JPH0577406B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a rice cooker for general household use.

Conventional technology In conventional rice cookers, rice cooking patterns are selected according to a flowchart as shown in FIG. It starts by setting the time. The control means compares the difference between the current time and the reserved time, that is, the set time of the timer set, with a predetermined time (for example, 2 hours), and if the timer set time is equal to or longer than the predetermined time, the process of water absorption into the rice is not included first. If the rice temperature is less than 1,000,000 yen, a rice cooking pattern that includes a water absorption process in which the rice is first gently heated is selected to cook the rice. Judgment steps (1) and (2) in FIG. 3 are for determining whether the rice cooking pattern and the time to start ("predetermined time") have been reached, respectively. That is, step
The "predetermined time" in step (1) is the time before the reserved time by 45 minutes required to implement the rice cooking pattern, and the "predetermined time" in step (2) is the time prior to the reserved time by 54 minutes required to implement the rice cooking pattern. The time will be earlier.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention In such conventional rice cookers, the time from the timer setting (time from start to time-up) to the end of rice cooking (reserved time including the final unevenness) The rice cooking pattern is selected with emphasis on the subtracted time being the actual water absorption time of the rice. This is because the water absorption rate of raw rice is 15, which is generally said to be a characteristic of rice itself.
This comes from the expected water absorption time to increase the water absorption rate from 30% to 30%, which is sufficient for rice cooking.If the temperature at the start of cooking is low, the pot heating means mainly heats the bottom of the pot, so the top and bottom inside the pot are heated. Problems are likely to occur due to temperature differences. In other words, the rice and water stored in the pot form a layer of rice at the bottom, and within that layer, water is interposed between the rice and the rice, and a layer of water is present above it. Become. When heating under these conditions, the temperature inside the pot will primarily rise at the bottom, so the temperature of the rice at the bottom of the pot will rise reasonably, but the temperature will increase relative to the water and rice at the top, where the ambient temperature is lower. In this case, the layer of rice, which has a high specific heat, acts as a heat insulating layer, and at the same time, there is little circulation of the water interposed between the rice, so it is easy to create a temperature difference between the top and bottom inside the pot. Therefore, as the temperature rises, the moisture content of the rice in the lower layer increases rapidly, but the moisture content of the rice layer in the upper layer of the pot, where the temperature is relatively low, increases only slowly compared to the lower layer. First, as time passes, the water level in the pot decreases, and the surrounding water empties out without absorbing enough water, reaching the end-of-cooking temperature, which often results in uneven cooking and the rice is not completely cooked.

If we look at the finished product of rice cooked under such conditions, the upper layer will not absorb enough water, resulting in a hard texture, which will increase the unevenness of cooking in the top and bottom of the pot.

The present invention solves these conventional problems,
To provide a rice cooker in which the cooked rice in the pot is evenly cooked, and the rice is uniformly and sufficiently absorbed and heated to become delicious.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of a pot storing rice water, a heating means for heating the pot, and a user who can control the rice cooking completion time. A rice cooker that executes a rice cooking process by being equipped with a time set calculation means that calculates the timing of starting rice cooking by setting a reservation, and a control means that controls the heating means and the time set calculation means. If the time set from the current time to the reserved rice cooking completion time is less than the predetermined time, a rice cooking pattern that includes a process of water absorption into the rice by low heating is selected and set before heating the rice. The rice cooking pattern is automatically executed based on the start timing of the rice cooking pattern, and if the time set is longer than a predetermined time, it is determined whether the temperature of the temperature detection means is equal to or higher than the predetermined temperature at the start timing of the rice cooking pattern. If the temperature is lower than a predetermined temperature, the rice cooking pattern is automatically executed, and if the temperature is higher than the predetermined temperature, a rice cooking pattern that does not include the process of water absorption into the rice is selected, and the rice cooking start timing is later than that of the rice cooking pattern. The rice cooking pattern is automatically executed based on the rice cooking start timing of the pattern.

From the viewpoint of whether or not the time from the time set start to the start of the net rice cooking process, that is, the soaking time, is enough time to make the rice in the pot absorb water to a water absorption rate that allows rice to be cooked at room temperature by the above means. Therefore, if the timer setting time is less than the predetermined time, the rice cooking pattern (with water absorption process for rice) is started immediately, and if the timer setting exceeds the predetermined time,
Further, if the pot temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature, the rice cooking pattern is selected again, and if the temperature is higher than the predetermined temperature, the rice cooking pattern is selected again. As mentioned above as a problem with the conventional method, this requires that the moisture content of the rice be approximately 30% and that the temperature at that time be not low at the time of starting rice cooking. Therefore, when the temperature of the pot at the start of rice cooking, that is, the temperature of rice and water is low, a rice cooking pattern is selected even if the soaking time is longer than a certain time and the moisture content of rice is about 30%. Therefore, a pre-process (water absorption process for the rice) is adopted in which the pot is slightly heated to 40 to 50℃ before the net cooking rice is heated, which promotes water absorption of the entire rice in the pot below the gelatinization temperature. be. This keeps the temperature inside the pot within a range where the rice does not gelatinize (40°C).
- 50℃) and make it uniform, and after that, during full-scale cooking, there is relatively little temperature unevenness between the top and bottom of the pot, and therefore there are fewer variations in the moisture content of the rice and other conditions of the rice in the pot. This allows the rice to be cooked further, and as a result, the finished rice can be cooked uniformly with less unevenness. In addition, since the timing of detecting the temperature of rice and water is the start timing of the rice cooking pattern,
Even when the rice cooking pattern is executed at a low temperature, the rice cooking end time is the set rice cooking end time. If the timing at which the temperature is detected is used as the start timing of the rice cooking pattern, the time required for the rice cooking pattern is shorter than the time required for the rice cooking pattern by the amount that does not include the water absorption process. A problem arises in that the end time is later than the set rice cooking end time. Further, if the temperature is detected at the time when the timer operation is started to determine whether or not the timer setting time is longer than the predetermined time, it is possible to prevent the above-mentioned delay in the rice cooking end time. However, in this case, if you put lukewarm water into the pot and start the timer operation, the temperature will be detected at the timing when the timer operation starts and a rice cooking pattern that does not include the water absorption process will be executed, so the temperature will actually be lower. The problem is that the rice cooking pattern is not executed even in an environment where the pot is left in an environment where the temperature of the pot drops and sufficient water absorption does not occur, and the rice cooking ends before sufficient water absorption occurs. It had

Therefore, the temperature is detected at a timing close to the start of the rice cooking operation in which the heating means is operated, and at a start timing of the rice cooking pattern that does not delay the rice cooking end time.

Embodiment Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of an embodiment of the present invention. Start 11 is the start of the timer operation timing, and judgment 12 is whether the time set time is longer than a predetermined time (2 hours). The next judgment 13 or 15 is selected depending on the situation. First, if it is less than the predetermined time, move to judgment 13,
Here, it is monitored whether a predetermined time (54 minutes before the rice cooking completion time) has been reached, and when the predetermined time has been reached, the process moves to step 14, where the rice cooking pattern (with water absorption step into the rice) is executed and rice cooking is started. . In addition, in judgment 12, if the time has exceeded the predetermined time, the process moves to judgment 15, and when the predetermined time (54 minutes before the rice cooking completion time) comes, the process moves to judgment 16. In this step, the temperature of the pot measured by the temperature detection means is 10 minutes. Check whether the temperature is above 10°C, and if it is above 10°C, proceed to judgment 17. At the predetermined time here (45 minutes before the completion of rice cooking), proceed to step 18, where the rice cooking pattern (no water absorption step into the rice) is reached. This will start cooking rice. However, if the measured temperature is 10° C. or lower in judgment 16, the process immediately moves to step 14 and starts cooking rice according to the rice cooking pattern (with water absorption step into the rice). Note that the "predetermined time" in the judgment processes 13, 15 and 17 of the embodiment described above is based on the rice cooking pattern (without or with water absorption process) when the rice cooking completion time (including the unevenness process) is set as the reserved time. ) The rice cooking start time is shifted by the difference in rice cooking time (in this case, 54-45 = 9 minutes), so regardless of the situation, rice cooking will be completed at the same time (reserved time) no matter which pattern is used. It will be understood that this is what was intended to be done. Furthermore, the required rice cooking times for the patterns, ``45 minutes'' and ``54 minutes,'' are set according to the structure of the heating means employed, and it is obvious that they will change if the structure and specifications change.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the rice cooker of the present invention, in which 20 is a pot, 21 is a temperature detection sensor that contacts the bottom of the pot, 22 is a temperature detection circuit connected to this, and 23 is a A casting heater 24 provided at the bottom of the pot is a heating circuit that energizes it, and a control means 25 is connected to these circuits 22 and 24. A time set calculation means 26 is connected to the control means 25 .

In the structure of the embodiment as described above, the rice 27 and water 28 housed in the pot 20 are soaked according to a pattern selected by the control means 25 according to the set time of the time set calculation means 26, the current time and the ambient temperature. Rice cooking is completed after leaving the water in the water, natural or forced water absorption, heating the rice, and uneven cooking.

Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, whether or not to apply the forced water absorption process to rice was conventionally determined only from the soaking time. Even if the rice cooks unevenly due to temperature differences inside the pot, if the temperature at the start of cooking is low, the water absorption process ( By cooking rice using a rice cooking pattern that includes a step of holding the rice at 40 to 50°C, the difference in temperature within the pot can be reduced, and therefore, the rice can be cooked evenly and deliciously. In addition, since the timing of detecting the temperature of the pot is used as the start timing of the rice cooking pattern, it is possible to ensure that the rice cooking ends at the set rice cooking end time, and the water absorption process of the rice is ensured by determining the presence or absence of the water absorption process based on the temperature. can be set.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a flowchart explaining the operation of an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a block diagram including a sectional view of a pot showing the configuration of the embodiment, and Fig. 3 is an explanation of an example of the operation of a conventional rice cooker. This is a flowchart. 20... pot, 21... temperature sensor, 22... temperature detection circuit, 23... casting heater, 24... heating circuit, 25... control means, 26... time set calculation means, 27... rice, 28...Water.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of a pot storing rice water, a heating means for heating the pot, and a time set calculation means for calculating the timing of starting rice cooking by setting a reservation time for the completion of rice cooking by the user. , in a rice cooker that executes a rice cooking process by being equipped with the heating means and the control means for controlling the time set calculation means, the time from the current time of rice cooking set by the timer to the reserved rice cooking completion time is a predetermined time. If the time set is less than or equal to 100 seconds, a rice cooking pattern that includes a process of water absorption into the rice by low heating is selected before heating the rice, and the rice cooking pattern is automatically executed based on the start timing of the set rice cooking pattern. When the time set is longer than a predetermined time, it is determined at the start timing of the rice cooking pattern whether the temperature of the temperature detection means is equal to or higher than the predetermined temperature, and when the temperature is less than the predetermined temperature, the rice cooking pattern is automatically changed. When the temperature is higher than a predetermined temperature, a rice cooking pattern that does not include the process of water absorption into the rice is selected, and the rice cooking pattern is automatically executed based on the rice cooking start timing of the rice cooking pattern whose rice cooking start timing is later than that of the rice cooking pattern. A rice cooker characterized by: