JPS6335710Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention relates to an electric rice cooker that has a timer mechanism for presetting a time to start cooking rice, and a microcomputer configured to control power supply to a rice cooking heater.

In a conventional electric rice cooker, as shown in the circuit configuration of Fig. 1, a rice cooking switch 5 is turned on, and when rice cooking starts, a certain amount of power is supplied to a rice cooking heater 4 by setting a timer switch 7, which activates a microcomputer 1 and supplies it from a power source 8 to a rice cooking heater 4. The rice is then heated by the heater 4 that contacts the bottom of the inner pot, raising the temperature of the rice. This causes the rice to not absorb enough water, especially when cooking a large amount of rice, and the temperature rise in various parts of the rice becomes uneven. The disadvantages are that the conditions for gelatinization and gelatinization vary widely, and there are large differences in the degree of cooking, resulting in poor taste and poor appearance.

Therefore, in order to eliminate these drawbacks and obtain more delicious cooked rice, for example, the power supply to the rice cooking heater 4 is temporarily stopped several minutes after the start of rice cooking, and during this time, the convection of water is promoted and the temperature of each part is made uniform. A method was devised in which rice is cooked using a means programmed to increase water absorption in the rice (the sequence is shown in Figure 2, hereinafter referred to as sequence No. 1). A flowchart of the microcomputer 1 having this means is shown in FIG. As a result, the uneven cooking of rice was largely eliminated, but there was a drawback that the rice cooking time was extended because the electricity was turned off.

The present invention was made to eliminate these drawbacks, and its purpose is to speed up the rice cooking time of an electric rice cooker that has a microcomputer and a timer mechanism for presetting the rice cooking start time.
Therefore, the microcomputer is equipped with a function to control the amount of heat generated by the rice cooking heater so that the rice temperature reaches a value of 35°C to 45°C before the rice cooking starts.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below in Figures 4 and 5.
This will be explained based on the diagram. The following program was installed on microcomputer 1. That is, when it is determined that the timer switch 7 is set as shown in FIG.
Based on the judgment, the rice cooking heater 4 is energized and its temperature is increased.
The temperature is controlled to be 35-45°C, and the timer continues counting to 9, and when the set time is reached, rice cooking begins. The sequence according to the above program is shown in FIG. Other configurations are the same as before.

When the rice cooking switch 5 is turned on, a timer set signal is input from the timer switch 7 to the microcomputer 1, and the timer is counted. After the timer count 9, the microcomputer 1
A drive signal is output from the power control element 3 to energize the rice cooking heater 4, which continues until the element 6 detects a temperature of 35 to 45°C. After that, the electricity is stopped and then the electricity is turned on repeatedly to maintain that temperature and accelerate water absorption. When the set time is reached by continuing the timer count 9, rice cooking starts, but at this time the water absorption operation has been completed.
Subsequent water absorption time is unnecessary.

As described above, according to the present invention, while the timer is operating,
By increasing and controlling the rice temperature so that the rice absorbs water in advance, the rice is sufficiently gelatinized at the end of cooking, resulting in fluffy and delicious rice.
Since the water absorption time is included in the timer operation,
No additional time is required, and since the water temperature is raised by preheating, the actual cooking time is significantly shortened and speeds up. It also has practical and significant effects, such as less uneven cooking.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a circuit diagram of the main parts of the electric rice cooker circuit of the conventional and one embodiment of the present invention, Figures 2 and 3 are the conventional sequence diagram and flowchart, and Figures 4 and 5 are the circuit diagrams of the conventional electric rice cooker. 1 is a flow chart and a sequence diagram of an electric rice cooker according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1...Microcomputer, 3...Power control element, 4...Rice cooking heater, 6...Temperature detection element.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] In an electric rice cooker that has a timer mechanism that presets the rice cooking start time and is equipped with a microcomputer that controls the electricity supply to the rice cooking heater after the rice cooking starts, the rice is cooked before the reserved rice cooking start time. The rice cooking heater 4 generates heat in response to a temperature detection input from the temperature detection element 6 that detects the temperature, and the amount of heat generated by the rice cooking heater 4 is controlled so that the temperature becomes a value of approximately 35°C to 45°C, and rice cooking starts. An electric rice cooker characterized by having a microcomputer 1 programmed to start cooking rice when the time comes.