JP5484212B2 - rice cooker - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a rice cooker, and more particularly, to a rice cooker that can suppress the spillage of rice balls produced during rice cooking.

The conventional rice cooker is provided with a cylindrical connecting portion at the bottom of the steam port unit, and when this steam port unit is attached, “the housing portion 3a of the lid 2 is accommodated and the connecting portion 14 is connected to the upper lid 3”. Is inserted into the connecting hole 4a of the lower lid 4 through the sealing member 4b and attached "(for example, see Patent Document 1).
In addition, a rice cooker has been proposed that is housed between a lid and an inner lid and includes an exhaust duct member that is fixed to the upper surface of the inner lid by riveting or the like (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

Japanese Patent No. 3820541 (pages 4-5, FIG. 1) Japanese Patent No. 3549457 (pages 4-5, FIG. 1)

  According to the rice cooker described in Patent Document 1, the steam port unit is exposed on the upper surface of the lid, and the steam port unit is attached by inserting a cylindrical connecting portion into the connecting hole. . For this reason, when the attachment of the steam port unit is insufficient, the steam port unit may fall off when the lid is opened.

  According to the rice cooker described in Patent Document 2, the exhaust duct member (steam port unit) is fixed to the upper surface of the inner lid. For this reason, it has been difficult to clean the inner lid and the steam port unit that are easily soiled with rice crackers.

  The present invention was made to solve the above-described problems. A rice cooker capable of detachably attaching a steam port unit to a space between a lid and an inner lid with a simple configuration. It is to provide.

  The rice cooker according to the present invention includes a rice cooker body, an inner pot that is detachably accommodated in the rice cooker body, a lid that covers an upper opening of the rice cooker body, and a detachable attachment to the lower surface of the lid. An inner lid provided with a steam outlet for exhausting the steam in the inner pot, the heating means for heating the inner pot, and the lid body. And a flow path disposed in a space sandwiched between the inner lid and an introduction port for introducing steam from the steam discharge port provided in the inner lid into the flow path, the steam being the rice cooker A steam port unit for discharging to the outside of the main body, and a locking piece is provided on one of the steam port unit and the upper surface of the inner lid, and the locking piece is moved over from one direction on the other side. Is provided with a locking claw for locking from the other direction, the steam outlet and the inlet The steam port unit is detachably attached to the space between the lid and the inner lid by fitting one of them into the other and locking the locking piece with the locking claw. is there.

  The rice cooker according to the present invention includes a steam port unit that has a flow path provided between the lid and the inner lid, and discharges steam to the outside of the rice cooker body. A locking piece is provided on one of the steam port unit and the upper surface of the inner lid, and a locking claw is provided on the other side to lock the locking piece over from one direction but from the other direction. The steam port unit is detachably attached to the inner lid by fitting either one of the outlet and the introduction port into the other and locking the locking piece with the locking claw. For this reason, the steam port unit can be detachably mounted in the space between the lid and the inner lid without providing a separate member for mounting the steam port unit.

It is sectional drawing of the rice cooker which concerns on Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a perspective view of the cutting state of the vapor | steam port unit vicinity which concerns on Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a main part in the vicinity of a steam port unit according to Embodiment 1. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of a steam port unit according to Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of a steam port unit in a direction orthogonal to FIG. 4. It is a perspective view which shows the other example of the cutting state of the steam port unit of FIG. It is an enlarged view of the principal part of FIG.

  In FIG. 1, a rice cooker body 1 detachably accommodates an inner pot 2 having a bottomed cylindrical shape into which water, rice and the like are placed and having an open top surface, and is heated by heating means 3 such as an electromagnetic induction coil. Cooking rice. The rice cooker body 1 has an opening at the top, and the opening is opened and closed by a lid 10. An inner lid 11 is detachably provided on the inner side of the lid body 10, and a peripheral portion of the inner lid 11 is provided between the upper surface of the inner hook 2 (described later) and the lid body 10 when the lid body is closed. An annular fixed frame (seal rubber) 12 that seals the opening of the inner hook 2 is provided so that steam does not leak to the outside. When the lid 10 of the rice cooker is closed, the fixed frame 12 at the peripheral edge of the inner lid 11 is in close contact with the flange 2 a provided on the outer periphery of the upper end of the inner pot 2.

In the space between the lid 10 and the inner lid 11, there is a steam port unit 20 having a centrifuge separation mechanism (centrifugal gas-liquid separation mechanism) that separates the mixture mixed in the steam. Is provided.
In this screw separation mechanism, a cylindrical flow path 23 (described later) is provided inside, and steam containing a powder entering from the guide tube 13 communicating with the inside of the inner lid 11 passes through the inside of the cylindrical flow path 23. When traveling, separate the rice balls by centrifugal force. Then, the rice cake is discharged from the return hole 15 and returned to the inner pot 2, and the steam is discharged from the external discharge hole 27 at the top of the lid body 10 through the steam discharge port 23b. The direction of inflow and outflow of the separation mechanism is horizontal in order to suppress the product height. Note that the inflow and outflow directions of the separation mechanism may be perpendicular to the product (ground).

  2 is a perspective view of a cut state in the vicinity of the steam port unit according to the first embodiment, FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a main part in the vicinity of the steam port unit, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view in the vicinity of the steam port unit, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of a steam port unit in a direction orthogonal to FIG. 4. With reference to FIGS. 2-5, the structure which isolate | separates rice cake from steam and discharges steam will be described.

  On the upper surface of the inner lid 11, a guide cylinder 13 for discharging the steam in the inner hook 2 is erected upward. An introduction hole 13a for introducing steam into the guide cylinder 13 is opened at the lower end of the guide cylinder 13 and communicates with the inside of the inner hook 2, and the upper end of the guide cylinder 13 is used for discharging steam from the guide cylinder 13. The discharge hole 13b is opened. On the outer periphery on the upper end side (discharge hole 13b side) of the guide tube 13, a protrusion 13c is formed that protrudes outward in the circumferential direction. The protrusion 13c has a function as a retainer when the guide tube 13 is inserted into a flow path introducing portion 23a (described later). Moreover, in this Embodiment, the protrusion 13c is comprised so that a diameter may become small gradually toward the front end side, and it is easy to insert in the flow-path introduction part 23a. In the present embodiment, the guide tube 13 corresponds to a “steam discharge unit” provided in the inner lid of the present invention.

  Around the lower portion of the guide tube 13, a reservoir recess 14 formed so as to be lower than the bottom surface of the cylindrical flow path 23 is provided. On the bottom surface of the reservoir recess 14, there is provided a return hole 15 that allows the interior of the reservoir recess 14 and the inner hook 2 to communicate with each other. An opening / closing valve 16 is attached to the return hole 15 so as to be movable up and down.

  The on-off valve 16 descends when the internal pressure in the inner hook 2 is low, and holds the return hole 15 in an open state. Further, during cooking, that is, when the inner pressure of the inner pot 2 is high, the on-off valve 16 is raised by this inner pressure, and the return hole 15 is closed. The on-off valve 16 is made of a material such as silicon rubber which has heat resistance and hardly changes over time.

  In a space sandwiched between the lid 10 and the inner lid 11, a cylindrical flow path 23 through which steam including a bowl is formed is formed, for example, from a substantially cylindrical case. This cylindrical flow path 23 forms a substantially closed space (internal space), and has a flow path introduction part 23a at the bottom as an inflow port for steam containing a meander, opposite to the flow path introduction part 23a. On the side (downstream side), there are a steam outlet 23b and a general outlet 23c.

  Inside the cylindrical flow path 23, a spiral partition plate (spiral wing) 26 that is substantially orthogonal to the traveling direction of the steam including the bowl is provided. A spiral channel is formed inside. The mixed fluid of steam and rice is separated into steam and rice by a swirling flow. The spiral partition plate 26 is made of an elastic material such as silicon rubber.

  Instead of the spiral partition plate 26 as described above, a shaft 26A may be provided at the center of the cylindrical flow path 23 in the flow path direction as shown in FIG. In this case, the cross-sectional shape of the shaft 26A is desirably a substantially conical cylindrical shaft whose diameter decreases from the flow path introducing portion 23a toward the downstream direction.

  The flow path introducing portion 23a that is an inlet of the steam to the cylindrical flow path 23 is shifted to one side from the cylindrical center of the outer shell of the cylindrical flow path 23, that is, the inner wall of the cylindrical flow path 23. It is provided at a position that is substantially tangential. As a result, the steam containing the rice cake is forcibly swirled in the cylindrical flow path 23, and the steam and rice cake are separated by the centrifugal force.

  By inserting the tip of the guide tube 13 (the side provided with the protrusion 13c) into the opening of the flow channel introducing portion 23a, the guide tube 13 and the cylindrical flow channel 23 are connected to each other. Distribution becomes possible. A seal member 25 such as packing made of a material having elastic force such as silicon rubber is provided between the inner peripheral portion of the flow path introducing portion 23a and the outer peripheral portion on the distal end side of the guide tube 13. That is, the front end of the guide tube 13 is fitted into the opening of the flow path introducing portion 23a with the seal member 25 interposed therebetween. Due to the elasticity of the seal member 25, the sealing property between the guide tube 13 and the flow channel introducing portion 23a is secured, and the fitting state between the guide tube 13 and the flow channel introducing portion 23a is stabilized. In addition, by setting the height of the seal member 25 to a certain degree, even if the fitting state between the tip of the guide tube 13 and the flow path introducing portion 23a is insufficient, it is possible to ensure the sealing performance of both. it can.

  In the present embodiment, the guide cylinder 13 is inserted into the opening of the flow path introduction portion 23a. However, the flow introduction section 23a of the guide cylinder 13 is reversed by reversing the insertion side. It can also be set as the structure inserted in an opening part. That is, the other opening peripheral wall portion may be fitted into either one of the openings.

  A steam discharge port 23b is provided in the substantially central portion on the outlet side (downstream side) of the cylindrical flow channel 23, and a general discharge port 23c is provided on the lower outer peripheral side on the downstream side of the cylindrical flow channel 23. It has been. In the cylindrical flow path 23 provided with the spiral partition plate 26, the steam including the rice cake makes a swirling flow by the centrifugal force, and the rice cake is separated to the outside in the radial direction of the cylindrical flow path 23. It separates into the central part of the flow path 23, and each is discharged | emitted from the steam discharge port 23b and the rough discharge port 23c. The cylindrical flow path 23 has a cross-sectional area that increases from the flow path introduction part 23a side toward the steam discharge port 23b side, and the passage speed of steam including a bend decreases as the cross-sectional area increases. The rice ball is easy to fall down. In addition, the bottom surface of the cylindrical flow path 23 is an inclined surface that descends toward the accumulation recess 14 so that the niche is likely to accumulate in the accumulation recess 14.

The steam outlet 23b is provided at the substantially central portion on the outlet side of the cylindrical flow path 23, but may be shifted to the opposite side of the outlet 23c as long as it is on the radially outer side of the central portion. Then, since the swirling of the steam is delayed at the steam discharge port 23b, the steam is easily discharged.
In addition, the exhaust outlet 23c is provided outside the swirling flow to separate it, but in this case, the cross-sectional shape of the space portion in the case at the portion of the outlet 23c provided outside the swirling flow is the same. If it is a cylindrical flow path, the cylindrical cross-sectional shape can be enlarged toward the discharge port side to form a partial scroll shape.

A steam outlet 23b provided on the outlet side of the cylindrical flow path 23 is configured as an inlet portion of a steam outlet cylinder 24 formed in a cylindrical shape, and is near the external discharge hole 27 serving as a steam outlet from the cylindrical flow path 23. It is extended to. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the separated vapor from remixing with the rice cake that has flowed out of the cylindrical flow path 23. Although the steam outflow cylinder 24 extends to the vicinity of the external discharge hole 27 on the downstream side thereof, it can also be directly connected to the external discharge hole 27, and in this way, remixing with the ladle that flows out to the outside. Can be prevented.
Further, the steam discharge port 23b, that is, the upstream side of the steam outflow cylinder 24, extends in a cylindrical shape inside (upstream side) of the cylindrical flow path 23, so that the separated rice bowl does not flow out from here. It plays the role of "return".
Thus, the steam outflow cylinder 24 is fitted to the outlet side of the cylindrical flow path 23 (see FIG. 3).

  As shown in FIG. 4, an elastically deformable locking piece 30 is provided on the downstream side of the steam port unit 20. In the present embodiment, the locking piece 30 is provided in a case constituting the steam outflow cylinder 24. The locking piece 30 includes a vertical portion 30a extending downward from the bottom of the steam outlet tube 24 and a horizontal portion 30b extending in the horizontal direction from the lower end of the vertical portion 30a, and has a substantially L-shaped cross section. A locking claw 31 is provided on the upper surface side of the inner lid 11 at a position corresponding to the locking piece 30. The locking claw 31 can be moved over the locking piece 30 from the upper side of the drawing, but is configured to lock the locking piece 30 from the lower side of the drawing. The locking claw 31 may be provided directly on the upper surface side of the inner lid 11 or may be attached to the inner lid 11 via another member detachably attached to the inner lid 11 or another member fixed thereto. May be.

  FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the main part of FIG. As shown in FIG. 7, the clearance between the lower surface of the lid 10 and the upper surface of the case of the cylindrical flow path 23 is defined as a clearance X. A clearance Y is defined as a gap between the locking piece 30 and the locking claw 31 in the locked state. The clearance X is configured to be equal to or less than the clearance Y. The clearance X is about 0.7 mm, for example, and the clearance Y is about 1 mm, for example.

Next, attachment of the steam port unit 20 will be described. Here, it is assumed that the inner lid 11 is removed from the lid body 10 and the steam port unit 20 is also detached from the inner lid 11. First, the guide tube 13 is inserted into the flow channel introducing portion 23 a of the cylindrical flow channel 23 so that the guide tube 13 communicates with the cylindrical flow channel 23. In addition, the steam piece unit 20 is attached to the upper surface side of the inner lid 11 by pressing the locking piece 30 from above the locking claw 31 and getting over the locking claw 31 to lock the locking piece 30 to the locking claw 31. . Then, by attaching the inner lid 11 to the lower surface of the lid body 10, the steam port unit 20 is held between the lid body 10 and the inner lid 11.
Here, since the clearance X is configured to be equal to or less than the clearance Y, the inner lid 11 is attached to the lower surface of the lid body 10 even when the locking piece 30 is not sufficiently locked to the locking claw 31. By attaching to, the lower surface of the lid body 10 can press the upper surface of the case of the cylindrical flow path 23 and the locking piece 30 can be locked to the locking claw 31.

In this embodiment, the example in which the locking piece 30 is provided at the bottom of the steam outflow cylinder 24 has been shown, but it may be provided at the outer shell of the case constituting the cylindrical flow path 23. Further, the locking piece 30 is preferably provided on the downstream side of the steam port unit 20. By doing so, the guide tube 13 and the flow channel introduction portion 23a are fixed on the upstream side of the cylindrical flow channel 23 by the fitting structure, and the locking piece 30 is locked on the downstream side of the cylindrical flow channel 23. Since it will be fixed by the nail | claw 31, the both ends of the longitudinal direction of the steam port unit 20 can be fixed, and it can hold | maintain stably.
Further, the locking piece 30 may be provided on the inner lid 11 side, and the locking claw 31 may be provided on the steam port unit 20 side.

Next, the operation of the rice cooker including the steam port unit 20 having the above-described separation mechanism will be described.
When the inner pot 2 containing water and rice is accommodated in the rice cooker main body 1, the lid 10 is closed, and the power switch provided in the operation unit (not shown) is turned ON, the inner pot 2 is operated by the heating means 3. When the water in the inner pot 2 is boiled, steam containing a rice bowl is generated. At this time, since the internal pressure of the inner hook 2 is rising, the on-off valve 16 of the steam port unit 20 closes the return hole 15 if it is pushed up. For this reason, the steam including the rice cake passes through the guide tube 13 and passes through the fitting portion between the discharge hole 13b of the guide tube 13 and the flow channel introduction portion 23a of the cylindrical flow channel 23, and the Guided into the cylindrical channel 23. Since the seal member 25 is provided at the fitting portion between the discharge hole 13b of the guide tube 13 and the flow passage introduction portion 23a of the cylindrical flow passage 23, it is possible to suppress the leakage of steam from the fitting portion.

  Vapor including a bowl that exits the guide tube 13 flows into the flow channel from the tangential direction of the inner wall of the cylindrical flow channel 23, and forces the spiral flow channel along the spiral partition plate 26. And is separated into steam and roughly by the centrifugal force. Then, the steam passes through the steam outlet tube 24 from the steam discharge port 23b and is discharged from the external discharge hole 27 to the outside of the rice cooker body 1. On the other hand, the rice balls are discharged from the rice outlet 23 c and stored in the pool recess 14.

  After that, when the heating is stopped and the internal pressure of the inner hook 2 is lowered, the on-off valve 16 is lowered by its own weight and the weight of the toy, and opens the toy return hole 15 provided on the bottom surface of the accumulation recess 14. As a result, the rice balls collected in the accumulation recess 14 fall into the inner hook 2 from the food return holes 15. When the rice ball returns to the rice in the inner pot 2, the ingredients of the deliciousness contained in the rice ball are given to the rice, and it is possible to cook a delicious and sticky rice.

  As described above, the rice cooker according to the present embodiment includes the steam port unit 20 having the cylindrical channel 23 provided in the space sandwiched between the lid body 10 and the inner lid 11. The steam port unit 20 is provided with a locking piece 30, and a locking claw 31 is provided on the upper surface side of the inner lid 11 so as to get over the locking piece 30 from above but from below. The upper end portion of 13 is fitted into the opening of the flow path introducing portion 23a, and the locking piece 30 is locked to the locking claw 31, so that the steam port unit 20 is detachably attached to the inner lid 11. For this reason, the steam port unit 20 can be detachably attached to the space between the lid body 10 and the inner lid 11 without providing another member for mounting the steam port unit 20. Further, since the flow path of the steam port unit 20 is provided in the space between the lid 10 and the inner lid 11, when the inner lid 11 is attached to the lower surface of the lid 10, the steam port unit 20 is narrowed between the two. The steam port unit is not likely to fall off. In addition, the fitting structure between the guide tube 13 and the flow passage introducing portion 23a and the locking structure between the locking piece 30 and the locking claw 31 are all easy to handle, and the operation burden on the user is small.

  Further, the distal end portion of the guide tube 13 was fitted into the flow channel introducing portion 23 a via the seal member 25. For this reason, between the guide cylinder 13 and the flow-path introduction part 23a is sealed by the sealing member 25, and a steam leak can be suppressed. Further, due to the elasticity of the seal member 25, the fitted state between the guide tube 13 and the flow path introducing portion 23a can be stabilized.

  Further, the clearance between the upper surface of the case of the cylindrical flow path 23 and the lower surface of the lid 10 is configured to be equal to or less than the clearance between the locking piece 30 and the locking claw 31 in the locked state. For this reason, even if the locking pieces 30 are not sufficiently locked to the locking claws 31, the cylindrical channel 23 is pressed by the lower surface of the lid 10 by attaching the inner lid 11 to the lid 10. Thus, the locking piece 30 can be locked to the locking claw 31.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Rice cooker main body, 2 Inner pot, 2a flange, 3 Heating means, 10 Cover body, 11 Inner lid, 12 Fixed frame, 13 Guide cylinder, 13a Inlet hole, 13b Discharge hole, 13c Protrusion, 14 Reservoir recessed part, 15 Neck return hole, 16 On-off valve, 20 Steam port unit, 23 Cylindrical flow path, 23a Flow path introducing part, 23b Steam discharge port, 23c Stick discharge port, 24 Steam outflow cylinder, 25 Seal member, 26 Partition plate, 26A Axis, 27 External discharge hole, 30 locking piece, 30a vertical part, 30b horizontal part, 31 locking claw.

Claims (4)

The rice cooker body,
An inner pot detachably accommodated in the rice cooker body;
A lid that covers the upper opening of the rice cooker body;
An inner lid that is detachably mounted on the lower surface of the lid body and covers the upper opening of the inner hook, and has a steam discharge portion for discharging the steam in the inner pot;
Heating means for heating the inner pot;
A flow path disposed in a space sandwiched between the lid and the inner lid, and a flow path introduction section for introducing steam from the steam discharge section provided in the inner lid into the flow path. A steam outlet unit for discharging steam to the outside of the rice cooker body,
Either one of the steam port unit and the upper surface of the inner lid is provided with a locking piece, and the other is provided with a locking claw that allows the locking piece to be overcome from one direction but locked from the other direction.
By fitting either one of the steam discharge part or the flow path introducing part into the other, and locking the locking piece to the locking claw, the steam port unit is attached to the lid body and the inner lid. A rice cooker that is detachably attached to the sandwiched space. Either one of the said steam discharge part and the said flow-path introduction part is inserted in the other through the sealing member. The rice cooker of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. The locking claw and the locking piece are configured to be locked in the vertical direction,
The clearance between the upper surface of the flow path and the lower surface of the lid is configured to be equal to or less than the clearance between the locking claw and the locking piece in the locked state. 2. The rice cooker described in 2. The spiral partition plate that is substantially orthogonal to the traveling direction of the steam including the rice bowl is provided inside the channel, and the spiral channel is formed inside the channel. The rice cooker as described in any one of Claims 1-3.

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