TW201825032A - rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a rice cooker that can cook rice having a granular texture and a rich flavor. A rice cooker 1 according to the present invention includes an inner pot 5 for containing rice R, an outer pot 4 that is provided outside of the inner pot 5 and is for containing heated water w, a pot heater 8 for heating the outer pot 4, and a control unit 12 for controlling the heating performed by the pot heater 8. The control unit 12 causes the pot heater 8 to perform heating until a predetermined temperature at which the heated water w does not boil is reached, and heats the rice R with the heat of condensation of water vapor on the outer surface of the inner pot 5. Thereafter, the control unit 12 causes the pot heater 8 to perform heating until the heated water w boils, causes the water vapor formed by the heated water w vaporizing to flow into the interior of the inner pot 5, and thus heats the rice R.

Description

Rice pot

The present invention relates to a rice cooker for cooking rice using water vapor.

In recent years, various manufacturers have been selling high-performance electronic pans. As described in Patent Document 1, most rice pans overflow from rice during cooking, which is called "rice soup." A viscous liquid with a main component. You will feel the sweetness at the instant of eating the rice soup. However, the process of overflowing the rice soup will cause damage to the rice, and the components of the taste will leak out, so that the cooked rice cannot become a grainy mouthfeel, nor can it Has a strong flavor.

Regarding rice cookers, there has been a problem of suppressing uneven cooking in the past. For example, when the rice in the pot is heated only by the heat of the pot, it is located on the outer side of the pot (near the side wall of the pot or one of the bottom walls). The temperature of the rice will rise, and it will become easy to absorb water. On the other hand, the temperature of the rice located on the inner side of the pot (away from the side wall or one of the bottom walls of the pot) will not easily rise, it will be difficult to absorb water, and it will As a result of uneven cooking, in order to avoid the above situation, the water in the pot will be boiled for a short time, and the rice will be shaken with convection from time to time. Such control is estimated to be inappropriate in obtaining a grainy mouthfeel or rich flavor, regardless of the cooking method used to produce the rice soup. In order to obtain a grainy texture or a rich taste, as described in Patent Document 2, it has been considered that it is effective to heat rice not only by the heat of the pot but also by the heat of water vapor. [Prior Art Literature] [Patent Literature]

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2017-178 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 32-5987

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, since the rice cooker described in Patent Document 2 is not controlled by a microcomputer, it is at the point when the heating water in the heating pot is exhausted, and the heating by the electric heating device is cut off. Therefore, the heated water will rise to 100 ° C immediately to heat the rice and water in the rice cooker, so it is difficult to cook the rice with a grainy texture without boiling the rice.

The present invention has been made in view of the foregoing circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a rice cooker that can cook rice with a grainy feel and a strong taste. [Method of Solving Problems]

In order to solve the above problems, a rice cooker according to the present invention includes: an inner pot for containing rice; an outer pot provided outside the inner pot for containing heated water; a heating device for heating the outer pot; and A control unit for controlling the heating of the heating device; characterized in that the control unit is heated by the heating device to a predetermined temperature at which the heated water is not boiled, and is heated by water vapor on the outer side of the inner pot After the rice has been heated by the condensation heat, it is heated by the heating device until the heated water boils, so that "water vapor formed by the heated water" flows into the inner pot to heat the rice.

In this rice cooker, first, the control unit heats the rice to a predetermined temperature without boiling water by heating means, and heats the rice by the condensation of water vapor on the outer side of the inner pot. Therefore, the rice can be absorbed by the water carefully Inhibit unevenness and soak it. For example, if the predetermined temperature is set to 60 ° C or lower, the rice will absorb water to about 30% without gelatinization, but will not absorb more than 30%, and will not cook until it rots. Next, the control unit heats the rice with the heating device until the boiling water is boiled, and the water vaporized by the heated water flows into the inner pot to heat the rice. Therefore, the rice is heated by the heat from the inner pot from the side and below. And "heated from the top by the water vapor flowing into the inner pot", no matter whether the rice is located in the inner pot, the excess water will not be absorbed unevenly, and it will not be cooked. Cook on the ground. This makes it possible to cook rice that retains the shape of the rice, has a grainy texture, and has a rich flavor.

The rice cooker may also include an isolation device that isolates the inner pot from the outer pot. Thereby, the outer side of the inner pot isolated from the outer pot is secured as a condensation position of water vapor, and the heating by the condensation heat of water vapor can be stabilized.

In addition, the isolation device may further include: an abutting portion abutting the inner pot in a state of being mounted on the outer pot to fix the position of the inner pot; and a circulation portion formed for "the heating water is vaporized" The path of water vapor. In this way, the inner pot fixed to the abutting portion will not vibrate inside the outer pot, but can improve the usability of the rice cooker. In addition, the heating water is closed to a certain extent by the abutting portion between the outer pot and the inner pot. It is heated in the middle (in Reference 2 as described in Figure 3, it is located above the heating water between the heating pot and the rice cooker and is completely open), which can improve the heating efficiency of the heating water; on the other hand, when When the heated water is vaporized at high temperature, water vapor can flow into the inner pot through the gap.

Furthermore, the inner pot includes a blade portion that protrudes to the outside of the inner pot; the isolation device includes a plurality of support portions that support the blade portion from below while being mounted on the outer pot; and forms the space between the plurality of support portions. The opposing space between the outer pot and the blade part can also circulate "water vapor formed by the heating water vaporization". Thereby, the heated water is heated in the space enclosed by the supporting part to a certain extent above the outer pot and the inner pot, and the heating efficiency of the heated water can be improved. On the other hand, when the heated water is vaporized at high temperature, water vapor can pass through The opposite space flows into the inner pot. [Effect of Invention]

According to the present invention, it is possible to cook rice that retains the shape of the rice, has a grainy texture and a rich taste.

This embodiment is explained using drawings.

1 to 4 show a rice cooker according to this embodiment. The rice cooker 1 includes: a main body 2; a lid body 3; an outer pot 4, which is detachably arranged inside the main body 2 to hold heated water w; an inner pot 5, which is detachably arranged on the inner side of the outer pot 4, and contains rice R and water W; spacer 6, which separates the inner pot 5 from the outer pot 4 and fixes its position; the inner cover 7, which is detachably installed inside the cover body 3; the pot heater 8, which heats the outer pot 4; the pot temperature The sensor 9 detects the temperature of the outer pot 4; the heater temperature sensor 10 detects the temperature of the pot heater 8; the cover heater 11 heats the inner cover 7 to prevent water droplets from adhering to the inner cover 7; the control unit ( (Microcomputer) 12, which controls the heating of the pan heater 8 and the lid heater 11; and the power supply substrate 13, which is controlled by the control unit 12, and is provided with a "relay heater control relay for switching on / off of the pan heater 8" and "Triode AC Semiconductor Switch (TRIAC) for lid heater control for switching on / off of lid heater 11".

The lid 3 is provided with a lid opening key 14 for opening and closing the lid 3; a rice cooking key 15 for starting cooking; a cancel key 16 for canceling cooking; a function key 17 for cooking mode ( Selection of "white rice", "brown rice", "congee" and other conditioning objects, or selection of cooking methods such as "assorted rice" and "quick cooking" or cooking reservations; and display section 18 To display a variety of information.

The outer pot 4 is made of aluminum and has: a bottom wall portion 19; a peripheral wall portion 20; and a blade portion 21 that protrudes from the upper edge of the peripheral wall portion 20 to the outside of the pot 4. On the other hand, the inner pot 5 is made of stainless steel, and includes: a bottom wall portion 22; a peripheral wall portion 23; and a blade portion 24 protruding from the upper edge of the peripheral wall portion 23 to the outside of the inner pot 5.

As shown in FIG. 5, the spacer 6 is composed of a ring-shaped resin upper member 25 and a lower member 26, and the upper member 25 and the lower member 26 are formed by “wrapping the blade portion 21 of the outer pot 4 from above and below”. Way, install to the outer pot 4.

The upper member 25 covers the upper edge 2 of the peripheral wall portion 20 from the inside, and simultaneously covers the portion of the blade portion 21 from above, and includes a plurality of abutting portions 27 provided across the entire inner surface of the annular shape and abutting on The peripheral wall portion 23 fixes the position of the inner pot 5; a plurality of recessed portions 28 are provided between adjacent abutting portions 27 and form a gap with the peripheral wall portion 23; and a support portion 29 is on a ring-shaped top surface It is provided at three places at equal intervals and supports the blade portion 24 from below. The lower member 26 covers the blade portion 21 from the outside and below to prevent the user from directly touching the heated blade portion 21. In a state where the abutting portion 27 is in contact with the peripheral wall portion 23 and the supporting portion 29 supports the blade portion 24 and the inner pot 5 is provided inside the outer pot 4, the blade portion 21 covered with the spacer 6 faces the blade portion 24, An opposing space 30 is formed between the two.

When cooking rice with rice pot 1, the user fills the heated water w into the outer pot 4 to a predetermined water level of the bottom wall portion 22 of the inner pot 5, and simultaneously puts a predetermined amount of rice R and water W into the inner pot. 5. Operate the function key 17 and the rice cooking key 14 at the same time. As shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 12 selects the mode by using the function key 17 (step 1; it is described as “S. 1” in FIG. 6, the same applies hereinafter). If the rice cooking key 14 is pressed (step 2), The pot heater 8 is turned on (step 3), and the lid heater 11 is turned on (step 4).

As shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 12 gradually heats the outer pot 4 with the pot heater 8 for a predetermined time t ₁ to a predetermined temperature T ₁ at which the heated water w is not boiled (step 5). Between the inner pots 5, water vapor condenses, and condensation occurs on the outer side surfaces of the bottom wall portion 22 and the peripheral wall portion 23, and the rice R and the water W in the inner pot 5 are heated by the condensation heat. For example, if the predetermined temperature T _{1 is} set to 60 ° C. or lower in advance, the rice R will not absorb the water W to about 30% without gelatinization, but will not absorb 30% or more of the water. This is the soaking step.

Next, while receiving the feedback from the heater temperature sensor 10, the control unit 12 maintains the pot heater 8 at a predetermined temperature T ₂ not exceeding 100 ° C (step 6), and the heating water w in the outer pot 4 is exhausted. Before, heating is continued by the pan heater 8 (step 7). When the heated water w evaporates and drops below a certain amount of water, the temperature of the outer pot 4 cannot be rapidly increased by maintaining the heated water w. Therefore, the control unit 12 can use the detection result of the pot temperature sensor 9, Determine whether the heated water is exhausted. In this boiling step, water vapor vaporized by the heated water w passes through the bottom wall portion 22 and the peripheral wall portion 23 to heat rice R and water W from the side and below, and as shown in FIG. 8, the water vapor passes through the recessed portion. 28. The opposing space 30 and between the inner cover 7 and the blade portion 24 flow into the inner pot 5, and the rice R and water W are also heated from above.

When the heating water w in the outer pot 4 is exhausted, the control unit 12 turns off (OFF) the pot heater 8 to perform steaming (step 8). This simmering step is continued until a predetermined time t ₂ elapses (step 9). If the predetermined time t ₂ elapses, the control unit 12 notifies the user of the "cooking rice" message by sound or other means (step 10) and cuts The heater 11 is covered (step 11).

In the rice cooker 1 according to this embodiment, first, the control unit 12 is heated by the pot heater 8 to a predetermined temperature where the heated water w is not boiled, and the water on the outer sides of the bottom wall portion 22 and the peripheral wall portion 23 is used. The condensing heat of the steam heats the rice R. Therefore, the rice R can be made to absorb water W, and at the same time, the unevenness can be carefully suppressed to soak it. Then, the control unit 12 heats the heated water w to boil by the pot heater 8 so that "water vapor generated by the heated water w" flows into the inner pot 5 to heat the rice R; therefore, the rice R is The sides and the bottom are heated by the heat of the inner pot 5 and surrounded by the water vapor flowing into the inner pot 5 from above. The rice R located at any position in the inner pot 5 is not generated. Excess water is not absorbed evenly, but cooking can be performed without scorching. This makes it possible to cook rice having the shape of rice R, a grainy texture, and a rich taste.

Moreover, since the rice cooker 1 is provided with the spacer 6 which isolates the inner pot 5 from the outer pot 4 and fixes its position, the outer side (the bottom wall portion 22 and the peripheral wall) of the inner pot 5 which is separated from the outer pot 4 and is fixed in position. The outer surface of the part 23) is ensured as a condensation position of water vapor, and the heating by the condensation heat of the water vapor can be stabilized. At the same time, the fixed inner pot 5 will not vibrate inside the outer pot 4, And the usability of the rice cooker 1 can be improved.

Further, the spacer 6 includes: an abutting portion 27 that abuts on the inner pot 4 in a state of being mounted on the outer pot 5 to fix the position of the inner pot 4; and a recessed portion 28 that is formed by "heating water w vaporized" A gap (path) through which the water vapor flows; and three support portions 29 supporting the blade portion 24 from below; between the three support portions 29, a space 30 facing the blade portion 21 and the blade portion 24 is formed, This opposing space 30 is also provided for the circulation of "water vapor formed by the heating of water w." Therefore, the heated water w is heated above the space between the outer pot 4 and the inner pot 5 by the contact portion 27 and the support portion 29 to a certain degree of closed space, and the heating efficiency of the heated water w can be improved. On the other hand, the heated water During high-temperature vaporization, water vapor can flow into the inner pot 5 through the recessed portion 28 and the opposing space 30.

As mentioned above, although this embodiment was illustrated, the embodiment of this invention is not limited to the above-mentioned exemplary content, It can change suitably, etc. in the range which does not deviate from the meaning of invention.

For example, although the control unit 12 observes and controls the temperature of the outer pot 4 through the pot sensor 8 in the above-mentioned example, it may also control the temperature of the inner pot or the temperature of the heated water while controlling.

In addition, although the recessed portion 28 is provided between the adjacent abutment portions 27 as the circulation portion in the above-mentioned exemplary content, it can also be adopted that the spacer 6 does not include the recessed portion 28 and spans the entire circumference of the ring shape and the peripheral wall. The part 23 abuts and forms "a circulation hole through which the water-supply vapor flows" are provided at appropriate places.

1‧‧‧ rice pot

2‧‧‧ Ontology

3‧‧‧ cover

4‧‧‧ Outer pot

5‧‧‧Inner pot

6‧‧‧ spacer (isolation device)

7‧‧‧ inner cover

8‧‧‧Pot heater (heating device)

9‧‧‧ pot temperature sensor

10‧‧‧heater temperature sensor

11‧‧‧ Cover heater

12‧‧‧Control Department

13‧‧‧Power supply substrate

14‧‧‧Open key

15‧‧‧Cooking key

16‧‧‧ Cancel key

17‧‧‧function keys

18‧‧‧Display

19‧‧‧ bottom wall

20‧‧‧Zhou Bibei

21‧‧‧ Blade Department

22‧‧‧ bottom wall

23‧‧‧Zhou Bibei

24‧‧‧ Blade Department

25‧‧‧upper member

26‧‧‧lower component

27‧‧‧ abutment department

28‧‧‧Concave part (circulation part)

29‧‧‧ support

30‧‧‧ facing space

R‧‧‧ Rice

W‧‧‧ Water

w‧‧‧ heated water

S.1 ~ S.11‧‧‧step

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a rice cooker according to an embodiment. Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a state where a lid portion of the rice cooker shown in Fig. 1 is opened. [Fig. 3] A partial sectional view of the rice cooker of Fig. 1. [Fig. [Fig. 4] A block diagram showing a control system of the rice cooker of Fig. 1. [Fig. [Fig. 5] (a) is a perspective view showing an exploded state of the outer pot and the spacer of the rice cooker of Fig. 1, and (b) is a perspective view showing an installation state of the outer pot and the spacer. [Fig. 6] A flowchart showing a process performed by a control unit of the rice cooker of Fig. 1. [Fig. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a temperature change of a pot other than the rice pot of FIG. 1. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a flow of water vapor in the rice cooker of FIG. 1.

Claims (4)

A rice cooker includes: an inner pot for containing rice; an outer pot provided outside the inner pot for containing heated water; a heating device for heating the outer pot; and a control part for controlling the heating device The control unit is characterized in that: the control unit, after heating by the heating device to a predetermined temperature at which the heated water does not boil, and heats the rice by the condensation heat of water vapor on the outer side of the inner pot, The heating device is heated until the heated water is boiled, and water vapor formed by the heated water is flowed into the inner pot to heat the rice. The rice cooker described in item 1 of the claim further includes: an isolation device to isolate the inner pot from the outer pot. The rice cooker according to item 2 of the claim, wherein the isolation device includes: an abutting portion, which is in a state of being mounted on the outer pot, abuts against the inner pot to fix the position of the inner pot; and a circulation portion , Forming a path for water vapor generated by the heating water to vaporize. The rice cooker according to item 2 or 3 of the claim, wherein the inner pot includes: a blade portion protruding to the outside of the inner pot; the isolation device includes: a plurality of support portions in a state of being mounted on the outer pot The blade portion is supported from below; between the plurality of support portions, an opposing space between the outer pot and the blade portion is formed, and the opposing space is used for the circulation of water vapor formed by the heated water vaporization.