JP7624567B2 - Cooking equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to a cooking device and a control method for the cooking device that allows heating control and maintenance work to be easily performed based on images captured by a camera installed inside the cooking device.

A microwave oven is known as an example of a cooking appliance. In a microwave oven, the user inputs the heating time and other settings, and then presses a button to start heating. This causes the food to be cooked. In stores such as convenience stores and supermarkets that sell boxed lunches and side dishes in containers, the store clerk (user) sometimes provides a service of cooking purchased food in the microwave oven and serving it to the customer.

We will now explain this type of heating and cooking service. Generally, the containers of bento boxes and side dishes have the optimum heating time for heating in a microwave oven displayed on them. The user looks at the display, sets the heating time in the microwave oven, and heats the food to be heated. The operation section of the microwave oven is provided with number keys and the like, and the heating time (minutes, seconds) is set.

In some cases, a microwave oven has multiple operation buttons, each of which is assigned a different heating time. In this case, the user can select the button that corresponds to the food to be heated, and the food can be heated with heating control appropriate for that food and served to the customer.

However, such microwave ovens have the problem that the user must take the trouble to input the heating time, etc.

For this reason, technology has been proposed that automatically sets the heating time and other settings in a microwave oven. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses technology that reads cooking information stored in an external storage device and sets the cooking method in the microwave oven.

JP 2004-116984 A

The present disclosure solves the above-mentioned problems of the related art by providing a method for controlling a cooking device that eliminates the need for cumbersome input tasks such as checking the operation of hardware and changing cooking menu settings such as heating times, and allows users to easily perform maintenance tasks and cook items to be heated.

The cooking device of the present disclosure includes a heating chamber that stores an object to be heated, a heating unit that heats the inside of the heating chamber, an operation unit that receives input operations from a user, a photographing unit that photographs the inside of the heating chamber, an information storage unit that stores management information corresponding to heating control information attached to the object to be heated or information on a setting label for changing settings in the cooking device, a recognition processing unit that recognizes the heating control information of the object to be heated or the information on the setting label from an image photographed by the photographing unit, and a control unit that controls the heating unit based on at least the heating control information of the object to be heated recognized by the recognition processing unit.
and a management information processing unit that, when the recognition processing unit recognizes the setting label, obtains management information corresponding to the information on the setting label from the information storage unit, and changes the version of software related to control of the heating cooker based on the management information corresponding to the information on the setting label.

The cooking device disclosed herein eliminates the need for cumbersome input operations such as setting the heating time, and allows the user to easily perform maintenance tasks and cook food or other items to be heated.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an external appearance of a cooking device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the cooking device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing examples of foods and shapes of the foods to be cooked in the cooking device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of recognition of at least one of a character, a label, and a barcode in the image recognition process in the cooking appliance according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of characters and labels in the image recognition process of the cooking appliance according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing other examples of characters and labels in the image recognition process in the cooking appliance according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an image recognition process in the cooking device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation panel of the cooking device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a table relating to association between heating control information of an object to be heated and setting process contents in the cooking device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a table relating to association between heating control information for an object to be heated and cooking menu management information in cooking parameter setting of the heating cooker according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a table relating to associations between cooking menu management information of an object to be heated and each operation panel button in cooking parameter setting of the heating cooker according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a cooking device according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a character and a label having multiple entries in the image recognition process in the cooking appliance according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing other examples of characters and labels having multiple entries in the image recognition process in the cooking appliance according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an image recognition process in the cooking device according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a table relating to association of heating control information of an object to be heated, camera management information, and their priorities in a camera check of a cooking device according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of characters and labels in the image recognition process in the cooking appliance according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of characters and a label including special symbols in addition to heating control characters in the image recognition process in the heating cooker according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of a food product having characters containing special symbols in addition to heating control characters and a label attached thereto, in the image recognition processing in the heating cooker of the third embodiment of the present disclosure.

(Foundations and other information that form the basis of this disclosure)
In conventional technology, the types and sizes of boxed lunches and side dishes change with periodic maintenance, seasons, events, etc. For this reason, the user must change the allocation of heating times to each operation button of the microwave oven each time, and must repeatedly press the operation buttons to change the settings, which is very troublesome and time-consuming.

The present disclosure solves the above-mentioned problems of the related art by providing a cooking device that does not require cumbersome input work such as checking the operation of hardware and changing cooking menu settings such as heating time, and allows the user to easily perform maintenance work, heat and cook the heated object, and, as an example, change the settings.

(An example of an embodiment of the present disclosure)
A control method for a heating cooker according to one example embodiment of the present disclosure recognizes code information, and if the recognized code information is heating control information for heating an object to be heated, sets the amount of heat and heating time by a heating unit of the heating cooker, and if the recognized code information is setting change information other than heating control information, changes the settings of the heating cooker other than the heating control information, and the start of heating by the heating unit of the heating cooker and the change in the settings of the heating cooker are both performed by a user operating an operating unit of the heating cooker.

This method eliminates the need for tedious input operations such as setting heating times, and allows users to easily perform maintenance tasks and heat and cook food or other items to be heated.

In addition, a cooking device according to an example of the present disclosure includes a heating chamber that stores an object to be heated, a heating unit that heats the inside of the heating chamber, an operation unit that is operated by a user, an image capturing unit that captures the inside of the heating chamber, and an information storage unit that stores management information corresponding to the heating control information of the object to be heated in association with the heating control information. The cooking device also includes a recognition processing unit that recognizes the heating control information from an image captured by the image capturing unit, and a control unit that controls the heating unit based on at least the state of the inside of the heating chamber captured by the image capturing unit and the heating control information of the object to be heated. The cooking device also includes a management information processing unit that acquires management information corresponding to the heating control information recognized by the recognition processing unit from the information storage unit, and changes settings related to at least one of the control unit, the heating unit, the image capturing unit, the information storage unit, and the recognition processing unit based on the management information.

With this configuration, the setting change process is performed based on the management information that is registered in advance in association with the heating control information that was read. This eliminates the need for cumbersome input work such as setting the heating time, and allows the user to easily perform maintenance work and obtain a heating cooker that can heat and cook foods and other objects to be heated.

In addition, in a cooking device according to an example of an embodiment of the present disclosure, the recognition processing unit may be capable of recognizing multiple pieces of heating control information, and the management information processing unit may perform multiple setting change processes simultaneously or sequentially based on the order in which the multiple pieces of heating control information are recognized.

With this configuration, it is possible to execute multiple setting change processes in sequence based on the management information registered in advance in association with the read heating control information. This makes it unnecessary to perform cumbersome input operations such as setting the heating time, etc., and allows the user to easily perform maintenance work and cook objects to be heated such as food, thereby obtaining a heating cooker.

In addition, in a cooking device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the management information processing unit may have a setting change determination unit that determines whether or not a setting change can be made and at least one of the priorities based on each piece of management information stored in the information storage unit, and the setting change determination unit may change the settings related to the heating chamber based on the result of the determination.

With this configuration, it is possible to execute multiple setting change processes in a predetermined order based on pre-registered management information associated with the read heating control information and at least one of pre-registered priorities and execution feasibility determinations. This eliminates the need for cumbersome input work such as setting heating times, and allows the user to easily obtain a heating cooker that can perform maintenance work and heat and cook heated objects such as food.

In addition, in a cooking device according to an example of an embodiment of the present disclosure, the heating unit may control heating based on the result determined by the setting change determination unit.

With this configuration, it is possible to heat and cook the object under heating control conditions suitable for the object based on management information related to heating control, such as additional heating and time-saving heating, which is associated with the read heating control information and registered in advance. This eliminates the need for cumbersome input work such as setting the heating time, and the object can be easily heated and cooked under heating control conditions suitable for the object.

In addition, in a cooking device according to an example of an embodiment of the present disclosure, the recognition processing unit can further recognize information other than the heating control information of the object to be heated, and when the setting change determination unit recognizes the information, it may change the settings by prioritizing the information over the management information corresponding to the heating control information.

With this configuration, when a pre-registered special symbol, number, etc. is recognized, it is possible to associate the symbol, letter, etc. with heating control information containing the heating control information, and sequentially execute setting change processing and heating control processing, etc., based on the pre-registered management information and pre-registered execution feasibility criteria. This eliminates the need for cumbersome input work such as setting heating times, etc., and allows the user to easily obtain a heating cooker that can perform maintenance work and heat and cook heated objects such as food.

In addition, a cooking device according to an example of an embodiment of the present disclosure may further include a display unit capable of displaying information relating to at least one of the settings changed by the management information processing unit and the management information stored in the information storage unit.

With this configuration, the settings acquisition process is performed based on the management information that has been registered in advance in association with the heating control information that has been read. This eliminates the need for cumbersome input work when checking version information and acquiring the status inside the heating chamber, and allows the information to be communicated to the user in an easy-to-understand manner.

The control method for a cooking device disclosed herein is a control method for a cooking device including a heating chamber for storing an object to be heated, a heating unit for heating the inside of the heating chamber, an operation unit operated by a user, an image capturing unit for capturing an image of the inside of the heating chamber, and an information storage unit for storing management information corresponding to the heating control information of the object to be heated in association with the heating control information. The control method recognizes the heating control information from an image captured by the image capturing unit, obtains management information corresponding to the recognized heating control information from the information storage unit, and changes settings related to at least one of the heating unit, the image capturing unit, the information storage unit, and the recognition processing unit based on the management information.

In this manner, the setting change process is performed based on the management information that has been registered in advance and is associated with the heating control information that has been read. This eliminates the need for cumbersome input operations such as setting the heating time, and allows the user to easily perform maintenance work and obtain a method of controlling a cooking device that can heat and cook food or other objects to be heated.

Below, examples of embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the appearance of a cooking device 100 according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 1, the cooking device 100 has a housing 111 for storing food 107, which is an object to be heated, and a door panel 101 for inserting and removing the food 107. The cooking device 100 has a heating information display unit 102 and a selection unit 103 above the door panel 101 in the housing 111.

As described below, the cooking device 100 reads the heating time corresponding to the food 107 from the indication such as a label attached to the food 107, and cooks the food 107 for the heating time that has been read. The heating information display unit 102 displays the heating time that has been read.

As an example, the selection unit 103 includes a "menu" button that allows the user to select a menu corresponding to the food 107 to be heated when the heating time cannot be read, and at least one of a number button, a "minute" button, and a "second" button for manually setting the heating time. The selection unit 103 also includes a "heat start button" for starting heating, and a "heat stop button" for stopping heating. The selection unit 103 may also include a "menu switch" button for switching to a menu (memory number) corresponding to the food 107 to be heated, and a "number" button for manually setting the heating time (input of minutes and seconds) without using the memory (see FIG. 8).

The cooking appliance 100 also includes a cooking chamber 104, which is a heating chamber, within the housing 111. The cooking chamber 104 is provided with a lighting unit 105 provided on the inside surface of the chamber, and a camera 106 provided on the top surface of the chamber. The camera 106 is installed at the top of the cooking chamber 104, so that the entire interior can be photographed from the top of the chamber. The camera 106 is electrically connected to a control circuit (not shown) provided in the cooking appliance 100, and is controlled by the control circuit.

The cooking device 100 is configured to capture images of the food 107 stored in the cooking chamber 104 using the camera 106, and to detect heating information related to the food 107 from the captured image information.

As described above, the cooking device 100 also includes an illumination unit 105 provided on the interior side of the cooking chamber 104. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the illumination unit 105 is disposed on the side of the cooking chamber 104, and illuminates the entire interior of the cooking chamber 104 from the interior side.

Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the cooking device 100 in the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cooking device 100 has a heating unit 201, an operation unit 202, an image capturing unit 203, a control unit 204, a recognition processing unit 205, an information storage unit 206, and a management information processing unit 207.

The heating unit 201 is, for example, a magnetron, and supplies high-frequency waves to the food 107 placed in the heating cooking chamber 104 to heat the food 107.

The operation unit 202 has, for example, a touch panel and multiple keys, and is used by the user to set the heating time and start heating, etc.

The image capturing unit 203 is composed of, for example, a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) image sensor or a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) image sensor, and captures images of the inside of the cooking chamber 104. The image capturing unit 203 has the above-mentioned camera 106 and a control circuit.

The control unit 204 controls the heating unit 201 based on the state of the interior of the heating cooking chamber 104 photographed by the photographing unit 203 and the heating control information of the food 107 to be heated.

At least one of the control unit 204, the recognition processing unit 205, and the management information processing unit 207 includes a microcomputer and its peripheral circuits. At least one of the control unit 204, the recognition processing unit 205, and the management information processing unit 207 executes various controls by a program that runs on the microcomputer. At least one of the control unit 204, the recognition processing unit 205, and the management information processing unit 207 may include a microcomputer and its peripheral circuits.

The microcomputer and peripheral circuits may be in any form as long as they perform the control described below. At least one of the control unit 204, the recognition processing unit 205, and the management information processing unit 207 may be composed of an arithmetic processing unit and a storage unit that stores a control program. Examples of the arithmetic processing unit include an MPU (Micro Processing Unit) and a CPU (Central Processing Unit). Examples of the storage unit include a memory. The control program recorded in the storage unit is executed by the arithmetic processing unit.

In addition, at least one of the control unit 204, the recognition processing unit 205, and the management information processing unit 207 may be configured with hard logic. Configuring with hard logic is effective in improving processing speed. Each component may be configured with one semiconductor chip, or may be physically configured with multiple semiconductor chips. When configured with multiple semiconductor chips, each control described below can be realized with a separate semiconductor chip.

The recognition processing unit 205 detects information related to heating control information (heating wattage (W) and heating time, etc.) written on a food label, etc., from the image captured by the imaging unit 203, and analyzes whether it is text information (information related to heating control). As a method for recognizing text on a food label, for example, at least one of a method of detecting heating control information surrounded by a frame within the food label and a method of detecting the outline of the food label may be used. Furthermore, the text information may include not only the heating control information of the food 107, but also at least one of image information of the entire food, the type of food 107 related to it, and information related to the shape and expiration date of the food 107.

The information storage unit 206 is composed of a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory, and stores the heating control information analyzed by the recognition processing unit 205, management information related to the control of the cooking appliance 100, and the like. That is, the information storage unit 206 stores a table in which the heating control information and the management information are associated with each other.

The heating control information is, for example, the amount of heating (i.e., heating output or wattage) and the heating time corresponding to that amount of heating.

The management information is information related to the control of the cooking appliance 100 (for example, information related to at least one of the heating unit 201, the photographing unit 203, the information storage unit 206, and the recognition processing unit 205), and is setting information including at least one of the exposure setting time of the camera 106, focus setting information, lighting brightness setting information, cleaning information in the cooking appliance 100, the heating time of the heating unit 201, and the heating wattage. The cleaning information is cleaning availability information when it is necessary to remove dirt from the camera, top plate, and cabinet surface in the cooking cabinet 104, dust from the filter, etc. The management information also includes status information such as the number of times the door of the cooking appliance 100 has been opened and closed, and version information of the software related to the control of the cooking appliance 100. The information stored in the information storage unit 206 may include at least one of the shape information of the food 107, the management information of the cooking appliance 100, the management information of the camera 106, and the like, as well as information related to heating control and operation, in addition to the heating control information.

The management information processing unit 207 acquires management information for the interior of the heating cooking chamber 104, which is associated with the heating control information detected by the recognition processing unit 205, from the information storage unit 206, and executes processing to change settings for the interior of the heating cooking chamber 104, such as the cooking menu and parameter settings of the camera 106, according to control instructions from the control unit 204.

Figures 3 and 4 are diagrams showing examples of recognition of at least one of characters, labels, and barcodes in the image recognition process in the cooking device 100 in the first embodiment of the present disclosure. These diagrams show examples of images of the food label 302 to be recognized, and are diagrams showing examples of barcode recognition and character recognition in the image recognition process.

In the following embodiments, the barcode is not limited to a one-dimensional code, but also includes two-dimensional codes such as QR Code (registered trademark).

Figures 3 and 4 show food 301, which is a boxed lunch, as an example. A food label 302 is attached to food 301, which displays text information about the name and price of the food, and heating control information. Note that the heating control information on food label 302 may display the amount of heat and the heating time corresponding to that amount of heat in the form of letters and symbols that can be directly recognized by the user, or may be displayed as a barcode corresponding to the amount of heat and the heating time corresponding to that amount of heat.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the heating time corresponding to the amount of heat is displayed in the heating control character target area 303 of the food label 302. In the heating control character target area 303, heating times corresponding to multiple amounts of heat are displayed. Specifically, as a guideline for heating in a typical household microwave oven, for example, 2 minutes 30 seconds, which is the heating time when heating with a heating amount of 500 W, and as a guideline for heating in a commercial microwave oven, for example, 0 minutes 45 seconds, which is the heating time when heating with a heating amount of 1500 W, are both displayed. In other words, in the heating control character target area 303, for example, "500W 2 minutes 30 seconds 1500W 0 minutes 45 seconds" is displayed.

The heating control character target area 303 displays, in this order, a first character string which is a number representing a predetermined amount of heating, for example "500", a second character string which is a unit of that amount of heating, for example "W", a third character string which is a number representing the heating time at that amount of heating, for example "2", a fourth character string which is a unit of the heating time, for example "minutes", a fifth character string which is a number representing the heating time at that amount of heating, for example "30", and a sixth character string which is a unit of the heating time, for example "seconds".

In addition, the heating control character target area 303 displays, in this order, a seventh character string which is a number indicating a heating amount greater than the above-mentioned predetermined heating amount, for example "1500", an eighth character string which indicates the unit of the heating amount, for example "W", a ninth character string which is a number indicating the heating time at that heating amount, for example "0", a tenth character string which indicates the unit of the heating time, for example "minutes", an eleventh character string which is a number indicating the heating time at that heating amount, for example "45", and a twelfth character string which indicates the unit of the heating time, for example "seconds".

In this embodiment, the second and eighth character strings use "W (watts)", an SI unit of heat quantity, but other characters or units may be used as long as they represent a unit of heating power. Also, the fourth, sixth, tenth, and twelfth character strings use "minutes" or "seconds" as characters representing a unit of time, but other characters or units may be used as long as they represent a unit of time.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the barcode is displayed in the barcode target area 304 of the food label 302.

Figures 5 and 6 are diagrams showing an example of a setting label in the image recognition process in the cooking appliance 100 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, these figures show an example of an image of a setting label for changing settings in the cooking chamber 104, and are diagrams showing an example of character recognition in the image recognition process.

In Figure 5, the setting label 401 uses a display format for heating control information (amount of heat, heating time) to display information related to management information in the numbers corresponding to the amount of heat and the numbers corresponding to the heating time according to that amount of heat.

Specifically, the number for the amount of heat in the setting label 401 is written as "1111," which corresponds to ID 1 in the management information. The heating time is written as "1 minute 1 second," with ID 2 information written in the number space preceding the minutes of the heating time, and ID 3 information written in the number space preceding the seconds of the heating time.

In addition, in the example of Figure 6, information regarding management information is written in the same manner as in Figure 5, in accordance with the display format of the heating control information on the food label 302 in Figure 4.

Specifically, two types of heating control information are written on the setting label 402. The first heating control information states the heating amount as "0000 W" and the heating time as "0 minutes 0 seconds." This makes it easy to determine that the setting label 402 is a label for changing settings by using numbers that are not normally used for the heating amount and heating time, and this type of heating control information can be used to check whether the label is a setting label.

The second heating control information states that the heating amount is "1111 W" and the heating time is "1 minute 1 second", with "1111" written in the place corresponding to the heating amount number, and similar to the setting label 401, the information of identification ID1 is written. Similarly to the setting label 401, the heating time of "1 minute 1 second" has information of identification ID2 written in the place corresponding to the "minute" number of the heating time, and information of identification ID3 written in the place corresponding to the "second" number of the heating time.

The settings on the label may be written in a format that allows the user to recognize which settings are being changed (for example, at least one of text such as "for cooking parameter settings" and an image is displayed on the label), or the settings may be written as a barcode corresponding to the amount of heat and the heating time corresponding to that amount of heat.

Next, we will explain the process in which the recognition processing unit 205 in the cooking device 100 detects the heating control character target area 303 from an image of the food 301 (see, for example, FIG. 4), and the heating control information detected from the heating control character target area 303 is associated with management information to change the settings.

Figure 7 is a flowchart showing the image recognition process in the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

In FIG. 7, when a food label 302 or a setting label 401 is placed inside the heating cooking chamber 104, the photographing unit 203 photographs an image of the inside of the heating cooking chamber 104 (S501).

From the image captured by the image capture unit 203, the recognition processing unit 205 detects and acquires heating control information for the food 301 to be heated (S502).

Furthermore, the recognition processing unit 205 determines whether the detected heating control information (output wattage, heating time, etc.) is correct heating control information for the food 301 to be heated (S503).

If the heating control information of the food 301 that is the target of the image recognition process is correct heating information (in this embodiment, the example of the heating control character target area 303 shown in FIG. 4) (Yes in S503), the control unit 204 performs heating control based on the heating control information analyzed by the recognition processing unit 205. At this time, the control unit 204 displays the heating control information or information related to the corresponding management information, etc., on the heating information display unit 102.

More specifically, the user checks from the display contents of the heating information display unit 102 whether the heating control information is correct for the food 301 to be heated, and then, based on the confirmation results, the user performs an operation of pressing a heating start button or the like on the operation unit 202, thereby heating the target food 301 (S507).

As a result, in the cooking device 100, the food 301 is cooked with the amount of heat included in the heating control information for the heating time included in the heating control information.

Let us assume that in step S503, it is determined that the heating control information is the heating control information of the setting label 401, or that the heating control information acquired in step S502 is not the correct heating control information for the food 301 to be heated (No in S503). In this case, first, a table for converting heating information stored in the information storage unit 206 is used to check whether the recognized heating control information is associated with management information, and if there is associated management information, the management information is acquired (S504).

In step S505, if it is determined that the heating control information of the setting label 401 is the corresponding management information existing in the table (Yes in S505), the management information processing unit 207 performs a setting change process based on the management information associated with the heating control information by the information storage unit 206 in accordance with the control instruction of the control unit 204.

Specifically, the user checks whether the heating control information is the management information of the setting label 401 from the display content of the heating information display unit 102 (in this case, information related to the management information is displayed), and then performs an operation of pressing the operation decision button or the like using the operation unit 202 based on the confirmation result. This causes the target setting change process to be executed (S507).

In this way, in the cooking device 100, the setting change process is performed based on the management information associated with the heating control information.

In addition, if it is determined that the heating control information is not correct for the food 301 to be heated, and if the setting of the corresponding setting label 401 is not found (No in S505), the heating setting (e.g., setting the amount of heat and heating time) is performed manually on the operation unit 202 (S506).

When the heating setting is performed manually (S506), the user checks whether the heating control information is correct for the food 301 to be heated, and then presses the heating start button on the operation unit 202 based on the check result. This starts cooking (S507).

In this embodiment, cooking begins after the heating start button or the operation decision button is pressed in step S507. However, from the viewpoint of reducing the operational burden on the user, if it can be determined that the heating control information or the management information is correct (Yes in S503 and Yes in S505), the cooking device 100 may be configured to automatically start cooking or setting processing.

Next, we will explain the process in which the information storage unit 206 associates and stores the heating control information analyzed by the recognition processing unit 205 with the management information.

Figure 8 is a diagram showing an operation panel 600 as an example of the operation unit 202 of the cooking device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

The operation panel 600 is composed of an operation display panel 601 (corresponding to the heating information display unit 102) using LEDs to display heating control information, numeric buttons 602 (corresponding to the operation unit 202) for setting various cooking menus and performing special operations, and a start button 603 (corresponding to the operation unit 202) for starting the heating process determined by the recognition processing unit 205 or for confirming the setting process.

In appliances such as microwave ovens, the main function is heating control, so the operation display panel 601 is used to display various operations. Therefore, with conventional technology, most maintenance operations require repeated pressing of the numeric buttons 602 and start button 603, etc., which is a heavy operational burden and troublesome.

Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of a table (heating information conversion table) relating to the association between heating control information for an object to be heated and setting process contents in the cooking device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 9, the table 801 relating the heating control information of the heated object to the setting process contents includes ID1 (in this embodiment, a value corresponding to the heating wattage (W)) that identifies the heating amount of the heating control characters of the heated object, and the setting process contents within the heating cooking chamber 104.

In FIG. 9, for example, if ID1 is "0000", a check is made to see if the settings can be changed, and if ID1 is "1111", cooking parameter setting processing is performed. In addition to the setting processing, heating control processing is also performed in response to instructions from the control unit 1004, such as "additional heating setting" when ID1 is "1222", and "heating setting for unrecognizable foods" when ID1 is "1333".

In addition to configuration processing, it is also possible to perform information acquisition processing such as acquiring version information and the number of times the camera has taken pictures, as well as hardware checks such as camera checks and lighting checks.

For the identification ID1, a numerical value that is not used for normal heating control (a numerical value that can be determined to be not a value used as a normal heating amount, such as 500 W or 1500 W) is used to assign the setting process. It is more preferable that each number is selected so as not to cause erroneous recognition of the numbers by the recognition processing unit 205. The information storage unit 206 stores the identification ID1 and the setting process contents in association with each other.

Specifically, in the example of FIG. 5, "1111" is recognized as "identification ID1," so the "cooking parameter setting" setting process is performed. Also, in the example of FIG. 6, "identification ID1" is recognized as "0000" as the first heating control information, so it is recognized that "setting change" is possible, and "identification ID1" is recognized as "1111" as the second heating control information, so the "cooking parameter setting" setting process is performed.

Figure 10 is a diagram showing an example of a table relating to the association between heating control information for an object to be heated and cooking menu management information in the cooking parameter setting of the heating cooker 100 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 10, the table 801 relating heating control information to cooking menu management information in the cooking parameter setting of the heating cooker 100 includes ID1 (corresponding to heating wattage (W) in this embodiment) for identifying the amount of heat in the heating control text of the heated object, ID2 (corresponding to heating time (minutes) in this embodiment) and ID3 (corresponding to heating time (seconds) in this embodiment) for identifying the heating time, and the setting process contents in the heating cooking chamber 104.

In FIG. 10, for example, if ID2 is "01" and ID3 is "01", a process for setting the cooking menu ID "0101" is performed, and if ID2 is "01" and ID3 is "02", a process for setting the cooking menu ID "0102" is performed.

For identification ID2 and identification ID3, it is desirable to assign the setting process using a numerical value that is not used for normal heating control (e.g., a number greater than 60). It is also more desirable to select each number so as to prevent erroneous recognition of the numbers by the recognition processing unit 205. The information storage unit 206 stores identification ID1, identification ID2, and identification ID3 in association with the setting process contents.

Specifically, in the example of Fig. 5, "1" is recognized as "ID2" and "1" is recognized as "ID3", so a cooking menu ID of "0101" is set. In the example of Fig. 6, "ID1" is recognized as "0000" as the first heating control information, so that it is first recognized that "setting change is possible" (see Fig. 9), and then, as the second heating control information, "cooking parameter setting with "ID1" of "1111", "ID2" of "1", and "ID3" of "1" are recognized, so that a cooking menu ID of "0101" is set.
The setting process will be performed.

Figure 11 is a diagram showing an example of a table relating to the association between cooking menu management information for the heated object and each button on the operation panel 600 in the cooking parameter setting of the heating cooker 100 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 11, a table 901 relating to the association between cooking menu management information of the heated object and each button of the operation panel 600 in the cooking parameter setting of the heating cooker 100 includes a "cooking menu ID," a value corresponding to the button of the operation panel 600 (in this embodiment, the value corresponding to the numeric button 602 in FIG. 8), and the setting process contents within the heating cooking chamber 104.

In FIG. 11, for example, if the cooking menu ID is "0101", the cooking heating time is assigned to button "1" for "10 seconds", button "2" for "20 seconds", button "9" for "5 minutes", and button "0" for "10 minutes". Note that buttons may be assigned not only to the "number" buttons, but also to the "memory" button and "output switch" button, etc., as in the operation panel 600 of FIG. 8.

Specifically, in the example of FIG. 5, "identification ID2" is recognized as "1" and "identification ID3" as "1", so the setting process written in cooking menu ID "0101" is performed. In the example of FIG. 6, "identification ID1" is recognized as "0000" as the first heating control information, so it is first recognized that "settings can be changed", and then "cooking parameter setting" with "identification ID1" of "1111", "identification ID2" as "1", and "identification ID3" as "1" are recognized as the second heating control information, so the setting process written in cooking menu ID "0101" is performed.

Second Embodiment
A microwave oven, which is an example of the cooking appliance 200 according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure, will be described.

In the second embodiment of the present disclosure, the description of the structure, functional configuration, and control method similar to those of the first embodiment will be omitted.

The cooking device 200 according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure differs from the cooking device 100 according to the first embodiment in that a setting change determination unit 1008 is provided in the management information processing unit 1007.

Specifically, when performing special heating control processing or multiple management information processing, the setting change determination unit 1008 determines which heating control or setting change processing is to be performed, and if it is determined that the processing is to be performed, the heating control or setting change processing is performed based on a predetermined priority order. Therefore, this embodiment will mainly explain this point.

Figure 12 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the cooking device 200 in the second embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 12, the cooking device 200 according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure includes a heating unit 1001, an operation unit 1002, an image capturing unit 1003, a control unit 1004, a recognition processing unit 1005, an information storage unit 1006, and a management information processing unit 1007. The management information processing unit 1007 includes a setting change determination unit 1008.

The recognition processing unit 1005 obtains information regarding the amount of heat and the heating time from an image of the setting label 401 or the food label 302 (see, for example, Figures 3 to 6). The recognition processing unit 1005 identifies the setting label 401 or the food label 302.

Then, the recognition processing unit 1005 performs character recognition in the heating control character target area 303 of the setting label 401 or food label 302 to obtain information on the heating amount and heating time. Alternatively, the recognition processing unit 1005 performs barcode recognition in the barcode target area 304 of the food label 302 to obtain information on the heating amount and heating time that is registered in advance in the information storage unit 1006 in correspondence with the barcode.

The information storage unit 1006 stores management information associated with the heating control character information that has been recognized by the recognition processing unit 1005. Furthermore, the management information is also associated with information such as priority and whether or not processing can be executed.

The management information processing unit 1007 determines whether to perform heating control or setting change according to the execution possibility and priority of the management information stored in the information storage unit 1006. Specifically, the setting change determination unit 1008 in the management information processing unit determines in what order to perform setting change and heating control, etc. Based on the determination result of the setting change determination unit 1008, the management information processing unit 1007 sequentially performs heating control processing, setting change processing, etc. in the control unit 1004.

The setting change determination unit 1008 not only determines the priority of each piece of management information, but also, when a special symbol is recognized by the recognition processing unit, it can process only the heating control character information to which the symbol has been added, without processing other recognized heating control information, or can determine the execution of heating processes and setting processes, etc. that are not described in the heating control character information.

Specifically, for example, when a certain food 301 needs to be heated further, if a setting label 1101 is inserted at the same time as the food 301 with the food label information, only the heating information written on the setting label 1101 is read and heating control is performed, or if heating control information with special symbols is read, heating control is performed for a short period of time with that amount of heat.

Although the setting change determination unit 1008 has been described as being configured as a part of the function of the management information processing unit 1007, the management information processing unit 1007 and the setting change determination unit 1008 may be configured as separate functional components, or may be configured as part of the configuration or function of the recognition processing unit 1005. Furthermore, the recognition processing unit 1005 and the setting change determination unit 1008 may be configured as part of the configuration or function of the control unit 1004.

Figures 13 and 14 are diagrams showing examples of setting labels 1101 and 1102 in the image recognition process of the cooking appliance 200 in the second embodiment of the present disclosure.

Specifically, these figures show example images of setting labels 1101, 1102 for performing multiple setting change processes within the cooking chamber 104, and are diagrams showing examples of character recognition in image recognition processing.

In FIG. 13, the setting label 1101 uses a display format for heating control information (amount of heat, heating time) to display information related to management information in the portion of the number corresponding to the amount of heat and the number corresponding to the heating time according to that amount of heat.

Specifically, two types of heating control information are recorded on the setting label 1101. In the first heating control information, the heating amount is recorded as "1111 W" and the heating time as "1 minute 1 second", with "1111" written in the place corresponding to the heating amount number, and according to the information conversion table in FIG. 9, the identification ID 1 "1111" records processing content related to "cooking parameter setting". In addition, the heating time is recorded as "1 minute 1 second", with the information "1" of the identification ID 2 recorded in the place corresponding to the "minute" number of the heating time, and the information "1" of the identification ID 3 recorded in the place corresponding to the "second" number of the heating time, and according to the information conversion table in FIG. 10, the setting content related to the setting of the cooking menu ID "0101" is recorded.

The second heating control information states that the heating amount is "2222 W" and the heating time is "2 minutes 1 second", with the part corresponding to the heating amount number being "2222", and identification ID1 "2222" describing the process content relating to "obtaining the number of camera shots". Similarly to setting label 401, the heating time of "2 minutes 1 second" has identification ID2 information "2" written in the part corresponding to the "minutes" number of the heating time, and identification ID3 information "1" written in the part corresponding to the "seconds" number of the heating time.

In addition, in FIG. 14, information about management information is written in the same manner as in FIG. 13. Specifically, four types of heating control information are written on the setting label 1102.

The first to fourth heating control information each have the same heating amount "5111W" recorded, with the portion corresponding to the heating amount number being "5111", and identification ID 1 "5111" records the processing content relating to "camera check" from the information conversion table in Figure 9. In the first to fourth heating control information, the heating time is recorded as "1 minute 1 second", "1 minute 2 seconds", "2 minutes 1 second", and "2 minutes 2 seconds", respectively.

The information on the setting labels 1101 and 1102 may be written in a format that allows the user to recognize which setting content is being changed (for example, a format in which text or an image such as "For cooking parameter setting" is displayed on the label), or may be written as a barcode indicating the amount of heat and the heating time corresponding to that amount of heat.

Figure 15 is a flowchart showing image recognition processing in the second embodiment of the present disclosure.

In FIG. 15, when food 301 or setting label 1101 is placed inside the heating cooking chamber 104, the photographing unit 1003 photographs an image of the inside of the heating cooking chamber 104 (S1201).

From the image captured by the image capturing unit 1003, the recognition processing unit 1005 detects and acquires heating control information for the food 301 to be heated (S1202).

The recognition processing unit 205 further determines whether multiple pieces of heating control information (heat amount, heating time, etc.) have been detected (S1203). If multiple pieces of heating control information have not been detected (No in S1203), the process will be the same as the flow (X) in FIG. 7 where only one piece of heating control information exists, so a description of the process flow will be omitted here.

If there are multiple pieces of detected heating control information (Yes in S1203), the setting change determination unit 1008 determines the processing order based on the setting change determination table stored in the information storage unit 1006. The setting change determination unit 1008 determines in what order to change the settings and perform heating control, or whether to perform it at all, based on the priority of the management information associated with each of the multiple pieces of heating control information recognized by the recognition processing unit 1005. Furthermore, the execution order and whether the processing can be performed are confirmed based on the display contents of the operation display panel 601 in Fig. 8 (S1204).

If there is no problem with the execution order (Yes in S1205), it is determined whether the heating control information is correct for the food 1403 to be heated (S1206).

If the heating control information of the food 1403 that is the subject of image recognition processing is correct heating information (Yes in S1206), the control unit 1004 performs heating control based on the heating control information analyzed by the recognition processing unit 1005. At this time, the control unit 1004 displays at least one of the heating control information and the corresponding management information on the heating information display unit 102.

The user checks from the display contents of the heating information display unit 102 whether the heating control information is correct for the food 1403 to be heated, and then, based on the check results, the user performs an operation of pressing a heating start button or the like on the operation unit 1002, thereby heating the target food 1403 (S1208).

As a result, in the cooking device 100, the food 1403 is cooked with the amount of heat included in the heating control information for the heating time included in the heating control information.

If it is determined in step S1206 that the heating control information is that of the setting label 1101 or that the heating control information is not correct for the food 1403 to be heated (No in S1206), the heating information conversion table stored in the information storage unit 1006 is used to first check whether the recognized heating control information is associated with management information, and if there is associated management information, that management information is acquired (S1207).

In step S1207, in accordance with a control instruction from the control unit 1004, the management information processing unit 1007 performs a setting change process based on the management information associated with the heating control information in the information storage unit 1006.

At this time, the control unit 1004 displays the heating control information and information related to the corresponding management information on the heating information display unit 102.

The user checks from the display contents of the heating information display unit 102 whether the heating control information is management information of the setting label 1101, and then, based on the check result, the user performs an operation such as pressing the operation decision button on the operation unit 1002 to execute the target setting change process (S1208).

As a result, the cooking device 200 performs a setting change process based on the management information associated with the heating control information.

In this embodiment, cooking begins after the heating start or operation decision button is pressed in step S1208, but from the perspective of reducing the operational burden on the user, the cooking device 200 may be configured to automatically start cooking or setting processing when it can be determined that the heating information or operation management information is correct (Yes in S1206 and S1207).

After step S1208, in step S1209, it is determined whether there is any remaining processing.
If there is remaining processing (S1209, Yes), the process proceeds to step S1206. If there is no remaining processing (S1209, No), the process ends.

Figure 16 is a diagram showing an example of a table (setting change determination table) relating to the association of heating control information for an object to be heated, camera management information, and their priorities in a camera check of a cooking device according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 16, the association table 1301 between the heating control information of the heated object and the cooking menu management information in the camera check of the heating cooker includes ID1 (corresponding to heating wattage (W) in this embodiment) for identifying the amount of heat in the heating control text of the heated object, ID2 (corresponding to heating time (minutes) in this embodiment), ID3 (corresponding to heating time (seconds) in this embodiment), and the setting process contents within the heating cooking chamber 104.

In FIG. 16, for example, if identification ID 2 is "1" and identification ID 3 is "1", the camera sharpness function is set to "ON", and if identification ID 2 is "1" and identification ID 3 is "2", the camera sharpness function is set to "OFF". Also, if identification ID 2 is "2" and identification ID 3 is "1", the camera exposure time is set to "1/200 seconds", and if identification ID 2 is "2" and identification ID 3 is "2", the camera exposure time is set to "1/100 seconds".

For identification ID2 and identification ID3, it is desirable to assign the setting process using a numerical value (e.g., a number greater than 60) that is not used for normal heating control. It is also desirable that each number be selected so as to prevent erroneous recognition of the numbers by the recognition processing unit 1005. The information storage unit 1006 stores identification ID1, identification ID2, and identification ID3 in association with the setting process contents.

Specifically, in the example of FIG. 14, four heating control characters are written, and the values of "identification ID2, identification ID3" are recognized as "1,1", "1,2", "2,1", and "2,2" from the top. Therefore, according to the association table 1301, the respective setting contents are "Sharpness: ON", "Sharpness: OFF", "Exposure time: 1/200 sec", and "Exposure time: 1/100 sec". Furthermore, the respective priorities are "1", "2", "100", and "101" from the top, so the processing order is "Sharpness: ON", "Sharpness: OFF", "Exposure time: 1/200 sec", and "Exposure time: 1/100 sec".

In this example, only the setting process is set in the order of priority, but after the setting process, a control process such as image capture by the image capture unit 1003 may be performed at the same time, or may be performed in combination with heating control. In addition, multiple setting processes may be processed simultaneously according to the control process of the control unit 1004, or the next setting process may not be executed until the first setting process is completed.

Third Embodiment
A microwave oven, which is an example of a cooking device according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure, will be described. In the third embodiment of the present disclosure, the description of the structure, the functional configuration, and the control method similar to those of the second embodiment will be omitted.

Figures 17 to 19 are diagrams showing examples of setting labels 1401 and 1402, respectively, in the image recognition process for a cooking device in the third embodiment of the present disclosure.

Specifically, these figures show example images of setting labels 1401, 1402 for performing preferential heating control processing within the heating cooking chamber 104, and are figures showing examples of barcode recognition and character recognition in image recognition processing.

In Figure 17, the heating process setting label 1401 uses a display format for heating control information (amount of heat, heating time) to display information related to management information in the numbers corresponding to the amount of heat and the numbers corresponding to the heating time according to that amount of heat.

Specifically, "1222" is written in place of the heating amount number in the setting label 1401, and according to the information conversion table in Figure 9, identification ID1 "1222" corresponds to "additional heating setting". Furthermore, "0 minutes 12 seconds" is written as the heating time, and the information "0" of identification ID2 is written in the place corresponding to the "minutes" of the heating time, and the information "12" of identification ID3 is written in the place corresponding to the "seconds" of the heating time. When setting additional heating, even if other heating control information has been read, only this read information may be given priority.

Specifically, when the recognition processing unit 1005 recognizes "1222W 0 minutes 12 seconds", the setting change determination unit 1008 prioritizes processing only the additional heating control information, even if there is multiple heating control information other than additional heating control, based on the information conversion table and priority stored in the information storage unit 1006. The management information processing unit 1007 causes the control unit 1004 to carry out additional heating control, based on the processing result of the setting change determination unit 1008.

In addition, in FIG. 18, information related to heating process management information is described in the same manner as in FIG. 17. Specifically, the setting label 1402 describes one type of heating control information surrounded by two special symbols "■". The heating control information excluding the special symbols "■" describes the heating amount as "1900 W" and the heating time as "0 minutes 35 seconds". Specific processing will be explained using FIG. 19.

Figure 19 shows an example in which food label 1404 is originally attached to food 1403. In addition, food label 1404 equivalent to setting label 1402 with the special symbol "■" described in Figure 18 is attached to food 1403. In this case, recognition processing unit 1005 reads two pieces of control information: heating control information written on food label 1404 and heating control information written on food label 1404 with the special symbol "■". When the setting change determination unit 1008 finds the special symbol "■", it determines that the heating control information is given priority, and therefore the heating control information written on food label 1404 is not processed, and only the heating control information with the special symbol "■", "1900W 0 minutes 35 seconds", is processed. The control unit 1004 causes the heating unit 1001 to perform heating control of "1900 W, 0 minutes, 35 seconds" based on the result of the determination by the setting change determination unit 1008 in the management information processing unit 1007.

With this configuration, it is possible to heat and cook the object under heating control conditions suitable for the object, based on management information related to heating control, such as additional heating and time-saving heating, that is associated with the read heating control information and registered in advance.

The third embodiment described above can be implemented in combination with at least one of the first and second embodiments.

As described above, the present disclosure has the exceptional effect of eliminating the need for cumbersome input operations, etc., and allowing users to easily heat and cook food and perform maintenance operations. Therefore, the present disclosure is widely applicable and useful to heating and cooking appliances, such as microwave ovens, rice cookers, and induction cooking heaters for home use, in addition to microwave ovens used in stores.

100, 200 Cooking device 101 Door panel 102 Heating information display unit (display unit)
104 Heating cooking cabinet (heating cabinet)
105 Lighting unit 106 Camera 107, 301, 1403 Food (heated object)
111 Housing 201, 1001 Heating section 202, 1002 Operation section 203, 1003 Photography section 204, 1004 Control section 205, 1005 Recognition processing section 206, 1006 Information storage section 207, 1007 Management information processing section 302, 1404 Food label 401, 402, 1101, 1102, 1401, 1402 Setting label 303 Heating control character target area 304 Barcode target area 600 Operation panel 601 Operation display panel 602 Numeric button 603 Start button 801, 1301 Association table 901 Table 1008 Setting change determination section

Claims (1)

A cooking device, comprising:
A heating chamber for storing an object to be heated;
A heating unit that heats the inside of the heating chamber;
an operation unit that is operated by a user to input information;
An imaging unit that images the inside of the heating chamber;
An information storage unit that stores management information corresponding to the heating control information applied to the object to be heated;
A recognition processing unit that recognizes heating control information of the object to be heated from the image captured by the imaging unit;
A control unit that controls the heating unit based on at least the heating control information of the object recognized by the recognition processing unit;
Equipped with
The information storage unit further stores a plurality of types of setting acquisition processing or setting change processing to be executed by the cooking appliance as management information corresponding to information on a setting label for performing setting acquisition or setting change in the cooking appliance;
The recognition processing unit recognizes information of the setting label from the image captured by the imaging unit,
a management information processing unit that, when the recognition processing unit recognizes the setting label, acquires management information corresponding to information on the setting label from the information storage unit and executes at least one type of the setting acquisition process or the setting change process based on the management information corresponding to information on the setting label,
The cooking appliance , wherein the management information processing unit changes a version of software relating to control of the cooking appliance when the information on the setting label corresponds to a software version upgrade .