JP3083936B2 - Elevating type temperature sensor device for grill - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is used in a grill for heating and cooking foods such as fish and meat on a grill, and has means for moving up and down in conjunction with opening and closing of a grill door to directly contact the food. And a vertical temperature sensor device for a grill for detecting the temperature of the food surface. Further, the present invention relates to an apparatus having a function of detecting a sensing failure of such a temperature sensor and issuing an alarm.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When baking food (a typical example of fish) on a grill, generally, the cooker looks at the degree of burning of the fish (the degree of burning or oil) while looking at the sound and smell. While controlling the heat and cooking time. Alternatively, cooking was performed by setting the time of the heating timer based on the experience of the cook.

On the other hand, several techniques have been proposed for a technique for grilling fish while detecting the temperature in the grill and automatically judging the fish, and a temperature sensor therefor. For example, there is a method in which the temperature of fish is contactlessly sensed using a pyroelectric temperature sensor and the amount of heating is determined by fuzzy inference (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 3-5622). Further, a thermocouple temperature sensor is placed on a burner or an electric heater to measure the temperature inside the grill, and a set amount of heat is released into the grill to estimate the grilled fish (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-38920). ). Further, there is a type in which a temperature sensor is attached to a grill, and a type in which a temperature sensor is inserted into fish.

[0004]

In cooking based on the five senses and experience of the cook, it has been necessary to frequently check the degree of burning of the fish, or to overburn the fish with carelessness. Depending on the thickness of the fish and the amount of water, it was very difficult to set a timer based on experience. Especially for beginners, these problems were serious.

[0005] There are the following problems with cooking while measuring the temperature with a temperature sensor. Using a non-contact temperature sensor. It was uncertain whether or not the fish were properly targeted for sensing. In addition, the sensor was sometimes disturbed by the oil level on the surface of the fish or infrared rays from the burner. With a temperature sensor in the burner or heater. The temperature of the fish is different from the temperature of the temperature measuring unit, and there is a problem particularly in adjusting the heating time depending on the thickness of the fish.

[0006] A temperature sensor attached to a grill. It was uncertain whether the sensor was in contact with the fish.
Also, the temperature sensor had to be removed and attached when washing the grill. One that stabs a temperature sensor into a fish. The labor of piercing was troublesome. Also, the measurement temperature differs depending on whether the fish is stabbed deeply or shallowly, or where the fish is stabbed, and consequently the determination of the baked state was confused.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a grill temperature sensor device which is easy to handle and makes it easier to grasp the state of the baked food. Another object of the present invention is to provide a grill temperature sensor device that also has a function of issuing an alarm when the temperature sensor is not in contact with the food.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an up-and-down type temperature sensor device for a grill according to the present invention places a food to be cooked on a grill and measures the food from above and / or below the food. A temperature sensor device for a grill that heats and cooks food, comprising: a temperature sensor; and a sensor supporting raising / lowering unit that supports the temperature sensor from below and moves up and down in response to opening and closing of a grill door; Is characterized in that when the door is closed, it rises to the upper surface of the grill and takes a position in contact with the food to be cooked, and when the door is open, it descends to the lower surface of the grill.

[0009]

The temperature sensor of the present invention is supported from below by a sensor supporting elevating means which moves up and down in response to opening and closing of the grill door. The sensor support elevating means is constituted by, for example, a link mechanism, and when the door is closed, the sensor support portion of the means rises and the sensor ascends to the upper surface of the grill. In this state, the sensor contacts the lower surface of the food to be cooked, and after the start of cooking, the sensor detects the temperature of the food to be cooked. After cooking, open the grill door and the sensor will drop below the bottom of the grill. Therefore, when taking out the food to be cooked, especially when taking out the food together with the grill, the sensor does not catch on the food or the grill.

[0010] In order to move the temperature sensor up and down the grill, the temperature sensor is positioned so as to be located at the opening of the grill when raised. In the raised position of the temperature sensor, the temperature sensor is 3 to 7 on the top of the grid.
It is preferable that the head is protruded by about mm. This is for maintaining appropriate contact with the food to be cooked. At the lower position of the temperature sensor, it is preferable that the temperature sensor is lowered by about 20 mm or more from the lower surface of the grill. This is to prevent a situation where the temperature sensor is damaged when the cook puts the food or the grill in and out.

In the temperature sensor device according to the present invention, the sensor support elevating means is formed as a link mechanism, and a ring fulcrum in the link mechanism slides in conjunction with opening and closing of the grille door, whereby a ring is provided. May be changed to thereby raise and lower the sensor support portion in the link. The lifting mechanism may be a cam, rack, pinion, etc., in addition to the link mechanism.

In the temperature sensor device according to the present invention, an urging element (spring or the like) is provided in the sensor supporting elevating means, and when the sensor rises and comes into contact with the food to be cooked, an appropriate amount of pressure is applied between the two. It is preferable to obtain a good elastic contact. That is, when the food is not placed on the grill, the temperature sensor is placed on the grill with an appropriate size (for example, 3 to 7).
mm) is out. If you put food on this temperature sensor,
The temperature sensor is put under the weight of the food, and when it comes down, it comes into contact with the underside of the food with a moderate contact pressure. Thereby, the temperature sensor reliably detects the temperature of the food to be cooked.

[0013] A temperature sensor device with a sensing failure alarm system according to the present invention comprises: a temperature sensor device according to claim 1, 2 or 3;
An alarm generating means; wherein the temperature rise gradient detecting and judging means detects a temperature signal from a temperature sensor, a time detecting section for detecting a time from the start of heating cooking, and The actual temperature gradient exceeds the normal range by comparing the temperature rise gradient calculation unit that calculates the temperature rise gradient by receiving the information of A temperature rise gradient determining unit that determines a sensing failure in that case and issues a signal to that effect; the warning generating means generates a warning upon receiving a sensing failure signal from the temperature rise gradient determining unit, or In addition, the cooking is stopped.

The grill of the present invention may be heated by a gas burner or may be heated by an electric heater. The temperature sensor is preferably a contact type sensor capable of measuring from -10 to about 300 [deg.] C., but the type is not limited. A thermocouple, a thermistor, a semiconductor, or an optical fiber may be used. The biasing mechanism of the sensor supporting means may use a spring or a counterweight. The urging force of the sensor unit is preferably 10 to 300 g in order to maintain appropriate contact with food. Furthermore, 50-1
00g is more preferred.

[0015]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. FIG.
It is a figure showing the structure in the grill in which the temperature sensor device concerning one example of the present invention is attached. The grill 1 has a box shape as a whole, and a left side surface in the figure is a grill door 3 that rotates around a lower fulcrum (not shown). Inside the grill 1 is a heating chamber called a grill storage 5.

A burner board 7 is provided on the ceiling of the grill storage 5 so as to cover the center of the ceiling. The burner board 7 is configured such that a large number of holes are formed in a ceramic board excellent in infrared radiation, and the flame of the gas burner comes out from the holes to the bottom. A grill 11 is provided in the middle of the grill warehouse 5 so as to extend almost entirely in the grill warehouse. The food 9 such as fish is placed on the grill 11 and cooked. The grill 11 is made of stainless steel or rust-proof steel. Below the grill 11 is placed a soup tray 21 for receiving the juice that is produced when baking fish or meat.

The temperature sensor 13 is supported by sensor arms 33 and 39 as sensor support elevating means so as to be able to move up and down. The temperature sensor 13 of this embodiment uses a thermistor. The temperature sensing part of the sensor may be a flat one, a conical one or the like.

A link mechanism, which is a support elevating means of the temperature sensor device of the present embodiment, is provided on a lower side surface of the grill storage 5 and has a fixed fulcrum 31 and a back sensor arm 33 from the back (right side in the figure). , Central fulcrum 35, sensor support 3
7, the front sensor arm 39, the slide fulcrum 41, the door-side arm 45, and the door-side fulcrum 47.

The fixed fulcrum 31 is a fulcrum fixed to the inner frame or the like of the grill storage. The rear sensor arm 33 is rotatably connected to the fixed fulcrum 31 at a rear end thereof.
The front end of the rear sensor arm 33 is located at the center fulcrum 35.
, And is rotatably connected to the near side sensor arm 39. Center fulcrum 35 of sensor arms 33 and 39
The upper part is a sensor support part 37. The support portion 37 has an arm extending to the center of the grill, and the sensor 13 is mounted on the arm (see FIG. 3).

The front end of the front sensor arm 39 is rotatably connected to a slide fulcrum 41. The sliding fulcrum 41 opens and closes the grill door 3 through a door-side arm 45 rotatably connected to the fulcrum and a door-side fulcrum 47 rotatably connecting the arm 45 and the grill door 3. , Slides in the slide groove 43 right and left in the figure. As a result, the front sensor arm 3
9 swings, and the opening degree between the front sensor arm 39 and the rear sensor arm 33 changes at the central fulcrum 35, and the central fulcrum 35 moves up and down accordingly. FIG. 2 shows FIG.
2 shows a state in which the grill door is open and the temperature sensor is lowered.

The above elevating mechanism may be provided with a stain prevention cover (for preventing fish and meat juice). Each fulcrum may be provided with a sufficient clearance, and a soft metal bush such as brass may be inserted.

FIG. 3 is a view of the inside of a grill storage having a temperature sensor device according to another embodiment as viewed from the door side. The temperature sensor 13 is mounted on one end of the sensor support rod 51 on the center side of the grill storage 5. The other end of the sensor support rod 51 is connected to a sensor arm 53 at a side end of the grill storage 5. The sensor arm 53 is moved up and down by the cam mechanism 55 in conjunction with opening and closing of the door.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view showing the vicinity of the temperature sensor 13 of the temperature sensor device of FIG. Support rod 5
Reference numeral 1 denotes a hollow stainless steel pipe through which a sensor lead wire 57 passes. A hollow rising portion 52 is welded to the tip of the support rod 51. This rising portion 52
A spring retainer 65 is welded to the upper end of the spring. On the other hand, the sensor 13 is attached below the upper surface of the sensor outer cylinder 61. A spring (made of stainless steel) is incorporated in the sensor outer cylinder 61 between the upper surface of the cylinder and the spring retainer 65 of the rising portion 52. The projecting piece 67 at the lower end of the sensor outer cylinder 61 prevents the same cylinder from being pushed out by the spring 63 and popping out. Thus, the sensor 13 is mounted on the support rod 51 with the biasing means. Therefore, when there is no food, the sensor projects 3-7 mm above the grill 11.

Next, a sensing failure alarm system for the temperature sensor device according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG.
It is a block diagram showing composition of a sensing fault alarm device in a temperature sensor device of one example of the present invention. The temperature signal of the temperature sensor 13 is used to determine the temperature rise gradient
The signal is sent to a temperature detection unit 162 in the unit 61, and is converted into a digital temperature signal by the unit 162. On the other hand, an ignition sensor 153 such as a grill burner ignition knob 151 or a thermocouple provided in the burner section sends a signal of "ignition", that is, a start of cooking, to a time detecting section 164 in the temperature rise gradient detection judging means 161. The time detecting unit 164 detects an elapsed time from the start of cooking using a built-in clock.

The temperature signal of the temperature detecting section 162 and the time signal of the time detecting section 164 are calculated by a temperature rise gradient calculating section 166.
The calculation unit 166 successively calculates the temperature rise gradient from the start of ignition to the elapsed time, and sends the signal to the temperature rise gradient determination unit 168. The range of the temperature rise gradient when the sensor is normally in contact with the food to be cooked (normal temperature rise gradient range 169) is given to the determination unit 168 in advance. The determination unit 168 compares the normal range with the actual temperature rise gradient, and determines that “sensing failure” occurs when the actual temperature rise gradient exceeds the normal range. In other words, the temperature sensor does not normally contact the food to be cooked, for example, because the food to be cooked is not placed at the correct position on the grill grill, and the temperature of the grill chamber rises faster than the food to be cooked. It is determined that the temperature of the inside atmosphere is detected. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the relationship between the temperature detected by the temperature sensor and the time after the start of cooking when such an erroneous setting of the food to be cooked occurs.

When the temperature rise gradient judging section 168 judges that the sensing is bad, the judging section 168 issues a sensing bad signal to the alarm control section 172 of the alarm generating means 171. Upon receiving this signal, the alarm control unit 172 sets the buzzer 1
A signal is sent to 74 and the buzzer 174 will emit an audible alarm to inform the cook. The alarm control unit 172 also sends a sensing failure signal to the alarm display unit 176. Alarm display 17
No. 6 informs the cooker that the temperature sensor sensing failure has occurred and that the food to be cooked should be reset by lighting the red LED or displaying liquid crystal characters. At the same time as the alarm, a signal is sent to the grill burner control unit 178 to cut off gas supply to the grill burner and stop heating and cooking. In addition, the above-mentioned temperature rise gradient detection determination means 1
61 and the alarm control unit 172 can be formed around a microcomputer.

In the temperature sensor device according to the present invention, a plurality of the temperature sensor devices are arranged in a grill,
After the start of cooking, the temperature rise gradient determination may be performed with the lowest temperature signal among the temperature signals from the plurality of temperature sensors as positive. The position where the food to be cooked is placed on the grill of the grill is generally at the center of the grill. However, when two fish are grilled at the same time, the fish may be grilled side by side at the center of the grill. In order to prepare for such a case, it is convenient to arrange several points of the temperature sensor on the grill, since the food to be cooked can be placed on the grill in various forms.

In the case where there are a plurality of temperature sensors, if any of them detects the temperature of the surface of the food to be cooked in contact with the food to be cooked, the grill can normally be normally automatically cooked. Therefore, of the temperature signals of the plurality of temperature sensors, the temperature signal of the lowest temperature, that is, the temperature signal of the one that is normally in contact with the food to be cooked is regarded as positive, that is, the temperature signal of the higher temperature sensor is ignored. , The temperature rise gradient may be detected and determined.

[0029]

As is apparent from the above description, the up-and-down type temperature sensor device for a grill of the present invention has the following effects. It is possible to accurately detect the surface temperature of the lower surface of the food, which is the most reliable determination index when performing the determination of the baked food. Therefore, automatic grill automatic cooking with high reliability is possible. Since the temperature sensor is not fixed to the grill, the grill can be easily removed and attached when cleaning the grill. In conjunction with the opening and closing of the grille door, when the door is opened, the sensor falls under the grill, so that the sensor does not get caught when putting the grill in and out. In the mode with the bad sensing alarm,
Even if food is set on the grill in a state where the temperature sensor is not in contact with the food to be cooked, an incorrect sensing alarm (food wrong setting alarm) will be issued immediately after cooking (heating) starts, so cooking mistakes may occur. Disappears.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing a structure inside a grill to which an elevating type temperature sensor device according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached.
This indicates that the grill door is closed and the sensor is raised.

FIG. 2 shows a state where a grill door is opened and a temperature sensor is lowered in the grill of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a view of the inside of a grill storage having a temperature sensor device according to another embodiment as viewed from a door side.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of a temperature sensor 13 of the temperature sensor device of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a sensing failure alarm device of the temperature sensor device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a case where an incorrect setting of food to be cooked occurs.
It is a figure which shows the relationship between the temperature detected by a temperature sensor, and the time after a cooking start.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Grill 3 Grill door 5 Grill storage 7 Burner board 9 Food to be cooked 11 Grill net 13 Temperature sensor 21 Juice tray 31 Fixed fulcrum 33 Back side sensor arm 35 Central fulcrum 37 Sensor support part 39 Front side sensor arm 41 Slide fulcrum 43 Slide groove 45 Door side arm 47 Door fulcrum 51 Sensor support rod 52 Rise section 53 Sensor arm 55 Cam mechanism 57 Lead wire 61 Sensor outer cylinder 63 Spring 65 Spring retainer 67 Projection piece

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A47J 37/06 F24C ⁷ /04-7/08

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A food to be cooked is placed on a grill,
A temperature sensor device for a grill that heats and cooks food from above and / or below the food; a temperature sensor, and a sensor supporting elevating means that supports the temperature sensor from below and moves up and down in response to opening and closing of a grill door. When,
The temperature sensor rises to the upper surface of the grill when the door is closed, and takes a position in contact with the food to be cooked, and falls to the lower surface of the grill when the door is open. An elevating temperature sensor device for a grill, comprising: 2. The sensor support elevating means is formed as a link mechanism, and a rotation fulcrum in the link mechanism slides in conjunction with opening and closing of a grill door.
2. The elevating and lowering type temperature sensor device for a grill according to claim 1, wherein the opening degree of the link changes, and thereby the sensor support portion in the link is raised and lowered. 3. The sensor supporting and raising / lowering means is provided with a biasing element, so that a suitable elastic contact can be obtained when the sensor rises and comes into contact with the food to be cooked.
Or the elevating temperature sensor device for grills according to 2. 4. A temperature sensor device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, further comprising: a temperature rise gradient detection / judgment means; and an alarm generation means; A temperature detecting section for detecting a signal, a time detecting section for detecting time from the start of cooking, a temperature rising gradient calculating section for calculating a temperature rising gradient by receiving information from both the detecting sections, A temperature rising gradient determining unit that compares the normal temperature rising gradient range with the actual temperature rising gradient, determines that the sensing is defective when the actual gradient exceeds the normal range, and issues a signal to that effect. An elevating type temperature sensor device for a grill, wherein the alarm generating means generates an alarm in response to a sensing failure signal from the temperature rise gradient judging section or stops heating cooking. 5. The cooking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the temperature sensors are arranged in the grill, and after the start of cooking, the temperature rise gradient determination is performed with the lowest temperature signal among the temperature signals from the plurality of temperature sensors being positive. 4. The elevating temperature sensor device for grills according to 4.