JPS61159911A - 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, and more specifically, to a rice cooker that can control the time required for cooking rice.

<Conventional technology> In order to cook delicious rice, after letting the rice absorb enough water,
- It is said that it is necessary to cook the rice with care, and from this point of view, in conventional rice cookers, the rice cooking switch is set to 0.
After setting the temperature to N, the power applied to the rice cooking heater is reduced for a while to allow the rice to absorb sufficient water, and then a large amount of power is applied to the rice cooking heater to cook the rice all at once.

Therefore, delicious rice will be cooked after approximately 50 minutes to 1 hour of cooking time has elapsed.

However, recently, there has been a strong desire to shorten the rice cooking time, and in order to meet this demand, rice cookers that can perform a rice cooking operation without the water absorption process have been provided.

These rice cookers allow you to select between normal rice cooking and quick rice cooking, which omits the water absorption process, by changing the way you operate the rice cooking switch. There is an inconvenience that the rice is cooked quickly even though the rice is in stock, or the rice is cooked normally even though it is planned to be cooked quickly.

Even if such rice cookers are designed to perform quick-cooking operations in addition to normal rice-cooking operations, this function is often not fully utilized, so further improvements are needed.
was desired.

<Purpose> This invention was made in view of the above problems,
To provide a rice cooker that can accurately and reliably select between normal rice cooking operation and quick rice cooking operation.

<Configuration> To achieve the above object, the rice cooker of the present invention includes a first rice cooking means, a second rice cooking means, a first selection means, and a second rice cooking means.
The first rice cooking means is for normal rice cooking, the second rice cooking means is for omitting the water absorption step and immediately performing the cooking step, The first selection means selects the driving of the first rice cooking means, and the second selection means selects the driving of the second rice cooking means, and the first selection means and the second selection means are are installed separately from each other.

Therefore, by selecting the drive of the first rice cooking means by the first selection means, normal rice cooking can be performed, and the second rice cooking means can be operated normally.
If the selection means selects the drive of the second rice cooking means, it is possible to perform quick cooking without the water absorption process.

However, it is also possible to notify that the first rice cooking means or the second rice cooking means has been selected by different audio signals, so that it is possible to notify which rice cooking operation is selected not only visually but also auditorily. You will be able to confirm this.

<Example> Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings showing examples.

In Fig. 1 showing a partially cutaway side view of the rice cooker, (1)
is the rice cooker body, (a is the inner pot, and (3) is the inner pot.
(4) is a rice cooking heater, (5 is a heat-sensitive element in contact with the lower surface of the inner pot (2), and (6) is mainly composed of a microcomputer. (7) is a rice cooking switch.As shown in Figure 2, the rice cooking switch (7) is a rice cooking switch.
), a heat retention switch (9) is provided above the heat retention switch (9), and a timer set switch □ is provided above the heat retention switch (9).
□□ and a timer time indicator (11) are provided, and a heat retention status indicator (12) and a rice cooking status indicator (13) are provided at the top.
), and a timer operation status indicator (14).

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the rice cooker, in which the output signal of the first selection means (20) including the rice cooking switch (power) is applied to the first rice cooking means (21) via the timer means (24), The output signal of the second selection means (22) including the cooking switch (8) is sent to the second rice cooking means (23) via the timer means (24).
), and the output signals of the first rice cooking means (21) and the second rice cooking means (23) are applied to the rice cooking heater (4). The temperature detection signal from the heat sensitive element (S) is transmitted to the first rice cooking means (21) and the second rice cooking means (21).
3) is applied. Furthermore, the output signal of the third selection means (26) including the heat retention switch (9) is transferred to the first rice cooking means (2).
1), second rice cooking means (23), and heat retention means (25)
A temperature detection signal from a temperature sensing element (not shown) is applied to the heat retaining means (25), and an output signal of the heat retaining means (25) is applied to a heat retaining heater (not shown). Moreover, the first selection means (20) and the second selection means (22)
The output signal is applied to the notification means (27).

With the above configuration, normal rice cooking operation,
Alternatively, a quick rice cooking operation can be performed.

To explain in more detail, (1) When the rice cooking switch (71) is operated, the output signal of the first selection means (20) is applied to the first rice cooking means (21). The rice cooking heater (
By controlling the amount of electricity supplied to 4), the rice in the inner pot +2) can be cooked to perfection after the water absorption process is performed. When the temperature detected by the thermosensor (51) reaches a predetermined temperature of 100°C or higher, the first rice cooking means (21) stops its operation to complete the cooking process, and from then on, the heat retention means (25) By controlling the energization to the heat-retaining heater, the steaming process and the subsequent heat-retaining process are performed.Then, at the same time as the rice cooking switch (7) is operated, the notification means (27) gives an audio notification.

+11 When the quick cooking switch (8) is operated, the output signal of the second selection means (22) is applied to the second rice cooking means (23), so the second rice cooking means (23) starts operating,
The rice cooking heater (
By controlling the amount of electricity supplied to 4), the rice in the inner pot (2) can be cooked all at once without performing a water absorption process. Then, the temperature detected by the temperature sensing element (5) is 1
When the predetermined temperature of 00°C or higher is reached, the second rice cooking means (2
3) stops its operation to complete the cooking process, and thereafter the heating means (25) controls the electricity supply to the warming heater to carry out the steaming process and the subsequent warming process. Then, at the same time as the quick-cooking switch (8) is operated, the notification means (27) issues a notification using a voice different from the above-mentioned voice.

l If you operate the heat retention switch (9), the third selection means (
26) starts the operation of the heat retention means (25), and the first rice cooking means (21) which is in the operating state
), or by strongly stopping the operation of the second rice cooking means (23) and controlling the energization to the warming heater to carry out the warming process. Therefore, the heat retention switch (9) can also be used for resetting the rice cooking operation.

(Foundation) Also, if you operate the timer switch color,
When the output signal from the first selection means (20) or the second selection means (22) has passed the time set by the timer, the first rice cooking means (21) or the second rice cooking means (23
) is different from the above, and thereafter, the rice cooking operation can be performed as in (I) (1) above.

Therefore, the rice cooking switch (7') installed separately from each other
, or the quick-cooking switch (8) can be operated without fail, and the normal rice-cooking operation and the quick-cooking rice-cooking operation in which the water absorption step is omitted can be surely selected. Furthermore, since the notification means (21) also provides audio notification in response to the above operation, it is possible to reliably recognize which rice cooking operation has been selected. Then, operate W! If J is incorrect, it can be easily reset by operating the moisturizing switch υ.

FIG. 4 is an electrical circuit diagram showing another embodiment. ,(
30) is a microcomputer having a CPU, ROM, RAM, I10 port, clock generator, etc., and the output terminals of comparators (31) and (32) are connected to the input port of the microcomputer (30). Then, the connection point (35) between the fixed resistor (33) connected in series and the thermistor (34) as a heat-sensitive element is connected to the comparator (31) (32).
) is connected to the non-inverting input terminal of the fixed resistor (
3B) Connect the connection point (38) of (37) to the inverting input terminal of the comparator (31), and connect the fixed resistor (
39) The connection point (41) of (40) is connected to the inverting input terminal of the comparator (32). Further, the output signal of the microcomputer (30) is applied to a notification means (21) consisting of a buzzer or the like.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the principle of determining the amount of cooked rice.

As is clear from this figure, by applying high power to the rice cooking heater (4) at the beginning of the rice cooking process, 1 (2) of the
Let the rice and water inside rise to a certain temperature, then turn on the rice cooker (4
), if you cut off the power to the rice cooker heater (4) and inside!
The heat from 1 (2) is taken away by the rice and water, and the heat from the inner pot (2) is taken away by the rice and water.
bottom temperature decreases. Since the rate of temperature drop at the bottom of inner pot (2) increases as the amount of rice and water increases, this rate of temperature drop, that is, the temperature required for the temperature at the bottom of inner pot (2) to drop to a predetermined temperature. By detecting the time, it is possible to determine the amount of rice and water in the inner pot (2), that is, the amount of cooked rice.

With this configuration, the comparator (31) transmits a signal indicating whether or not the bottom temperature of the inner pot (2) detected by the thermistor (34) is higher than the first predetermined temperature T1°C to the microcomputer. 30), and a signal indicating whether or not the bottom temperature of the inner pot (2) detected by the thermistor (34) is higher than the second predetermined temperature T2°C is input to the microcomputer by comparison 1 (32). (3
0).

In addition, the rice cooking switch (sword and microcomputer (30
).

Furthermore, a triac (44) as a means for controlling the amount of current
and a rice cooking heater (4) are connected in series between both terminals of a commercial alternating current source (42), and the output signal of the heater control circuit (43) is applied to the gate terminal of the triac (44).

Next, the operation of the rice cooker configured as above will be explained using the program shown in FIG.

Preparation for rice cooking operation is completed by putting the desired amount of rice and water corresponding to the amount into the inner pot (2). Therefore, in step ■■■, it is determined whether any of the heat retention switch (9), quick-cooking switch (8), or rice cooking switch (power) is turned on, and if all are off, step Repeat the determination of ■■.

If it is determined that the rice cooking switch (7) is ON, the notification means (21) outputs a sound (for example, a beeping sound) indicating that the normal rice cooking operation has been selected in step (3). In step (2), a water absorption process is performed by applying a small electric power to the rice cooking heater (4). If it is determined that the water absorption process has been carried out for a predetermined period of time, the quick-cooking flag in the RAM is reset in step (2), and a high power is applied to the rice-cooking heater in step (2) to perform the rice-cooking process.

After that, in step 1, it is determined whether the bottom temperature of the inner pot ('2J) has reached 11°C, and if it has not reached 11°C, the power to the rice cooking heater (4) is continued.

On the other hand, after the temperature reaches 11°C, the electricity to the rice cooking heater (4) is cut off in step
Start counting the energization cutoff time at . After starting the count during energization interruption wI, in step O, determine whether the bottom temperature of the inner pot (a) has decreased to 12℃, and if it has not decreased to 12℃, start counting. continue.

In other words, the temperature at the bottom of the inner pot (2) is such that the thermal energy possessed by the inner pot (2) and the rice cooking heater (4) is transferred to the inner pot (2).
The temperature decreases depending on the amount of rice and water in the interior, so the larger the amount of rice and water, the faster the temperature will fall, and the smaller the amount of rice and water, the slower the temperature will fall, depending on the length of this time. This allows you to determine the amount of rice cooked.

On the other hand, after the temperature has decreased to T2°C, the count is stopped in step (2), and it is determined in step (2) whether or not the quick-cooking flag is set.

If the quick-cooking flag has been reset, the count value in step [phase] ■ [phase] will be 12 to 13, -
If the count value is 1 to 12, the rice cooking heater (4) is energized so that the output becomes EV in step [phase], and the count value is 112 to m4. If it is l113, the rice cooking heater (4) is energized so that the output is FW in step [phase], and if the count value is 13 to m4, the rice cooking heater (4) is energized so that the output is GW in step When the power is turned on and the count value is other than 1 to n+4, the rice cooking heater (71) is energized so that the output becomes Hw in step [phase], and from then on, the rice cooking process is repeated with the rice cooking power set as above. By continuing the boiling process and roughly boiling, delicious rice can be cooked. Thereafter, in step [phase], a heat-retaining heater (not shown) is energized to carry out a heat-retaining process to keep the rice warm.

On the other hand, in step ■, the quick-cooking switch (8) is turned on.
If it is determined that this is the case, the water absorption process in step (2) is omitted, and in step (2), the notification means (21) outputs an audio signal indicating that the quick-cooking rice cooking operation has been selected (e.g., audio output of beeping). , set the quick-cooking flag in step ■, and immediately perform the cooking process. During this cooking process,
As shown in steps (1) to (2), the amount of cooked rice is determined by temporarily cutting off the electricity to the rice cooking heater (4).

After that, in step ■, it is determined that the quick cooking flag is set, and in step ■■, the count value is 11 to 12, -2 to -3.13 to ■4, or -4 or more. If it is 1~■2, the output in step [phase] is FW112~■3, the output is Gw in O, and if m3~14, the output in step [phase] is )1w, 1~- If it is other than 4, the rice cooking heater (4) is energized so that it becomes IW in step 0, that is,
The rice cooking heater (4) is energized so that the output is one rank higher than when performing the normal rice cooking operation described above), and from then on, the cooking process is continued in the same way as above, and the boiling process etc. is further performed to make delicious rice. Not only can rice be cooked, but the cooking time can be significantly shortened.

In addition, if it is determined that the keep-warm switch (9) is ON in step (3), the notification means (27) in step [phase] outputs fg voice (for example, a beep) to indicate that the keep-warm operation has been selected. By performing a voice output) and energizing a warming heater (not shown) in step [phase], a warming process can be performed and the rice can be kept warm.

In the above embodiment, the temperature is set so that T > T2, but after cutting off the electricity to the rice cooking heater (4),
Since the detected temperature will rise for a while, the temperature can be set so that T1 = T2. In this case, it is only necessary to provide one temperature judgment function, so only one comparator can be used. .

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing still another embodiment, and the difference from the flowchart in FIG. 6 is that in step 2 of FIG. In FIG. 7, the only thing that is determined is whether or not the energization time to the rice cooking heater (4) has reached tlsec in step (2). Even if the flowchart is changed in this way, as shown in Figure 8, regardless of the amount of rice being cooked, the temperature at the bottom of the inner pot (21) will rise depending on the time the rice cooking heater (4) is energized. Therefore, the operation is substantially the same as in the flowchart of FIG.

Also in this case, since it is sufficient to carry only one temperature determination function, only one comparator can be used.

Effects> As described above, the present invention allows the normal rice cooking operation and the quick rice cooking operation to be selected by the selection means provided separately from each other, so that it is possible to ensure that the rice cooking operation is selected as intended by the operator. It has the unique effect of being able to

Further, it is more preferable to output different sounds depending on the selection operation, since the selection of the rice cooking operation can be confirmed by auditory sense.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view of a rice cooker implementing this invention;
Fig. 2 is an enlarged front view showing the switch mounting part, Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing the main parts of the rice cooker, Fig. 4 is an electric circuit diagram showing another embodiment, and Fig. 5 is a principle of determining the amount of rice cooked. FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 are flowcharts showing the program for implementing the rice cooking operation, and FIG.
The figure shows the temperature change at the bottom of the inner pot while heating continues. (2)... Inner pot, (4)... Rice cooking heater, (5)...
...Thermal element, (30)...Microcomputer. (1 other person) Figure 3 Temperature detection signal Figure 4 Figure 5 Time (sec) Time (5ec) Procedure Correction (Method) % formula % 2. Name of the invention Cooking 1i! Li Case 3, Relationship with the person making the amendment Patent applicant Address: 911 Gamo 2-chome, Higashi-ku, Osaka Name (370) Representative of Tiger Thermos Co., Ltd.
Yoshiki Kikuchi 5, date of amendment order

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. First rice cooking means for performing normal rice cooking operation and quick-cooking operation that eliminates the water absorption process. and a second rice cooking means for performing First selection for selecting the drive of the first rice cooking means selection means and the drive of the second rice cooking means. and the second selection means to select them separately from each other. A rice cooker with a unique feature. 2. The first rice cooking means or the second rice cooking means is selected. Announces selection with different voices The above patent claim has a notification means to The rice cooker according to item 1 of the range.