JP7653674B2 - Cooking equipment - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a cooking appliance.

With the development of technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), home appliances that can obtain and provide various information through communication have been provided (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 discloses that information related to the cooking menu performed by a cooking device is posted to a communication tool management unit of a server via a communication network.

JP 2016-58789 A

The inventors recognized the need to further improve the convenience of cooker users by utilizing communication technology, and came up with the technology disclosed herein.

This disclosure has been made in light of these circumstances, and its purpose is to improve the convenience of cooker users.

One aspect of the present disclosure is a cooking appliance that includes a cooking unit that executes at least a part of a procedure for cooking food to prepare a dish, a control unit that controls the cooking unit, a setting information storage unit that stores setting information for each type of dish that the control unit uses to control the procedure executed by the cooking unit, a setting information download control unit that receives setting information for a dish displayed on a terminal device used by a user and selected by the user from among dishes for which setting information usable by the cooking appliance is prepared from an information providing server and stores the setting information in the setting information storage unit, and sends a push notification to the terminal device through a home appliance server that the reception of the setting information has been completed, and a display unit that displays a start screen for starting automatic cooking of the dish using the received setting information, and after displaying the start screen on the display unit, the cooking appliance sends a push notification to the terminal device through the home appliance server to cause the display device of the terminal device to display that the reception of the setting information has been completed .

In addition, any combination of the above components, and conversions of the expressions of this disclosure between methods, devices, systems, recording media, computer programs, etc., are also valid aspects of this disclosure.

The technology disclosed herein can improve the convenience of the cooker user.

1 is a diagram showing an external appearance of a cooking device according to an embodiment; 1 is a diagram showing an external appearance of a cooking device according to an embodiment; 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an information providing system according to an embodiment; 4 is a sequence diagram showing a procedure of an information providing method according to an embodiment. 5A to 5C are diagrams showing transitions of display screens displayed on a display unit of a cooking appliance and a display device of a terminal device when the procedure shown in FIG. 4 is being executed. 4 is a sequence diagram showing a procedure of an information providing method according to an embodiment. 4 is a sequence diagram showing a procedure of an information providing method according to an embodiment. 8A to 8C are diagrams showing transitions of display screens displayed on the display unit of the cooking appliance and on the display device of the terminal device when the procedure shown in FIG. 7 is being executed. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of a cooking device according to an embodiment. 13A and 13B are diagrams illustrating examples of internal data of a pre-installed menu setting information table and a download menu setting information table. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of a home appliance server according to an embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of internal data of a menu ID table. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of an information providing server according to an embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of internal data of a recipe information table. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of a terminal device according to an embodiment.

As an embodiment of the present disclosure, a technology for providing recipe information for dishes that can be cooked using a cooking appliance will be described. The technology of the present disclosure can be applied to any cooking appliance, such as a microwave oven, oven, toaster, roaster, gas stove, stove, rice cooker, bread maker, cooking heater, hot plate, pressure cooker, etc., that can perform at least some of the steps to cook food and prepare a dish, as well as a mixer, juicer, food processor, etc. Below, an example of providing recipe information for dishes that can be cooked using a cooking appliance such as a microwave oven will be mainly described.

Figures 1 and 2 show the appearance of a cooking device 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1 is a front oblique view of the cooking device 1 with the door 7 closed. Figure 2 is a front oblique view of the cooking device 1 with the door 7 open.

The cooking device 1 comprises a housing 3, a heating chamber 5 disposed within the housing 3, and a door 7 that can be opened and closed to cover an opening 3b provided in a front frame 3a that forms the front surface of the housing 3. The heating chamber 5 is a space surrounded by a top wall 5a disposed at the top, side walls 5b and 5c disposed on both sides, a rear wall 5d disposed at the rear, and a bottom wall 5e disposed at the bottom. The heating chamber 5 is provided with a microwave radiation port for radiating microwaves generated by a microwave oscillator such as a magnetron into the heating chamber 5. The microwaves radiated from the microwave radiation port heat the object to be heated (food) placed in the heating chamber 5.

Between the rear wall 5d of the heating chamber 5 and the back plate, a heater (convection heater) as a heat source and a circulation fan are provided. An intake hole and an exhaust hole are drilled in the rear wall 5d of the heating chamber 5. When the circulation fan is rotated, air in the heating chamber 5 is sucked in through the intake hole, heated by the convection heater, and returned to the heating chamber 5 through the exhaust hole. This allows the object to be heated evenly. An exhaust port is provided in the front part below the bottom wall 5e to exhaust the air in the heating chamber 5 to the outside.

A tank is provided below the bottom wall 5e for storing water to generate steam to be sent to the heating chamber 5. The water stored in the tank is supplied to a steam generating section (not shown) and becomes steam. The generated steam is supplied to the heating chamber 5 via a steam pipe that connects the steam generating section and the heating chamber 5.

The door 7 is supported by a horizontal rotation shaft below the opening 3b on the housing 3 so that it can be opened and closed. When the user pulls the handle 7a attached to the top of the outer frame 13 of the door 7, the door 7 is rotated to a horizontal position, and the heating chamber 5 is opened. When the door 7 is rotated to a vertical position, the heating chamber 5 is closed.

A display unit 9 and an operation unit 11 are arranged on the right side of the outer frame 13 of the door 7 when viewed from the front. The display unit 9 is, for example, a liquid crystal touch panel, and displays a menu screen and the like. A communication device that controls communication with an external device is provided inside the door 7, and information such as recipes obtained from the external device via the communication device is also displayed on the display unit 9. The operation unit 11 is, for example, a push button or dial, and receives instructions from the user for the cooking appliance 1.

The cooking device 1 can heat food using a number of heating methods, including heating using microwaves, heating using a heater, and heating using steam. In addition, for each heating method, the heating conditions, such as heating temperature, heating time, and output power, can be variably set. By heating food using an appropriate heating method and heating conditions depending on the type of food, cooking method, amount of food, etc., the food can be cooked to a better finish. For example, heating using microwaves is suitable when the inside of the food needs to be thoroughly heated, heating using a heater is suitable when the surface of the food needs to be moderately browned, and heating using steam is suitable when the food needs to be steamed.

To enable precise switching of heating methods and heating conditions during cooking, the cooking device 1 holds in advance setting information for automatically setting appropriate heating methods and heating conditions according to the type of food. The setting information is information that chronologically represents the settings of the heating method and heating conditions. By setting the heating method and heating conditions according to the setting information, the cooking device 1 can automatically perform cooking in a way that suits the type of food.

In preparation for the cooker 1 to perform such automatic cooking, the user must gather the necessary ingredients, prepare the food, and then place the food in the heating chamber 5. In conventional cookers, recipe information such as ingredients and preparation methods is provided in an instruction manual that accompanies the cooker 1, and the user must perform tasks such as preparation while referring to the recipe information provided in the instruction manual. The cooker 1 may store recipe information and display the recipe information on the display unit 9 in response to an instruction from the user, but if the cooker 1 is not installed in a position that is easily visible from the position where the user performs tasks such as preparation in the kitchen, the user will not be able to perform tasks while checking the recipe information displayed on the display unit 9 of the cooker 1.

Therefore, in the information provision system according to this embodiment, recipe information regarding the procedure for cooking a dish using the cooking appliance 1 is provided to a terminal device used by the user. This allows the user to place the terminal device in a position where it is easy to check while working on preparations and the like, and to work while referring to the recipe information. This improves user convenience.

Figure 3 shows the configuration of an information provision system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The information provision system 100 includes a cooking device 1, a home appliance server 200, an information provision server 300, a terminal device 400, and a communication network 102 connecting them.

The information providing server 300 provides information about cooking. The information providing server 300 holds setting information that the cooking appliance 1 can use for each type of cooking appliance. Since the heating method that the cooking appliance 1 can execute and the heating conditions that can be set may differ depending on the type of cooking appliance 1, the information providing server 300 holds different setting information for each type of cooking appliance 1 as setting information corresponding to the same type of cooking appliance, and provides the cooking appliance 1 with setting information according to the type of cooking appliance 1. Since the ingredients and preparations required for the cooking appliance 1 to automatically cook a dish may also differ depending on the type of cooking appliance 1, the information providing server 300 holds different recipe information for each type of cooking appliance 1 as recipe information corresponding to the same type of cooking appliance, and provides the cooking appliance 1 with recipe information according to the type of cooking appliance 1.

The terminal device 400 is used by the user to view recipe information and the like. The terminal device 400 may be a mobile phone terminal such as a smartphone, or may be a tablet terminal or the like. The home appliance server 200 mediates communication between the cooking appliance 1 and the information providing server 300 or the terminal device 400. The home appliance server 200 may be installed in the user's home or the like, and may communicate between the cooking appliance 1 and the terminal device 400 via a communication network such as a wired LAN or a wireless LAN.

Figure 4 is a sequence diagram showing the steps of the information provision method according to the embodiment. Figure 4 shows the steps of displaying on the terminal device 400 recipe information for a dish whose setting information is stored in advance in the cooking appliance 1. Figure 5 shows the transition of the display screens displayed on the display unit 9 of the cooking appliance 1 and the display device of the terminal device 400 when the steps shown in Figure 4 are being executed. The steps shown in Figure 4 will be explained with reference to the display screens shown in Figure 5.

When the user touches "Recipe Collection" while the cooking appliance 1 is displaying the top screen 60 on the display unit 9, the cooking appliance 1 displays a recipe collection menu screen 61 on the display unit 9. When the user touches "Recommended", the cooking appliance 1 displays a pre-loaded menu 62 on the display unit 9, which displays a list of types of dishes for which setting information is pre-stored (S10). When the user selects the dish to be cooked (here, "salted mackerel") from the pre-loaded menu 62, the cooking appliance 1 displays a setting screen 63 on the display unit 9 for setting the portion size of the selected dish. When the user touches "Recipe", the cooking appliance 1 accepts a request to display recipe information for the selected dish on the terminal device 400 (S12).

The cooking appliance 1 transmits a recipe information display request to the home appliance server 200, the request including a model code indicating the model of the cooking appliance 1 and an appliance menu ID indicating the type of dish selected by the user (S14, S16). When the transmission is complete, the cooking appliance 1 displays on the display unit 9 a notification screen 64 indicating that the recipe information display request has been notified to the terminal device 400.

The home appliance server 200 acquires a download menu ID corresponding to the device code and device menu ID included in the recipe information display request received from the cooking appliance 1 by referring to the correspondence between the device code and device menu ID and the download menu ID that functions as a recipe ID for identifying recipe information (S18). The home appliance server 200 transmits the acquired download menu ID to the terminal device 400 (S20). The download menu ID may be notified to the terminal device 400 by push notification using a notification protocol that can be processed by the operating system running on the terminal device 400, such as FCM (Firebase Cloud Messaging).

The terminal device 400 displays the push notification 70 received from the home appliance server 200 on the display device (S22) and accepts a display request for recipe information from the user via the push notification 70 (S24). Upon accepting the display request for recipe information, the terminal device 400 transmits the download menu ID received from the home appliance server 200 to the information providing server 300 (S26). The information providing server 300 transmits recipe information identified by the download menu ID received from the terminal device 400 to the terminal device 400 (S28). The terminal device 400 displays the recipe information 71 received from the information providing server 300 (S30). This allows the user to prepare the cooking appliance 1 to automatically cook a dish while referring to the recipe information 71 displayed on the terminal device 400.

Figure 6 is a sequence diagram showing the steps of the information provision method according to the embodiment. Figure 6 shows the steps of displaying recipe information for a dish for which setting information is not stored in the cooking appliance 1 on the terminal device 400. The transition of the display screens displayed on the display unit 9 of the cooking appliance 1 and the display device of the terminal device 400 when the steps shown in Figure 6 are being executed is almost the same as in Figure 5, so the steps shown in Figure 6 will be explained with reference to the display screen shown in Figure 5.

When the user touches "Recipe Collection" while the cooking appliance 1 is displaying the top screen 60 on the display unit 9, the cooking appliance 1 displays the recipe collection menu screen 61 on the display unit 9. When the user touches "Recipe Site", the cooking appliance 1 requests the information providing server 300 to provide a download menu that displays a list of types of dishes for which setting information can be downloaded from the information providing server 300 (S40). The information providing server 300 extracts types of dishes for which setting information usable by the cooking appliance 1 is prepared according to the type of cooking appliance 1, generates a download menu that displays a list of the extracted types of dishes, and transmits it to the cooking appliance 1 (S42). The cooking appliance 1 displays the download menu received from the information providing server 300 on the display unit 9 (S44). The displayed download menu is the same as the pre-loaded menu 62 in FIG. 5. When the user selects a dish to be cooked from the download menu, the cooking appliance 1 displays a detailed screen of the selected dish on the display unit 9. The details screen also has a "Recipe" button, similar to the settings screen 63 in FIG. 5, and when the user touches "Recipe", the cooking appliance 1 accepts a request to display recipe information for the selected dish on the terminal device 400 (S46). The cooking appliance 1 transmits a recipe information display request including a download menu ID indicating the type of dish selected by the user to the home appliance server 200 (S48). When the transmission is complete, the cooking appliance 1 displays a notification screen 64 on the display unit 9 indicating that the recipe information display request has been notified to the terminal device 400.

The home appliance server 200 pushes the download menu ID included in the recipe information display request received from the cooking appliance 1 to the terminal device 400 (S50).

The terminal device 400 displays the push notification 70 received from the home appliance server 200 on the display device (S52) and accepts a display request for recipe information from the user via the push notification 70 (S54). Upon accepting the display request for recipe information, the terminal device 400 transmits the download menu ID received from the home appliance server 200 to the information providing server 300 (S56). The information providing server 300 transmits the recipe information identified by the download menu ID received from the terminal device 400 to the terminal device 400 (S58). The terminal device 400 displays the recipe information 71 received from the information providing server 300 (S60).

The details screen of the selected dish has a "download" button for downloading the setting information to the cooking appliance 1. When the user touches "download", the cooking appliance 1 accepts a request to download the setting information of the selected dish to the cooking appliance 1 (S62). When the request to download the setting information is accepted, the cooking appliance 1 transmits a download request including the download menu ID of the selected dish to the information providing server 300 (S53). The information providing server 300 transmits the setting information identified by the download menu ID received from the cooking appliance 1 to the cooking appliance 1 (S66). The cooking appliance 1 retains the received setting information and makes it usable in subsequent cooking. This allows the user to make preparations for the cooking appliance 1 to automatically cook the dish while referring to the recipe information 71 displayed on the terminal device 400, and to have the cooking appliance 1 automatically cook the dish.

Figure 7 is a sequence diagram showing the steps of the information provision method according to the embodiment. Figure 7 shows the steps of downloading setting information for a dish for which setting information is not stored in the cooking appliance 1 to the cooking appliance 1. Figure 8 shows the transition of display screens displayed on the display unit 9 of the cooking appliance 1 and the display device of the terminal device 400 when the steps shown in Figure 7 are being executed. The steps shown in Figure 7 will be explained with reference to the display screens shown in Figure 8.

The terminal device 400 executes an application for using the information providing system 100. The application registers information such as the model of the cooking appliance 1 used by the user in the information providing server 300 (S70), and sets up a connection between the terminal device 400 and the home appliance server 200 or cooking appliance 1 (S72). In response to an instruction from the user, the application requests the information providing server 300 to provide a download menu that displays a list of types of dishes for which setting information can be downloaded from the information providing server 300 to the cooking appliance 1 (S74). The information providing server 300 extracts types of dishes for which setting information usable by the cooking appliance 1 is prepared according to the type of cooking appliance 1, generates a download menu that displays a list of the extracted types of dishes, and transmits it to the terminal device 400 (S76). The terminal device 400 displays the download menu received from the information providing server 300 on the display device (S78). When the user selects a dish to be cooked from the download menu, the terminal device 400 accepts a request to display recipe information for the selected dish on the terminal device 400 (S80). The terminal device 400 transmits a recipe information display request including a download menu ID indicating the type of dish selected by the user to the information providing server 300 (S82). The information providing server 300 transmits to the terminal device 400 recipe information identified by the download menu ID received from the terminal device 400 (S84). The terminal device 400 displays the recipe information 80 received from the information providing server 300 (S86).

The recipe information 80 is provided with a download button for downloading the setting information to the cooking appliance 1, and when the user touches the download button, the terminal device 400 accepts a request to download the setting information of the selected dish to the cooking appliance 1 (S88). Upon accepting the request to download the setting information, the terminal device 400 transmits a download request including the download menu ID of the selected dish to the information providing server 300 (S90). While transmitting the download request to the information providing server 300, the terminal device 400 displays a transmission screen 81 on the display device. When transmission of the download request is completed, the terminal device 400 displays a transmission completion screen 82 on the display device.

The information providing server 300 transmits the setting information identified by the download menu ID received from the terminal device 400 to the cooking appliance 1 (S92). When the cooking appliance 1 starts receiving the setting information from the information providing server 300, it switches the top screen 90 displayed on the display unit 9 to a receiving screen 91. When the cooking appliance 1 completes receiving the setting information, it displays a reception completion screen 92 on the display unit 9, and then displays a start screen 93 on the display unit 9 for starting automatic cooking of a dish using the received setting information. The cooking appliance 1 notifies the home appliance server 200 that it has completed receiving the setting information, and the home appliance server 200 pushes the terminal device 400 that it has downloaded the setting information to the cooking appliance 1. The terminal device 400 displays the push notification 83 received from the home appliance server 200 on the display device. This allows the user to download setting information that is not previously stored in the cooking appliance 1 from the information providing server 300 to the cooking appliance 1 and use it. In addition, the user can request the download of the setting information from the terminal device 400.

Figure 9 shows the functional configuration of a cooking device according to an embodiment. The cooking device 1 includes a display unit 9, an operation unit 11, a communication device 101, a heating unit 103, a control device 120, and a storage device 140.

The communication device 101 controls communication using any communication method, whether wired or wireless. The heating unit 103 is a configuration and mechanism for performing heating using microwaves, heating using a heater, heating using steam, etc. The heating unit 103 functions as a cooking unit that performs at least a part of the procedure for cooking food to prepare a dish. The storage device 140 stores data, programs, etc. used by each component of the control device 120.

The storage device 140 includes a pre-installed menu setting information table 141, a download menu setting information table 142, a display data storage unit 143, and a setting information storage unit 144.

The pre-built menu setting information table 141 stores information about the setting information previously stored in the setting information storage unit 144 of the cooking appliance 1. FIG. 10(a) shows an example of internal data of the pre-built menu setting information table 141. The pre-built menu setting information table 141 stores an equipment menu ID, a recipe title, and a sequence name in association with each other. The equipment menu ID is identification information for identifying the type of dish to be cooked using the setting information previously stored in the setting information storage unit 144. The recipe title is the name of the dish. The sequence name is the name of the setting information used to automatically cook the dish.

The download menu setting information table 142 stores information about the setting information downloaded from the information providing server 300 to the cooking appliance 1. Figure 10 (b) shows an example of internal data of the download menu setting information table 142. The download menu setting information table 142 stores a download menu ID, a recipe title, and a sequence name in association with each other. The download menu ID is identification information for identifying the type of dish to be cooked using the setting information downloaded from the information providing server 300. The recipe title is the name of the dish. The sequence name is the name of the setting information used to automatically cook the dish.

The display data storage unit 143 stores display data used by the control device 120 to generate a display screen to be displayed on the display unit 9. The display data storage unit 143 stores, for example, data on images of dishes, menu screens and buttons for receiving instruction input from the user, etc.

The setting information storage unit 144 stores setting information used to automatically cook food in the cooking appliance 1. The setting information storage unit 144 stores setting information for the pre-loaded menu and setting information for the downloaded menu.

The control device 120 comprises a heating control unit 121, a user interface control unit 122, a recipe display control unit 123, and a setting information download control unit 124. In terms of hardware, these components can be realized by the CPU, memory, and other LSIs of any computer, and in terms of software, by programs loaded into memory, but here we have depicted functional blocks realized by the cooperation of these. Therefore, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that these functional blocks can be realized in various ways by hardware alone, or a combination of hardware and software.

The heating control unit 121 controls the heating unit 103 according to the heating method and heating conditions set by the user. When the type of food to be cooked is specified by the user, the heating control unit 121 automatically controls the heating unit 103 according to the setting information corresponding to the type of food.

The user interface control unit 122 displays a menu screen on the display unit 9 and accepts instruction input by the user from the operation unit 11. The user interface control unit 122 uses the display data stored in the display data storage unit 143 to generate the display screens shown in Figures 5 and 8 and displays them on the display unit 9. The user interface control unit 122 controls the transition of the display screens shown in Figures 5 and 8 in response to the instruction input by the user received from the operation unit 11.

The recipe display control unit 123 controls the process for displaying on the terminal device 400 recipe information for a dish that is automatically cooked using the setting information stored in the setting information storage unit 144. The recipe display control unit 123 controls the recipe display request reception process (S12) shown in FIG. 4, the process for sending the model code and device menu ID (S14, S16), the recipe display request reception process (S46) shown in FIG. 6, the process for sending the download menu ID (S48), etc.

The setting information download control unit 124 controls the process for downloading setting information that is not held in the setting information holding unit 144 from the information providing server 300. The setting information download control unit 124 controls the download request reception process (S62), download request transmission process (S64), setting information download process (S66), and setting information download process (S92) shown in FIG. 6. The setting information download control unit 124 functions as a setting information receiving unit, and stores the received setting information in the setting information holding unit 144.

Figure 11 shows the functional configuration of a home appliance server according to an embodiment. The home appliance server 200 includes a communication device 201, a control device 220, and a storage device 240.

The communication device 201 controls communication using any communication method, whether wired or wireless. The storage device 240 includes a menu ID table 241.

The menu ID table 241 stores the correspondence between pairs of device menu IDs and model codes and download menu IDs. FIG. 12 shows an example of internal data of the menu ID table 241. The menu ID table 241 stores download menu IDs in association with model codes and device menu IDs. The download menu ID is identification information for identifying the type of dish for which recipe information and setting information are provided by the information providing server 300. The model code is information indicating the model of the cooking appliance 1. The appliance menu ID is identification information for identifying the type of dish to be cooked using setting information previously stored in the cooking appliance 1.

The control device 220 includes a recipe display request receiving unit 221, a download menu ID acquiring unit 222, and a download menu ID transmitting unit 223. These configurations can also be realized in various forms using only hardware or a combination of hardware and software.

The recipe display request receiving unit 221 receives a request from the cooking appliance 1 to display recipe information on the terminal device 400. The download menu ID acquiring unit 222 executes the download menu ID acquiring process (S18) shown in FIG. 4, and acquires the download menu ID corresponding to the model code and device menu ID included in the recipe display request by referring to the menu ID table 241. The download menu ID transmitting unit 223 executes the download menu ID transmitting process (S20) shown in FIG. 4. The download menu ID transmitting unit 223 also executes the download menu ID transmitting process (S50) shown in FIG. 6.

By acquiring a download menu ID used to identify a download menu in the information providing server 300 from the device menu ID of the setting information prestored in the cooking appliance 1 and the model code of the cooking appliance 1, the home appliance server 200 can notify the information providing server 300 of the type of dish for which recipe information is to be displayed on the terminal device 400, even if the download menu ID is not stored in the cooking appliance 1. In addition, by providing the home appliance server 200 separately from the information providing server 300, the security of information can be improved and the risk of a malfunction can be dispersed.

Figure 13 shows the functional configuration of an information providing server according to an embodiment. The information providing server 300 includes a communication device 301, a control device 320, and a storage device 340.

The communication device 301 controls communication using any communication method, whether wired or wireless. The storage device 340 includes a recipe information table 341, a recipe information database 342, and a setting information database 343.

The recipe information table 341 stores information about recipe information and setting information provided by the information providing server 300. FIG. 14 shows an example of the internal data of the recipe information table 341. The recipe information table 341 stores a download menu ID, a model code, an equipment menu ID, a recipe title, and a sequence name in association with each other.

The recipe information database 342 stores recipe information provided by the information providing server 300. The recipe information database 342 stores recipe information for each type of dish. In addition, the recipe information database 342 stores different recipe information for each type of cooking appliance 1 as recipe information corresponding to the same type of dish. The recipe information is uniquely identified by a download menu ID.

The setting information database 343 stores the setting information provided by the information providing server 300. The setting information database 343 stores the setting information for each type of dish. The setting information database 343 also stores different setting information for each type of cooking appliance 1 as setting information corresponding to the same type of dish. The setting information is uniquely identified by the download menu ID.

The control device 320 includes a recipe display request receiving unit 321, a recipe information providing unit 322, a download menu request receiving unit 323, a download menu providing unit 324, a setting information provision request receiving unit 325, and a setting information providing unit 326. These configurations can also be realized in various forms using only hardware or a combination of hardware and software.

The recipe display request receiving unit 321 receives a recipe information display request from the cooking appliance 1 or the terminal device 400, which requests that recipe information be displayed on the terminal device 400.

The recipe information providing unit 322 reads out recipe information for a dish requested by a recipe information display request received from the cooking appliance 1 or the terminal device 400 from the recipe information database 342 and provides the recipe information to the requester. The recipe information providing unit 322 executes the recipe transmission process (S28) shown in FIG. 4, the recipe transmission process (S58) shown in FIG. 6, and the recipe transmission process (S84) shown in FIG. 7.

The download menu request receiving unit 323 receives a download menu request from the cooking appliance 1 or the terminal device 400, requesting that a download menu be provided.

The download menu providing unit 324 refers to the recipe information table 341, generates a download menu that displays a list of types of dishes for which the cooking appliance 1 can download setting information, and transmits the download menu to the request source. The download menu providing unit 324 executes the download menu transmission process (S42) shown in FIG. 6 and the download menu transmission process (S76) shown in FIG. 7.

Figure 15 shows the functional configuration of a terminal device according to an embodiment. The terminal device 400 includes a communication device 401, a display device 402, an input device 403, a control device 420, and a storage device 440.

The communication device 401 controls communication using any communication method, whether wired or wireless. The display device 402 displays a display screen generated by the control device 420. The input device 403 accepts instruction input from a user and transmits it to the control device 420. The storage device 440 includes an application data storage unit 441 and a recipe information storage unit 442.

The application data storage unit 441 stores programs and various data used by applications executed on the terminal device 400 to utilize services provided by the information providing system 100.

The recipe information storage unit 442 stores recipe information provided by the information providing server 300.

The control device 420 includes an application execution unit 421, a browser 422, and a push notification processing unit 423. These configurations can also be realized in various forms using only hardware or a combination of hardware and software.

The application execution unit 421 executes an application for using the service provided by the information providing system 100. The application execution unit 421 controls the model registration process (S70), the connection setting process (S72), the download menu request process (S74), and the download menu display process (S78) shown in FIG. 7. The application execution unit 421 functions as a recipe provision request transmission unit that transmits a recipe display request including a download menu ID to the information providing server 300, and controls the recipe display request reception process (S24), the download menu ID transmission process (S26), the recipe display request reception process (S54), the download menu ID transmission process (S56), the recipe display request reception process (S80), and the download menu ID transmission process (S82) shown in FIG. 4. The application execution unit 421 functions as a presentation unit that presents recipe information provided by the information providing server 300, and controls the recipe display process (S30) shown in FIG. 4, the recipe display process (S60) shown in FIG. 6, and the recipe display process (S84) shown in FIG. 7. When the application execution unit 421 receives an instruction input requesting that setting information corresponding to recipe information provided by the information providing server 300 be provided to the cooking appliance 1, the application execution unit 421 functions as a setting information request transmission unit that transmits a request for providing setting information to the information providing server 300, and controls the download request reception process (S88) and download request process (S90) shown in FIG. 7.

The browser 422 displays a web page provided by the web server. When the recipe information provided by the information providing server 300 is configured as a web page, the application execution unit 421 causes the browser 422 to display the recipe information.

The push notification processing unit 423 processes push notifications received from the home appliance server 200 or the like. When the push notification processing unit 423 receives a push notification transmitted by a notification protocol such as FCM, the push notification processing unit 423 displays the contents of the push notification on the display device 402. When the input device 403 accepts an input in response to the push notification, the push notification processing unit 423 conveys this to the application execution unit 421. The push notification processing unit 423 executes the push notification display process (S22) shown in FIG. 4 and the push notification display process (S52) shown in FIG. 6.

The present disclosure has been described above based on examples. These examples are merely illustrative, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications are possible in the combination of each of the components or each of the processing processes, and that such modifications are also within the scope of the present disclosure.

The information providing server 300 may provide recipe information that uses multiple different cookers. In this case, the information providing server 300 stores different recipe information and setting information for each combination of multiple cookers, and provides recipe information that corresponds to the combination of cookers used. The information providing server 300 also stores setting information for each of the multiple cookers used, and provides setting information for each of the multiple cookers used.

One aspect of the present disclosure is an information provision system. The information provision system includes a cooking appliance, an information provision server that provides information about dishes, and a terminal device. The cooking appliance includes a cooking unit that executes at least a part of the procedure for cooking food to prepare the dish, a control unit that controls the cooking unit, a setting information storage unit that stores setting information for the control unit to control the procedure executed by the cooking unit for each type of dish, an input unit that accepts an instruction input requesting the terminal device to provide recipe information related to the procedure for preparing the dish using the cooking appliance, the setting information of which is stored in the setting information storage unit, and a communication device that transmits a request for providing the recipe information. The information provision server includes a recipe information provision unit that provides the recipe information to the terminal device upon receiving the request for providing the recipe information, and the terminal device includes a presentation unit that presents the recipe information provided by the information provision server. According to this aspect, the user can prepare for automatic cooking while referring to the recipe information displayed on the terminal device, thereby improving the convenience of the user.

The information providing server may hold different information for each type of cooker used as recipe information relating to the steps for making the same dish, and the recipe information providing unit may provide the terminal device with recipe information according to the type of cooker used. According to this aspect, appropriate recipe information can be provided for each type of cooker used, thereby improving user convenience.

The information providing system may include a recipe providing request receiving unit that receives a providing request from a cooking appliance including an appliance code indicating the type of the cooking appliance and a dish ID indicating the type of dish corresponding to the recipe information requested to be provided, a recipe ID acquiring unit that acquires a recipe ID corresponding to the appliance code and dish ID included in the providing request received by the recipe providing request receiving unit by referencing the correspondence between the appliance code and dish ID and the recipe ID for identifying the recipe information, and a recipe ID transmitting unit that transmits the recipe ID acquired by the recipe ID acquiring unit to a terminal device. According to this aspect, even if the cooking appliance does not hold a recipe ID, appropriate recipe information can be provided to the terminal device, thereby improving user convenience.

The terminal device may include a recipe request sending unit that sends a recipe information request including a recipe ID to the information providing server, and the recipe information providing unit may provide the terminal device with recipe information identified by the recipe ID included in the request received from the terminal device. According to this aspect, appropriate recipe information can be provided for each type of dish and each type of cooker used, thereby improving user convenience.

The information providing server stores setting information corresponding to recipe information for each type of cooking appliance, and the terminal device includes a setting information request sending unit that sends a request for setting information to the information providing server when it receives an instruction input requesting that the cooking appliance be provided with setting information corresponding to the recipe information provided by the information providing server, the information providing server includes a setting information providing unit that sends the setting information to the cooking appliance when it receives a request for setting information from the terminal device, and the cooking appliance may include a setting information receiving unit that stores the setting information received from the information providing server in the setting information storage unit. According to this aspect, setting information that was not previously stored in the cooking appliance can be downloaded to the cooking appliance and used, thereby improving user convenience.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is a cooking appliance. The cooking appliance includes a cooking unit that executes at least some of the steps to cook food and prepare a dish, a control unit that controls the cooking unit, a setting information storage unit that stores setting information for each type of dish used by the control unit to control the steps performed by the cooking unit, an input unit that accepts instruction input requesting that a terminal device be provided with recipe information regarding the steps to prepare the dish using the cooking appliance for which setting information is stored in the setting information storage unit, and a communication device that transmits a request for providing recipe information. According to this aspect, a user can make preparations for automatic cooking while referring to recipe information for dishes that can be automatically cooked by the cooking appliance on the terminal device, thereby improving user convenience.

The cooking device may also include a setting information receiving unit that stores setting information received from an information providing server in the setting information storage unit when the cooking device is requested to provide setting information corresponding to recipe information provided to the terminal device from an information providing server that provides information about cooking. According to this aspect, the number of dishes that the cooking device can automatically cook can be increased, thereby improving user convenience.

Yet another aspect of the present disclosure is an information presentation program. This information presentation program causes a computer to function as a notification processing unit that, when a provision request is sent from a cooking appliance requesting that recipe information regarding the procedure for cooking a dish using the cooking appliance be provided to a terminal device, obtains a notification of identification information for identifying the recipe information, and transmits the identification information to an information providing server that provides the recipe information to request the provision of the recipe information, and a presentation unit that presents the recipe information provided by the information providing server. According to this aspect, a user can make preparations for cooking while referring to recipe information for cooking a dish using the cooking appliance on the terminal device, thereby improving user convenience.

1 Cooking device, 9 Display unit, 11 Operation unit, 100 Information providing system, 103 Heating unit, 121 Heating control unit, 122 User interface control unit, 123 Recipe display control unit, 124 Setting information download control unit, 141 Pre-installed menu setting information table, 142 Download menu setting information table, 143 Display data storage unit, 144 Setting information storage unit, 200 Home appliance server, 221 Recipe display request receiving unit, 222 Download menu ID acquisition unit, 223 Download menu ID transmission unit, 241 Menu ID table, 300 Information providing server, 321 Recipe display request receiving unit, 322 Recipe information providing unit, 323 Download menu request receiving unit, 324 Download menu providing unit, 325 Setting information provision request receiving unit, 326 Setting information providing unit, 341 Recipe information table, 342 Recipe information database, 343 Setting information database, 400 Terminal device, 421 Application execution unit, 422 Browser, 423 push notification processing unit, 441 application data storage unit, 442 recipe information storage unit.

Claims (1)

A cooking unit that performs at least a part of the steps of cooking food to prepare a dish;
A control unit that controls the cooking unit;
a setting information storage unit that stores setting information for the control unit to control the procedure executed by the cooking unit for each type of dish;
a setting information download control unit that receives setting information for a dish selected by the user from among dishes displayed on a terminal device used by the user and for which setting information usable by the cooking appliance is prepared, from an information providing server, and stores the setting information in the setting information storage unit;
a display unit that displays a start screen for starting automatic cooking of a dish using the received setting information;
A cooking device comprising:
The cooking appliance communicates to the home appliance server that reception of the setting information has been completed so that a push notification is sent from the home appliance server that mediates communication between the cooking appliance and the terminal device to the terminal device, and causes the home appliance server to display the start screen on the display unit of the terminal device before the home appliance server displays the completion of reception of the setting information on the display unit of the terminal device.
Cooking equipment.

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