shading process, the rice is cooked once and browned by controlling the rice-cooking heater 3 as shown in FIG. When the screen is displayed, the process ends and the process moves to the heat retention process. At this time, approximately 12 hours have passed since the rice cooking/timer start key 21 was pressed, and the rice is sufficiently uniform and ready to eat.

In addition, the present invention controls the power supply to the rice-cooking heater in terms of temperature and time, so that the rice-cooking heater is heated at approximately constant time from the start of rice-cooking.
Any type of control may be adopted as long as the rice can be cooked, and the control is not limited to the one described in the above embodiment.

In addition, the present invention is not limited only to the embodiments described above and shown in the drawings, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be practiced by appropriately changing the temperature, time, etc., without departing from the scope of the invention.

(Effects) As described above, according to the present invention, by making the finish display on the time display coincide with the time when the rice is actually finished,
This eliminates the problem of preparing meals, cooking side dishes, etc. too quickly or too late for the finished rice, and improves reliability in queuing for products.

[BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS] Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the schematic structure of a rice cooker that implements the heater control method of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a front view of the operation panel section of the above, and Fig. 3 is a circuit diagram of the heater as above. , Figure 4 is a block diagram of the entire control circuit, Figure 5 is a flowchart of the same main part, and Figure 6 is a curve diagram showing the relationship between the time elapsed from the start of rice cooking to keeping it warm and the temperature change of the thermosensor. , 7th
Figures 8 and 8 are flowcharts of the second and second preheating steps as described above. Figure 9 is an explanatory diagram showing the intermittent control state of the rice cooking heater as above, and Figures 10 (a) and 10 (b) are continuous energization and intermittent energization of the rice cooking heater. FIG. 11 is a flowchart for collecting judgment data in the capacity determination process as above, FIG. 12 is a diagram showing changes in set temperature in the capacity determination process as above, and FIG. 13 is a diagram showing settings in the capacity determination process as above. FIG. 14 is a flowchart for determining rice recovery in the capacity determination step of the same as above, and FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the relationship between the cumulative time of energization of the rice cooker and the rice cooking capacity in the capacity determination step of the same. Experimental data, Fig. 16 is a flowchart for determining the rice cooking capacity as above, Fig. 17 is an explanatory diagram showing the control state of the rice cooking heater in the above cooking process, Fig. 18 is a flowchart of the above cooking process), l 'Figure 19 is a flowchart of the same one-time cooking and shading process, and Figures 20 (a) to (c) are the same as above 1.
A diagram showing the relationship between the temperature change of the thermosensor and the transmission to the rice cooking heater in the boiling/uniform process, Figure 21 is an explanatory diagram showing the control state of the warming heater in the warming process, and Figure 22 is the same as the above. FIG. 23 is a display flowchart, and FIG. 24 is a time display flowchart. 3: Rice cooking heater, 8: Operation panel, 10: Time display, 31: Microcomputer. Agent Patent Attorney Aihiko Fukushi (and 2 others) No. 9 (3) Chiku 10 Closed Figure 11 No. 15 (3) No. 1612 + 18th Statement of Amendment 1. Indication of the case Patent application No. 58-140754 2. Name of the invention Rice cooker display device 3, Person making the amendment Relationship to the case Patent applicant address 22-22 Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka, 545 Name (504) Sharp Corporation Saeki Akira Representative: Saeki Asahi 4, Agent address: 22-22 Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka 545 Self-initiated 6, Subject of amendment 7, Contents of amendment 1) Specification, page 10, line 13 The statement "Further..." in the 15th to 15th lines is corrected to "When the temperature t drops further, the power supply to the rice cooking heater 3 will be restarted."that's all

Claims (1)

[Claims] l Equipped with a rice finishing timer that sets a desired finishing time and starts cooking a certain amount of time before the end of the set time, and controls electricity supply to the rice cooking heater in terms of temperature and time so that rice cooking starts at a substantially constant time. In a rice cooker that is designed to cook rice and finish the rice after a certain amount of time after cooking, the rice finishing timer displays the remaining time until the set finishing time on the operation panel of the rice cooker itself. A time display section is provided to count down the remaining time on the time display section as time elapses from the start of operation of the rice finishing timer, and at least during a predetermined time period that includes the time from the start of rice cooking until the rice is cooked. The present invention includes display control means for switching the time display on the time display section to a display other than time, displaying the uneven time on the time display section when the rice is finished cooking, and counting down the uneven time as time passes. A rice cooker display device featuring: