JP2011156023A - Electric rice cooker - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric rice cooker having a simple structure to reliably detect whether the body is closed with a lid or not with the inner pot stored, and having a reduced cost. <P>SOLUTION: The electric rice cooker includes the inner pot 10 for storing a heated object, a rice cooker body 1 for storing the inner pot 10, and a lid body 2 mounted to the upper part of the rice cooker body 1 so as to open and close, and covering and closing the inner pot 10. A reed switch 25 for detecting whether the rise cooker body 1 is closed with the lid body 2 or not with the inner pot 10 stored is disposed on the lid body 2 side. When the lid body 2 is closed, the reed switch 25 is turned on by magnetism of a magnet 50 of an inner pot handle 11 provided at the inner pot 10, thereby detecting that the rice cooker body 1 is closed with the lid body 2 with the inner pot 10 stored. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electric rice cooker.

  Conventionally, as an electric rice cooker, there is a rice cooker separately provided with a lid opening / closing detection means for detecting opening / closing of a lid and an inner pot detection means for detecting the presence / absence of an inner pot (for example, JP-A-8-317857). See Patent Document 1)).

  However, in the electric rice cooker, the opening and closing of the lid and the detection of the inner pot are performed using two detection means, so that there is a problem that the configuration becomes complicated and the cost becomes high.

JP-A-8-317857

  Then, the subject of this invention is providing the electric rice cooker which can detect reliably by simple structure whether a cover is closed in the state in which the inner pot was accommodated in the main body, and can reduce cost. .

In order to solve the above problems, the electric rice cooker of the present invention is
An inner pot for storing the object to be heated;
A main body in which the inner pot is stored;
A lid that is attached to the top of the main body so as to be freely opened and closed, and closes to cover the inner pot,
A detected part provided on the upper end side of the inner pot;
And a detection unit that is disposed on the lid and detects the detected portion of the inner pot housed in the main body when the lid is closed.

  According to the said structure, when the lid | cover is closed, the to-be-detected part of the inner pot accommodated in the main body is detected by the detection part of the lid side attached to the upper part of the main body so that opening and closing is possible. For example, the magnetic sensor provided on the lid is used as the detection unit, and the magnetism of the detected portion magnet provided on the inner pan side is detected by the magnetic sensor when the lid is closed. That is, when the inner pan is not housed in the main body or is at least one of the states in which the lid is open, the magnetic sensor does not detect the magnet of the inner pan side magnet, When the lid is not closed in the state where the lid is stored, the detector detects that the inner pan is stored in the main body and the lid is closed. The detection unit detects the magnetism of the magnet and detects that the lid is closed with the inner pot stored in the main body. Thereby, it can be reliably detected with a simple configuration whether the lid is closed in a state where the inner pot is accommodated in the main body. Therefore, the opening / closing of the lid and the presence / absence of the inner pot can be detected by at least the pair of detection units and the detection target unit, and the configuration can be simplified and the cost can be reduced.

Moreover, in the electric rice cooker of one embodiment,
The detection unit is a magnetic sensor provided on the lid,
The detected part is a magnet that is attached to a magnet attaching part provided in the inner pot and whose magnetism is detected by the magnetic sensor when the lid is closed.

  According to the said embodiment, when the lid | cover is closed, the magnetism of the magnet of the magnet attaching part provided in the inner pot is detected by the magnetic sensor provided in the lid | cover. Accordingly, the magnetic sensor can be easily sealed in the lid without using a detecting means having a movable part such as a limit switch, and reliable detection can be performed with a highly reliable magnetic sensor against heat and steam.

Moreover, in the electric rice cooker of one embodiment,
The magnet mounting portion is a handle of the inner pot,
The handle of the inner pot accommodated in the main body is fitted into a positioning portion provided in the main body, whereby the inner pot accommodated in the main body is positioned with respect to the main body, and the magnet Can be detected by the detection unit.

  According to the said embodiment, a magnet can be easily attached to an inner pot by making the handle of an inner pot into a magnet attaching part. In addition, by fitting the handle of the inner pan to the positioning portion provided in the main body, the inner pan stored in the main body is positioned with respect to the main body, so that the magnet can be detected by the detection unit, Position alignment of the magnet mounting part on the inner pot side and the magnetic sensor on the lid side can be performed reliably.

Moreover, in the electric rice cooker of one embodiment,
The detection unit is a limit switch provided on the lid,
The detected portion is a contacted portion that is provided in the inner pot and contacts an operating member that operates the limit switch on the lid side when the lid is closed.

  According to the above embodiment, when the lid is closed, the operating member that operates the limit switch provided on the lid contacts the contacted portion provided on the inner pan, and the limit switch is turned on (or off). . On the other hand, when the lid is not closed or when the inner pot is not stored in the main body, the limit switch is not turned on (or turned off). Thereby, a to-be-contacted part can be easily provided in an inner pot, and it can be detected whether the lid | cover is closed in the state by which the inner pot was accommodated in the main body by simple structure.

Moreover, in the electric rice cooker of one embodiment,
A heating unit for heating the inner pot housed in the main body,
A control unit for controlling the heating unit to perform a heating operation,
The control unit stops the heating operation by the heating unit when the detection unit does not detect the detected portion of the inner pot during the heating operation.

  According to the above embodiment, during the heating operation, when the detection unit does not detect the detected portion of the inner pot, the heating operation by the heating unit is stopped, so that the heating operation with the lid opened or the empty without the inner pan is performed. It can reliably prevent whispering operation.

  As is clear from the above, according to the electric rice cooker of the present invention, it is possible to reliably detect whether or not the lid is closed with the inner pan contained in the main body with a simple configuration, and the cost can be reduced. An electric rice cooker can be realized.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electric rice cooker according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the electric rice cooker with the lid opened. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the electric rice cooker as seen from line III-III in FIG. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the electric rice cooker as seen from line IV-IV in FIG. FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part A shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a control block diagram of the electric rice cooker.

  Hereinafter, the electric rice cooker of this invention is demonstrated in detail by embodiment of illustration.

  FIG. 1: has shown the perspective view which looked at the electric rice cooker of one Embodiment of this invention from diagonally upward.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the electric rice cooker of this embodiment includes a rice cooker body 1 and a lid 2 attached to the rice cooker body 1 so as to be freely opened and closed. The rice cooker main body 1 includes a display operation unit 3 provided on the front side, a hook button 4 provided on the front side and the upper side, a main body handle 5 rotatably attached to the rear side, and a rear side and a lower side. And a power cord 6 connected to the side. A steam port 2 a is provided on the rear surface side of the lid 2. The display operation unit 3 includes a liquid crystal display and a plurality of operation buttons, and can display and operate a cooking menu, cooking status, and the like. The lid 2 is closed in a state where it is detachably locked by a latch mechanism (not shown) provided in the rice cooker body 1, and when the hook button 4 is pressed, the latch mechanism is released, and the spring The lid 2 is opened by an urging force of 26 (shown in FIG. 3).

  Moreover, FIG. 2 has shown the perspective view of the state which opened the cover body 2 of the said electric rice cooker, and attaches | subjects the same reference number to the component same as FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, this electric rice cooker supports the lid 2 so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction via a hinge shaft 20 (shown in FIG. 3) provided on the upper and rear side of the rice cooker body 1. is doing. The lid 2 has an outer lid 21 and an inner lid 22. Moreover, the inner pot 10 which accommodates to-be-heated material in the rice cooker main body 1 is accommodated.

  An annular flange portion 10 a is provided on the edge of the upper opening of the inner pot 10. Inner pot grips 11, 11 made of heat-resistant resin as an example of a magnet mounting portion are attached to positions facing the radial direction of the flange portion 10 a of the inner pot 10. A recess 12a (only the right side is shown in FIG. 2) is provided at two locations on the left and right sides of the upper surface of the rice cooker body 1, and the inner pot handles 11, 11 of the inner pot 10 are provided in the two recesses 12a. Each fits. Thereby, the inner pot 10 accommodated in the rice cooker body 1 is positioned with respect to the rice cooker body 1.

  FIG. 3 shows a longitudinal sectional view of the electric rice cooker viewed from the line III-III in FIG. 1, and as shown in FIG. 3, the rice cooker body 1 is arranged in the outer case 12 and the outer case 12. And an inner case 13 for accommodating the inner pot 10. The inner case 13 is formed of a material having heat resistance and electrical insulation.

  A power supply unit 14 including a power supply circuit and an inverter circuit is disposed on the rear surface side (right side in FIG. 3) between the outer case 12 and the inner case 13, and the power supply unit 14 is provided below the power supply unit 14. A cooling fan 15 is disposed to cool the air. Further, a cord reel 7 for winding the power cord 6 is disposed below the cooling fan 15 and at the bottom of the outer case 12.

  Moreover, the cylindrical convex part 10b which protrudes inside is provided in the bottom part of the inner pot 10. A disc-shaped stirring blade 40 is rotatably fitted to the convex portion 10 b of the inner pot 10. The stirring blade 40 includes an annular yoke 41 and a plurality of magnets 42 arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction inside the yoke 41. An opening 13 a is provided in the region of the inner case 13 that faces the convex portion 10 b of the inner pot 10. And the rotor 16 by which the several magnet 18 is arrange | positioned by the circumferential direction and equal intervals is arrange | positioned under the convex part 10b of the inner pot 10, and the inner peripheral side of the convex part 10b, and the axial part 16a of this rotor 16 is arranged. A stirring motor 17 to which the rotating shaft 17a is connected is disposed below the bottom of the inner pot 10. The rotor 16 and the agitating blade 40 are connected to each other by a radial magnetic coupling by the respective magnets 18 and 42, and the rotor 16 driven by the agitating motor 17 is rotated to rotate the agitating blade via the magnetic coupling. 40 rotates.

  Further, on the front side of the space between the outer case 12 and the inner case 13 (left side in FIG. 3), the display / operation unit 3 (shown in FIGS. 1 and 2), the inverter circuit of the power supply unit 14, the cooling fan 15 and A control unit 30 that controls the stirring motor 17 and the like is disposed.

  Moreover, the induction coil 31 for induction-heating the inner pot 10 is arrange | positioned under the inner case 13 in the rice cooker main body 1 and the outer side. The induction coil 31 is bonded to the outer surface of the inner case 13 with a heat-resistant resin or the like. Further, a ferrite member 38 for preventing leakage magnetic flux of the induction coil 31 is disposed below the induction coil 31. Furthermore, the horizontal heater 32 is arrange | positioned along the circumferential direction so that the upper side surface of the inner case 13 in the rice cooker main body 1 may be enclosed. Further, a bottom temperature sensor 33 penetrating the inner case 13 is disposed below the inner case 13. The bottom temperature sensor 33 detects the temperature of the inner pot 10 by contacting the tip of the bottom pot near the bottom of the inner pot 10 housed in the inner case 13. A lid heater 39 (shown in FIG. 4) and a lid temperature sensor 34 (shown in FIG. 6) are arranged in the lid 2.

  The induction coil 31, the lateral heater 32, and the lid heater 39 constitute a heating unit that heats the entire inner pot 10.

  The inner pot 10 is formed of a high heat conductive member such as aluminum, for example, and a magnetic material such as stainless steel for improving the heating efficiency is attached to the outer surface of the inner pot 10, while a fluororesin for preventing adhesion of an object to be heated is attached to the inner surface. It is coated.

  On the other hand, the lid body 2 includes an outer lid 21 in which the lid body 2 is rotatably supported via a hinge shaft 20 (shown in FIG. 3) provided on the upper and rear side of the rice cooker body 1. An inner lid 22 is detachably attached to the side of the outer lid 21 facing the inner pot 10. An annular heat-resistant rubber packing 23 is detachably attached to the outer periphery of the inner lid 22. When the lid 2 is closed, the packing 23 is in close contact with the upper surface of the flange portion 10a of the inner pot 10 and seals between the inner pot 10 and the inner lid 22. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 24 denotes a steam hole provided in the inner lid 22.

  FIG. 4 shows a longitudinal sectional view of the electric rice cooker as seen from the line IV-IV in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. Inner pot handles 11 and 11 of the inner pot 10 are fitted in the recesses 12a and 12a, respectively.

  5 shows an enlarged cross-sectional view of the main part A shown in FIG. 4, and the same components as those in FIG. 4 are given the same reference numerals.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the inner pot handle 11 includes a base portion 11a fixed to the flange portion 10a of the inner pot 10, an extending portion 11b extending outward from the base portion 11a, and a connecting portion of the base portion 11a and the extending portion 11b. And a bent portion 11c extending inward and then extending inward. The flange portion 10a of the inner pot 10 is sandwiched between grooves formed between the base portion 11a of the inner pot handle 11 and the bent portion 11c.

  And at the time of resin molding of the inner pot handle 11, the magnet 50 as an example of a to-be-detected part is embedded in the bending part 11c of the inner pot handle 11. FIG. Further, a reed switch 25 as an example of a magnetic sensor that is turned on by the magnetism of the magnet 50 when the lid body 2 is closed at the position of the outer lid 21 facing the magnet 50 in the bent portion 11c of the inner pot handle 11. It is attached.

  A magnet 50 is embedded in both of the inner pot handles 11 and 11. Thereby, even if the inner pot 10 accommodated in the rice cooker body 1 rotates 180 ° and the left and right of the inner pot grips 11, 11 are switched, the lid remains in the state where the inner pot 10 is accommodated in the rice cooker body 1. It can be detected by the reed switch 25 that the body 2 is closed. Moreover, the number of inner pot handles is not limited to two, and the number of inner pot handles may be set as appropriate, or may be a shape surrounding the entire circumference of the inner pot. Moreover, although the magnet was embedded at the time of resin molding of the inner pot handle, a structure in which the magnet is fitted into the molded inner pot handle may be employed.

  FIG. 6 shows a control block diagram of the electric rice cooker. The control unit 30 includes a microcomputer, an input / output circuit, and the like. Based on an operation signal from the display operation unit 3, a signal from the reed switch 25, the bottom temperature sensor 33, the lid temperature sensor 34, and the like, the display operation unit 3. Agitating motor 17, cooling fan 15, induction coil inverter circuit 35, lateral heater circuit 36 and lid heater circuit 37 are controlled. The induction coil inverter circuit 35 causes the induction coil 31 to generate an alternating magnetic field.

  The induction coil inverter circuit 35, the lateral heater circuit 36, and the lid heater circuit 37 are included in the power supply unit 14 (shown in FIG. 3).

  According to the electric rice cooker having the above configuration, after the inner pot 10 containing appropriate amounts of rice and water is stored in the rice cooker main body 1, the user operates the display operation unit 3 to perform cooking (rice cooking). When started, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the reed switch 25 is on. That is, it is determined whether or not the lid 2 is closed with the inner pot 10 stored in the rice cooker body 1. When the control unit 30 determines that the reed switch 25 is turned on, the induction coil 31, the lateral heater 32, and the lid heater 39 are controlled to start cooking (rice cooking).

  In this cooking operation, the control unit 30 performs control in the order of the preheating operation mode, the start-up operation mode, the cooking operation mode, the steaming operation mode, and the heat insulation operation mode.

[Preheating operation mode]
First, in the preheating operation mode, the agitating motor 17 is rotationally driven by the agitating motor 17 to supply small power to the induction coil 31 from the induction coil inverter circuit 35 while agitating the inside of the inner pot 10. Thus, the inner pot 10 is induction-heated, the electric power of the induction coil 31 is controlled so as to keep the temperature in the inner pot 10 detected by the bottom temperature sensor 33 at 60 ° C., and the preheating operation is performed for a predetermined time. At this time, by stirring the inside of the inner pot 10 with the stirring blade 40, the heated object (rice and water) in the inner pot 10 is absorbed by the rice while maintaining a uniform target temperature (60 ° C.). Glucose, an umami component, is produced.

  In this preheating operation mode, it is set to 60 ° C., which is the temperature at which the amylolytic enzyme works most effectively, and the temperature in the inner pot 10 is kept at 60 ° C. for 15 minutes to 20 minutes. In this embodiment, the target temperature in the preheating operation mode is set to 60 ° C. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the target temperature may be set as appropriate according to various conditions.

[Start-up operation mode]
Next, after the operation of the stirring motor 17 is stopped and the stirring blade 40 is stopped, high power is supplied from the induction coil inverter circuit 35 to the induction coil 31, and the inner pot 10 is induction-heated by the induction coil 31. The horizontal heater circuit 36 and the lid heater circuit 37 are controlled to heat the inner pot 10 from the side and the upper side by the horizontal heater 32 and the lid heater 39, and the temperature inside the inner pot 10 is raised to 100 ° C. Raise the drive. Here, the temperature in the inner pot 10 is detected by the bottom temperature sensor 33 and the lid temperature sensor 34.

[Cooking operation mode]
Next, until the temperature in the inner pot 10 reaches 100 ° C. after the temperature in the inner pot 10 reaches 100 ° C., the heating amount by the induction coil 31, the lateral heater 32 and the lid heater 39 is adjusted to maintain boiling. The cooked operation is performed. Here, when the water in the inner pot 10 runs out and stops boiling, the temperature in the inner pot 10 begins to rise from 100 ° C.

  By the above cooking operation, heat and water are added to the rice to cause a chemical reaction called gelatinization in which β starch contained in the rice is changed to α starch, and delicious rice can be produced.

[Steaming operation mode]
Then, when the temperature in the inner pot 10 reaches 120 ° C., the amount of heating by the induction coil 31, the horizontal heater 32, and the lid heater 39 is adjusted and the steaming operation is performed for a predetermined time, and then cooking (rice cooking) is performed. End and move to warm-in operation mode.

  According to the said electric rice cooker, the inner pot 10 was accommodated in the rice cooker main body 1 by one reed switch 25 as a detection part by the side of the cover body 2 attached to the upper part of the rice cooker main body 1 so that opening and closing was possible. Whether the lid 2 is closed in the state is detected. That is, when the inner pot 10 is not stored in the rice cooker body 1 or at least one of the states in which the lid 2 is open, the inner pot 10 is stored in the rice cooker body 1. Assuming that the lid 2 is not closed, the reed switch 25 remains off. On the other hand, when the inner pot 10 is stored in the rice cooker body 1 and the lid 2 is closed, the lid body 2 is stored in the state where the inner pot 10 is stored in the rice cooker body 1. Is closed, the reed switch 25 is turned on by the magnetism of the magnet 50 of the inner pot handle 11. Thereby, it is possible to reliably detect whether or not the lid 2 is closed with the inner pot 10 accommodated in the rice cooker body 1 with a simple configuration. Therefore, the opening / closing of the lid 2 and the presence / absence of the inner pot 10 can be detected by one reed switch 25, and the configuration can be simplified and the cost can be reduced.

  Further, when the lid 2 is closed, the reed switch 25 provided on the lid 2 detects the magnetism of the magnets 50 of the inner pot grips 11 and 11 provided on the inner pot 10, so that a limit switch or the like is movable. The reed switch 25 can be easily sealed to the lid 2 side without using a detecting means having a portion, and the reed switch 25 having high reliability with respect to heat and steam can be reliably detected.

  Moreover, by using the inner pot handles 11 and 11 attached to the inner pot 10 as a magnet attachment part, the magnet 50 can be easily attached to the inner pot 10, and the inner pot handles 11 and 11 are connected to the rice cooker body 1. The inner pot 10 accommodated in the rice cooker main body 1 is positioned with respect to the rice cooker main body 1 by being fitted into the concave portion 12a which is a positioning portion provided in the magnet 50 of the inner pot grips 11 and 11. Can be detected by the reed switch 25, so that the positioning of the magnet 50 of the inner pot handles 11, 11 and the reed switch 25 on the lid 2 side can be performed reliably.

  Further, during the heating operation, the controller 30 stops the heating operation when it is detected by the reed switch 25 that the lid body 2 is not closed with the inner pot 10 stored in the rice cooker body 1. It is possible to reliably prevent the heating operation in the state where the body 2 is open and the empty-fired operation without the inner pot 10.

  In the above embodiment, the reed switch 24 is used as the detection unit. However, the detection unit is not limited to this, and a magnetic sensor such as a Hall element may be used.

  Further, the detection unit is not limited to a magnetic sensor, and a limit switch provided on the lid may be used as the detection unit. When the lid is closed, an operation member that activates the limit switch provided on the lid comes into contact with the detection. You may provide the to-be-contacted part as an example of a part in an inner pot. Thereby, a to-be-contacted part can be easily provided in an inner pot, and it can be detected whether the lid | cover is closed in the state by which the inner pot was accommodated in the main body by simple structure.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the heating part which heats the inner pot 10 whole with the induction coil 31, the horizontal heater 32, and the lid heater 39 was comprised, the structure of a heating part is not restricted to this, For example, instead of an induction coil Alternatively, a heater similar to the horizontal heater may be used.

  Although specific embodiments of the present invention have been described, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Electric rice cooker main body 2 ... Lid 2a ... Steam port 3 ... Display operation part 4 ... Hook button 5 ... Main body handle 6 ... Power cord 7 ... Cord reel 10 ... Inner pan 10a ... Flange part 10b ... Convex part 11 ... Inside Pan handle 12 ... Outer case 12a ... Concave 13 ... Inner case 14 ... Power supply 15 ... Cooling fan 16 ... Rotor 17 ... Stirring motor 18 ... Magnet 20 ... Hinge shaft 21 ... Outer lid 22 ... Inner lid 23 ... Packing 24 ... Steam hole DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 25 ... Reed switch 26 ... Spring 30 ... Control part 31 ... Induction coil 32 ... Side heater 33 ... Bottom temperature sensor 34 ... Cover temperature sensor 35 ... Inverter coil inverter circuit 36 ... Circuit for side heater 37 ... Circuit for cover heater 38 ... Ferrite member 39 ... lid heater 40 ... stirring blade 41 ... yoke 42 ... magnet 50 ... magnet

Claims (5)

An inner pot for storing the object to be heated;
A main body in which the inner pot is stored;
A lid that is attached to the top of the main body so as to be freely opened and closed, and closes to cover the inner pot,
A detected part provided on the upper end side of the inner pot;
An electric rice cooker, comprising: a detection unit that is disposed on the lid and detects the detected portion of the inner pot housed in the main body when the lid is closed. In the electric rice cooker according to claim 1,
The detection unit is a magnetic sensor provided on the lid,
The said to-be-detected part is a magnet by which a magnetism is detected by the said magnetic sensor, when it attaches to the magnet attaching part provided in the said inner pot, and the said cover is closed. In the electric rice cooker according to claim 2,
The magnet mounting portion is a handle of the inner pot,
The handle of the inner pot accommodated in the main body is fitted into a positioning portion provided in the main body, whereby the inner pot accommodated in the main body is positioned with respect to the main body, and the magnet Can be detected by the detection unit. In the electric rice cooker according to claim 1,
The detection unit is a limit switch provided on the lid,
The said to-be-detected part is a to-be-contacted part with which the operation member which act | operates the said limit switch by the side of the said lid | cover is provided in the said inner pot and closes the said lid | cover, The electric rice cooker characterized by the above-mentioned. In the electric rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A heating unit for heating the inner pot housed in the main body,
A control unit for controlling the heating unit to perform a heating operation,
The said control part stops the heating operation by the said heating part, when the said detection part does not detect the said to-be-detected part of the said inner pot during the said heating operation, The electric rice cooker characterized by the above-mentioned.

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