JPH0249089B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention is a series of tasks for storing rice, measuring it, washing the rice, and supplying the washed rice and the corresponding water into the pot of a rice cooker. This invention relates to an automatic rice preparation device that automatically performs the following steps.

[Conventional technology]

In this type of conventional device, the amount of water supplied into the rice cooker was constant depending on the amount of rice.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

Therefore, with the above-mentioned conventional apparatus, it is not possible to adjust the hardness of cooked rice according to the user's preference, and it is also not possible to increase or decrease the amount of water supplied according to the type or freshness of the rice.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and is an automatic rice cooker that can adjust the hardness of rice cooking according to the user's preference, the type of rice, the freshness of the rice, etc. The purpose is to obtain a preparation device.

[Means for solving problems]

The automatic rice preparation device according to the present invention is provided with an operating means for increasing or decreasing the amount of water supplied to the rice cooker by changing the number of slits set on the optical scale in the water supply means.

[Effect]

The water supply means indicates a change in the water level in the measuring tank by the number of changing slits on an optical scale, detects this number of changing slits with an optical sensor, and stops the water supply operation when the number of changing slits reaches a set number of slits. Therefore, by changing the number of set slits, the amount of water supplied to the rice cooker can be increased or decreased.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In Fig. 1, 1 is the main body, 2 is a rice storage chamber provided in the upper part of the main body 1, 3 is a rice measuring device provided at the bottom of the rice storage chamber 2, and 4 is a rice measuring device below the rice measuring device 3. 5 is a water flow control device provided above the rice washing device 4, 8 is a conveyance device provided at the bottom of the rice washing device 4, and 6 is electrically connected to each of these components. This is a control device that controls each part.

The rice storage chamber 2 has a hopper shape, and an opening is formed at the bottom. A casing 3d constituting the rice measuring device 3 is integrally formed at the bottom of the rice storage chamber 2, and a circular square 3a is rotatably installed inside the casing 3d, and the square 3a has a cylindrical shape with an open top and bottom. The interior of the body is divided into four chambers, separated by cross-shaped partition walls that extend radially, and a specified amount of rice is weighed every quarter turn. The cell 3a is rotated by a motor 3c via a transmission disk 3b in contact with its outer periphery, and the motor 3c is controlled by a control device 6. Moreover, a casing 3d that accommodates the cell 3a
At the bottom of the box 3a, there is formed a rice droplet opening with almost the same shape as the opening of one of the chambers of the cell 3a, and the rice thrown into one chamber of the cell 3a from the rice storage chamber 2 is transferred to that chamber by the rotation of the cell 3a. When the rice matches the rice droplet of the casing 3d, the rice falls downward through the rice droplet. The container 4a of the rice washing device 4 is placed at the position where the rice falls.
A chute 7 for dropping into is provided. container 4
a is a cylindrical container with an open top and bottom, a stirring rod 4b is arranged inside the container, and the upper end of the stirring rod 4b is connected to a motor 4c.
is connected to the rotating shaft of the The bottom opening of the container 4a can be opened and closed by a bottom plate 4d.
The opening and closing are performed in conjunction with the transport device 8. The conveying device 8 has a gutter-like conveying body 8a, and the conveying body 8a is arranged so that its almost middle part is located directly below the rice washing container 4a, and is designed to swing like a seesaw with this middle part as a fulcrum. It is attached to a drive device (not shown). Further, the bottom plate 4d is pivotally supported outside the bottom opening of the rice washing container 4a, and is always pressed in the opening direction, that is, downward, by a spring force. Transport body 8a
(not shown) and motor 4c that drives
is controlled by a control device 6.

A water supply device 5 is provided above the rice washing device 4,
The details are shown in FIG. In Figure 3, 20
2 is a metering tank having a water supply port 20a and a drain port 20b, 21 is a water supply pipe provided between the water supply port 20a and the water supply source, and the water supply pipe 21 has a first flow control device 22 consisting of a solenoid valve or a pump is provided. Moreover, a partition wall 20c is provided in the measuring tank 20 to partition the inside thereof, and a communication hole 20d is provided in the lower part of the partition wall 20c. 23 is the drain port 20
a drain pipe connected to b and facing the upper opening of the rice washing container 4a, 24 a second flow control device consisting of a pump or a solenoid valve provided in the drain pipe 23, and 25 housed in the measuring tank 20. The float 26 is an optical scale attached to the float 25, and the optical scale 26 is a slit 2 that blocks light on a transparent material such as plastic or glass.
6a at equal intervals or by pasting a printed film, and as shown in FIG. 5, a light blocking part 26b wider than the slit 26a is formed at the bottom, A transparent part 26c is formed in the upper part, and a slit 26 is formed in the middle part.
Slit portions 26d are formed at predetermined intervals a. The width and spacing of the slits 26a are determined by the resolution of the optical sensor 27, and in this example, the width and spacing of the slits 26a are set to 0.6 mm for a resolution of 0.5 mm. An optical sensor 27 is arranged opposite to the scale 26 and is composed of a light emitting diode and a phototransistor. The positional relationship between the scale 26 and the sensor 27 is such that when there is no water and the float 25 is on the bottom surface of the measuring tank 20, the sensor 27 detects a portion of the transparent portion 26c of the scale 26 near the slit portion 26d.
The output of the optical sensor 27 is applied to the control device 6,
The control device 6 includes first and second flow rate control devices 22, 2.
Control 4. FIG. 4 shows a part of the control device 6 connected to the sensor 27, 28 to 30 are comparators, the comparator 28 compares the reference voltage V ₁ and the sensor output V, and the comparators 29 and 30 also Reference voltage V ₂ ,
Compare V ₄ and sensor output V. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the output V of the sensor 27 is
b, V ₀ , V ₃ , and V ₅ when the slit portion 26 d and transparent portion 26 c are detected, respectively. As a result, the outputs of the comparators 28-30 become as shown in FIG.

In addition, when the carrier 8a swings with its right end 8b facing down, the right end 8 is located at the lowest part of the main body 1.
Drainage receiving part 9 that receives and discharges water flowing down from b
is provided. Also, the carrier 8a is at its left end 8c.
The rice cooker 10 is arranged at a position where it can receive water and rice flowing down from the left end 8c when the rice cooker 10 is swung downward. The lid 11 of the rice cooker 10 is opened so that rice and water that has flowed down can enter the pot. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7, the lid holding device 12 attached to a predetermined position in the main body 1 holds the handle 11a formed on the top surface of the lid 11, and holds the lid 11 open halfway, that is, at an angle of 90 degrees or less. Hold it open. Rice cooker 10 has lid 1
1 is supported by a hinge mechanism so that one side can be opened freely, and the other end has a latch mechanism for the lid 11. As shown in FIGS. 8a and 8b, the lid holding device 12 has two opposing plates 13a and 13b pivoted together at a pivot joint 14, and an electromagnet 15 is provided at one end of the plate 13a, and an electromagnet 15 is provided at one end of the plates 13a and 13b. A coil spring 16 is provided in between to open the gap. Plate material 13a
is fixed inside the main body 1. A limit switch 17 is used to determine whether the lid holding device 12 is holding the lid 11 or not. Figure 8a
When the lid holding device 12 does not hold the lid 11 as in the case shown in FIG.
7 contact point 17a and actuate it. Electromagnet 15 and limit switch 17 are connected to control device 6. When setting the rice cooker 10 into the main body 1, as shown in FIG.
The handle 11a is held between the other ends of the lid 11a and 13b, and the spring force of the coil spring 16 holds the lid 11 in an open state. When releasing this holding, the control device 6
The electromagnet 15 is energized by the signal from the plate material 13.
One end of b is attracted to the electromagnet 15, and the handle 11a is opened. Therefore, the lid 11 rotates downward under its own weight, and the latch mechanism is activated by the force of the rotation, thereby closing the lid 11. Further, 18a and 18b are limit switches provided below the carrier 8a, and 19 is a control display board provided on the upper part of the main body 1 and connected to the control device 6. Selection switches such as a rice measuring switch 19a for controlling rice cooking, a rice cooking switch 19b for controlling rice cooking, and a rice washing switch 19c for controlling rice washing are provided. Also, control display board 1
9, as shown in FIG. 2, there are a clock display section 31, a rice cooking amount display section 32, a timer set time display section 33,
Time set button 34, rice cooking amount set button 35
And operation switches 36a to 36c are provided to set the hardness of rice cooking to soft, medium, or hard.

Next, the operation of the above device will be explained using the flowchart of FIG. First, rice is put into the rice storage chamber 2 (if rice is not put in), and then the lid 11 of the rice cooker 10 is latched in the middle open state by the lid holding device 12. Next, press the button 34 for the amount of rice to be cooked and the cooking time.
35, and the rice cooking state is selected using the operation switches 36a to 36c, thereby changing the number of slits set in the water supply device 5. Next, the user selects the selection switches 19a to 19c to select the extent of the operation to be performed.
Now, when the rice cooking switch 19b is selected, the control device 6 controls the lid 1 by the signal from the limit switch 17.
1 is open or not, and if the limit switch 17 is on, that is, if the lid 11 is held, the device enters a standby state until the timer-set operation start time. If the limit switch 17 is off, the operation is stopped and the user is immediately notified by an alarm or the like. Next, when the timer-set operation start time comes, the conveyor 8a is swung toward the drainage side (the side shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1). As a result, the bottom opening of the rice washing container 4a is closed by the bottom plate 4d interlocking with the carrier 8a. Next, the square 3a of the measuring device 3 is rotated by a predetermined number of revolutions based on the rice cooking amount set, and the weighed rice is put into the rice washing container 4a through the chute 7. Thereafter, the second flow rate control device 24 is activated to supply water into the rice washing container 4a, and at the same time, the stirring rod 4b is rotated to wash the rice. At that time, the bottom opening of the rice washing container 4a and the bottom plate 4
Do not make the seal completely sealed with d, but allow some water to leak out. As a result, the washed rice is drained out of the main body 1 from the wastewater receiving part 9 through the conveyor 8a in sequence. Such rice washing is repeated until the sewage turbidity falls below a predetermined value or a predetermined time elapses, and after the final rice washing, the second flow rate control device 24 is closed and the operation is stopped until all drainage is completed. do. Thereafter, the conveyor 8a is swung so that the left end 8c is on the lower side, and the bottom opening of the rice washing container 4a is opened. Then, the second flow rate control device 24 is opened for a predetermined period of time to supply water into the rice washing container 4a.
Rice and a corresponding amount of water are charged into the pot of the rice cooker 10 while washing off the rice adhering to the rice a and the carrier 8a. At this time, if the operation switch 36a is pressed, the amount of water will increase somewhat compared to when the operation switch 36b is pressed;
If is pressed, it will be decreased more than normal. Incidentally, at this time, a water sprinkler may be attached to the tip of the drain pipe 23 in order to completely wash off the rice adhering to the rice washing container 4a and the like. Next, the conveyor 8a is swung to the drainage side again,
Water is supplied for a predetermined period of time and post-cleaning is performed. Transport body 8a
The position of is detected by limit switches 18a, 18b and accurately controlled by control device 6. Electromagnet 15 of lid holding device 12 at the same time as post-cleaning
is energized to attract one end of the plate material 13b, and the lid 11
Turn off the latch. Thereby, the lid 11 is closed by its own weight. On the other hand, the rice in the pot is piled up like a mountain, and in reality, a vibration table installed at the bottom of the rice cooker 10 applies horizontal vibration to the rice cooker 10 to push the rice into the pot. Arrange evenly. Thereafter, a standby time is taken to soak the rice in water for a predetermined time, and then energy is applied to the rice cooker 10.

The above is the case when the rice cooking switch 19b is selected, but when the rice measuring switch 19a is selected, the conveyor 8a is swung toward the rice cooker 10 from the beginning and the rice is weighed as described above. The washed rice passes through the rice washing container 4a and is stored in the pot of the rice cooker 10 via the carrier 8a, and the lid 11 is closed.

Further, when the rice washing switch 19c is pressed, the steps up to the time when rice cooking energy is input to the rice cooker 10 are performed in the same manner as when the rice cooking switch 19b is selected. This is used, for example, when making takikomi rice.

Next, the operation of the water supply device 5 will be explained using the time chart shown in FIG. First, the first flow rate control device 22 is operated under the AND condition of the water supply command and the output of the comparator 28, and water is supplied to the metering tank 20 via the water supply pipe 21. As a result, water hits the partition wall 20c and flows through the communication hole 20d to the float 2.
5, and the float 25 and scale 26 move upward. Here, sensor 27
When detecting the light blocking portion 26b, the output of the comparator 28 is turned off, the first flow rate control device 22 is deactivated, and the water supply is stopped. At this time, since the water flow is suddenly stopped, the water surface shakes, and the scale 26 also shakes, which may cause the sensor 27 to detect the water incorrectly. For this reason, the ON command for the second flow rate control device 24 is issued after T time has elapsed since the first flow rate control device 22 became inactive. The second flow rate control device 24 is activated by the AND condition of this ON command, the counter output, and the inverted output of the comparator 30, and thereby the water is drained (relative to the rice washing container 4a).
begins, and the scale 26 descends. At this time,
The sensor 27 detects the slit 26a and the comparator 2
Numeral 9 generates pulses, which are counted by a counter in the control device 6. When a predetermined number of slits are counted, the second flow rate control device 24 is stopped and drainage is stopped. Since the amount of water discharged is proportional to the number of slits 26a, a predetermined amount of water is discharged, and the rice washing container 4
supplied to a. Since the measurement accuracy of this device is proportional to the number of counts of the slit 26a for a given amount of water, the accuracy is improved by reducing the cross-sectional area of the measuring tank 20 and increasing the moving distance of the scale 7.
In addition, when supplying water to the measuring tank 20, it is necessary to reduce the shaking of the water surface in order to reduce errors, and for this reason, the water supply port 20a is installed at a position higher than the highest water level, and the water supply port 20a is placed at a position higher than the highest water level, and the water supply port 20a is designed to prevent the water from falling directly onto the water surface. It is made to hit the partition wall 20c once.

In addition, due to physical factors of the entire device, the measuring tank 2
There may be cases where it is necessary to configure the capacity of the metering tank 20 to be smaller, and in such a case, the water in the metering tank 20 may run out before reaching the count number that corresponds to the required amount of water discharged. At this time, the inverted output of the comparator 30 is turned off before the count is completed, so the second flow rate control device 24 is stopped, but the first flow rate control device 24 is stopped again.
When the second flow rate control device 22 is turned on, water supply starts, and the water level rises until the light blocking part 26b of the scale 26 is detected, and then the second flow rate control device 2 is turned on again.
When the ON command of 7 is issued, the counter switches to the slit 26a.
, and when the cumulative total with the previous count reaches a predetermined count, the second flow rate control device 24 may be turned off.
Further, the waste water from the second flow rate control device 24 is used not only for water necessary for cooking rice but also for washing rice and washing the rice washing tank, and in such a case, the amount of water supplied does not require precision. Therefore, the first and second flow rate control devices 22 and 24 may be driven by the output of the comparator 28 and the inverted output of the comparator 30 without using a counter.

The reason why the amount of water supplied to the rice cooker 10 changes depending on the selection of the operation switches 36a to 36c is because the number of slits set for changing the optical scale 26 in the water supply device 5 is changed via the control device 6.

In the above embodiment, the amount of water supplied is increased or decreased according to the amount of rice according to the user's preference, but the amount of water supplied may be increased or decreased according to the type or freshness of the rice.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the operating means is provided to increase or decrease the amount of water supplied to the rice cooker in accordance with the amount of rice by changing the number of set slits in the water supply means, and the amount of water can be adjusted according to the amount of rice by operating the operating means. The amount of water supplied can be adjusted, and the hardness of the cooked rice can be optimized depending on the user's preference or the type and freshness of the rice.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 and 2 are respectively a block diagram of the device of the present invention and a front view of its control display board, FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the water supply device according to the present invention, and FIGS. A partial configuration diagram, a voltage waveform diagram and an output characteristic diagram of each part of the control device, FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of the lid holding mechanism according to the present invention, and FIGS. FIG. 9 is a flow chart showing the operation of the apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 10 is a time chart showing the operation of the water supply apparatus according to the present invention. 2...Rice storage room, 3...Rice measuring device, 4...Rice washing device, 5...Water supply device, 6...Control device, 8...
...Conveyance device, 10...Rice cooker, 20...Measuring tank, 22...First flow rate control device, 24...Second
flow rate control device, 26...optical scale, 26a
...Slit, 27...Optical sensor, 36a-3
6c...Operation switch. Note that the same reference numerals in the figures indicate the same or corresponding parts.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A rice storage means for storing rice, a rice measuring means for measuring and taking out a predetermined amount of rice from the rice stored in the rice storage means, a rice washing means for washing the weighed rice, and a rice cooker for washing the washed rice. A measuring tank, a flow control device that controls the amount of water supplied and discharged from the measuring tank, an optical scale that moves up and down with the water level of the measuring tank, and has equally spaced slits, and detects the slits in the optical scale. a water supply means for supplying water to the rice washing means and an amount of water corresponding to the amount of rice to the rice cooker; 1. An automatic rice preparation device characterized by comprising an operation means for increasing or decreasing the amount of water supplied corresponding to the amount of rice by changing the number of slits set in the water supply means, and a control means for controlling each of these means.