JPH07102176B2 - Automatic rice preparation device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial field of use] The present invention relates to an automatic rice preparation device that automatically performs a series of tasks for preparing stored rice so that it can be cooked.

[Conventional technology]

As a conventional device of this type, there is one disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 59-80217, etc., and washing rice is performed by a water flow system.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional apparatus, since the rice is washed by the water flow, there is a problem that it takes a long time to wash the rice and consumes a large amount of water.

The present invention has been made to solve this problem, and an object of the present invention is to obtain an automatic rice preparation device equipped with a rice washing device that can shorten the time for washing rice and reduce the amount of water used.

[Means for solving problems]

An automatic rice preparation device according to the present invention is a rice washing container having a cylindrical bottom plate that is openable and closable at the bottom to which rice is supplied, a stirring member housed in the rice washing container and driven by a motor,
A water supply device for supplying water to the inside of the rice washing container, and a transfer device having a swingable gutter-shaped transfer body that swings around an intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction below the bottom plate, and one of the transfer devices is provided. A drainage receiving part is provided in the tilt direction when rocking, and the transport device drains water after washing rice from the bottom of the rice washing container through the transport device by holding the bottom plate to the extent that water leaks when swinging one side. The rice is drained from the receiving part to the outside of the main body, and the bottom plate is opened when the other is swung so that the rice after washing is charged into the rice cooker via the transfer device.

[Action]

When supplying the rice and water into the rice washing container and driving the stirring member housed in the rice washing container with a motor, the rice and water are agitated, and the carrier presses the bottom plate to the extent that water leaks and drains the water. The washing efficiency is improved.

Further, it is possible to open and close the bottom plate simply by swinging the transfer device, and it is possible to easily switch between drainage treatment during rice washing and rice feeding and water feeding to the rice cooker after washing rice.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In FIG. 1, 1 is a main body, 2 is a rice storage room arranged in an upper part of the main body 1, 3 is a rice measuring device provided in a lower part of the rice storage room, 4 is a lower side of the rice measuring device 3. Arranged rice washing equipment, 5
Is a water supply device provided above the rice washing device 4, 8 is a conveying device provided at the bottom of the rice washing device 4, and 6 is a control device electrically connected to each of these constituent parts to control each part. .

The rice storage chamber 2 has a hopper shape, and an opening is formed at the bottom thereof. At the bottom of this rice storage room 2 is a rice weighing device 3
The casing 3d forming the unit is integrally formed, and the circular box 3a is rotatably installed in the casing 3d.
The cell 3a is divided into four chambers by dividing it with a cross-shaped partition wall that extends radially inside a cylindrical body that is open from above and below, and weighs a specified amount of rice every 1/4 rotation. Masu 3a is rotated by a motor 3c via a transmission disc 3b that contacts the outer circumference of the masu 3a.
Are controlled by the control device 6. In addition, a rice drop opening having a shape substantially the same as the opening shape of one chamber of the box 3a is formed at the bottom of the casing 3d for housing the box 3a, and the rice introduced from the rice storage chamber 2 into the one chamber of the box 3a is Due to the rotation of 3a, when one of the chambers matches with the rice dropping port of the casing 3d, it drops downward through this rice dropping port. At the drop position of the rice, a shout 7 for receiving the drop and dropping it into the rice washing container 4a of the rice washing device 4 is arranged. The rice washing container 4a is a cylindrical container that is open at the top and bottom, and a stirring member 4b is arranged inside the container. The upper end of the stirring member 4b is a motor.
It is connected to the rotating shaft of 4c. The bottom opening of the rice washing container 4a is a bottom plate
The bottom plate 4d is opened / closed by the 4d, and the bottom plate 4d is opened / closed in conjunction with the transport device 8. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the carrier device 8 has a swingable gutter-shaped carrier body 8a which oscillates about an intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction thereof, and the carrier body 8a has a substantially middle portion thereof. Is arranged directly below the rice washing container 4a, and is attached to a drive device so as to swing like a seesaw with the intermediate portion as a fulcrum. That is, a semicircular gear 8d is fixed to the lower part of the intermediate portion of the carrier 8a, and the carrier 8a swings around a pivot pin (not shown) inserted in the gear 8d. 8e is an appropriately fixed motor, and the motor 8e has a gear 8f.
Is attached, and the gears 8d and 8f mesh with each other. Therefore, the motor 8
By driving e, the carrier 8a swings via the gears 8d and 8f.
The bottom plate 4d is pivotally supported by a fulcrum 4e on the outer side of the bottom opening of the rice washing container 4a, and is constantly pressed by a spring force in the opening direction, that is, downward. The motor 8e and the motor 4c that drive the carrier 8a are controlled by the controller 6.

A water supply device 5 is provided above the rice washing device 4, and the water supply device 5 includes a water receiving tank 5a connected to an appropriate water source, and a rice washing container 4a having one end connected to the bottom of the water receiving tank 5a. It comprises a water supply pipe 5b facing the upper opening and a solenoid valve 5c provided on the water supply pipe 5b to control the amount of water. The solenoid valve 5c is connected to the control device 6 and its opening time is controlled.

Further, when the carrier 8a is swung so that the right end 8b of the carrier 8a is located at the bottom of the main body 1, the right end 8b of the carrier 8a is tilted in this tilt direction.
A drainage receiving portion 9 is provided for receiving and discharging the water flowing down from. Further, when the carrier 8a is swung so that the left end 8c thereof is faced down, the rice cooker 10 placed on the rice cooker placing portion provided in this tilt direction flows down from the left end 8C along the tilt direction. Receive water and rice. The lid 11 of the rice cooker 10 is opened so that the poured rice and water can enter the pan. At that time, as shown in FIG. 4, the lid holding device 12 attached at a predetermined position in the main body 1 holds the handle 11a formed on the upper surface of the lid 11, and opens the lid 11 in the middle, that is, at an angle of 90 ° or less. Hold it open with. rice cooker
Reference numeral 10 supports a lid 11 by a hinge mechanism so that the lid 11 can be freely opened, and has a latch mechanism for the lid 11 on the other end side. Lid holder 12
As shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b), two plate members 13a, 13b facing each other are pivotally attached by a pivoting portion 14, and an electromagnet 15 is provided at one end of the plate member 13a and one end of the plate members 13a, 13b. A coil spring 16 is provided between them so as to open the space therebetween. The plate 13a is the main body 1
Fixed inside. Reference numeral 17 is a limit switch for determining whether or not the lid holding device 12 holds the lid 11. When the lid holding device 12 does not hold the lid 11 as shown in FIG. 3 (a), the plate members 13a and 13b are widely opened, and one end of the plate member 13b abuts on the contact point 17a of the limit switch 17. Operate. The electromagnet 15 and the limit switch 17 are connected to the control device 6. Main body 1 of rice cooker 10
When it is set inside, the handle 11a is sandwiched between the other ends of the plate members 13a and 13b as shown in FIG. 5 (b), and the lid 11 is held in the middle open state by the spring force of the coil spring 16. When releasing this holding, the electromagnet 15 is energized by a signal from the control device 6, one end of the plate member 13b is attracted to the electromagnet 15, and the handle 11a is opened. Therefore, the lid 11 is rotated downward by its own weight, and the latch mechanism is actuated by the momentum to close the lid 11. Also, 18a,
18b is a limit switch provided below the carrier 8a, 1
Reference numeral 9 denotes a control display board provided on the upper part of the main body 1 and connected to the control device 6, and the control display board 19 has a rice measuring switch 19a for controlling the rice weighing and a rice cooking switch for controlling the rice cooking. 19b and a selective switch such as a rice washing switch 19c for controlling the washing process are provided.

Next, the operation of the above apparatus will be described with reference to the flow chart of FIG. First, the rice is charged into the rice storage chamber 2 (when not charged), and then the lid 11 of the rice cooker 10 is latched to the middle open state by the lid holding device 12 to adjust the amount of cooked rice and the rice cooker of the controller 6. Set the time adjustment section. Then select switch 19
Select a to 19c, and select how far you want to operate. Now, when the rice cooker switch 19b is selected, the control device 6 judges from the signal from the limit switch 17 whether or not the lid 11 is open. If the limit switch 17 is on, that is, if the lid 11 is held, the operation start time set by the timer Wait until. 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 operation start time set by the timer is reached,
The carrier 8a is on the drain side (on the alternate long and two short dashes line in FIGS. 1 and 2).
Rocked to. As a result, the bottom opening of the rice washing container 4a is closed by the bottom plate 4d which is interlocked with the carrier 8a. Next, the box 3a of the weighing device 3 is rotated by a predetermined number of rotations based on the rice cooking amount set, and the rice weighed by this is put into the shout 7
It is put into the rice washing container 4a via. Thereafter, the solenoid valve 5c is opened to supply water into the rice washing container 4a, and at the same time, the stirring member 4b is rotated to wash rice. At that time, rice washing container
The bottom opening of 4a and the bottom plate 4d are not completely sealed, and some water is allowed to leak out. As a result, the washed filthy water is sequentially discharged from the drainage receiving portion 9 to the outside of the main body 1 through the carrier 8a. Such rice washing is repeated until the sewage turbidity becomes less than or equal to a predetermined value or a predetermined time elapses, and after the final rice washing, the solenoid valve 5c is closed,
Stop operation until all drainage is complete. After that, the carrier 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 solenoid valve 5c is opened for a predetermined time to supply water to the rice washing container 4a, and the container 4a and the carrier 8a.
While washing off the rice adhering to the rice, prepare rice and a corresponding amount of water in the pan of the rice cooker 10. At this time, in order to completely wash off the rice adhering to the rice washing container 4a, etc., a water supply pipe
A sprinkler may be attached to the tip of 5b.

The operation when the above-mentioned rice washing process is performed for a limited time will be described in more detail with reference to the flow chart of FIG. When rice is supplied from the rice measuring device 3 through the shout 7, the solenoid valve 5c is opened to supply water, the motor 4c is turned on and the stirring member 4b is rotated to perform normal rice washing. This wash rice is 10
After that, the solenoid valve 5c is turned off and only the stirring member 4b is driven to perform so-called rice rinsing for 10 seconds. This cycle is repeated 5 times, and the motor 4c is turned off to complete the rice washing. Then, the motor 8e is driven to move the carrier 8a to the left end.
Open the bottom plate 4d with 8c on the lower side, open the solenoid valve 5c for a predetermined time to supply water to the rice washing container 4a, and wash the rice adhering to the container 4a and the carrier 8a into the pot of the rice cooker 10. Charge rice and a corresponding amount of water. When the rice rinsing is performed as described above, the rice is effectively washed by friction between the rice and the rice or the container. Next, the carrier 8a is swung again to the drain side, and water is supplied for a predetermined time to perform post-cleaning. The position of the carrier 8a is detected by the limit switches 18a and 18b, and accurately controlled by the control device 6. Simultaneously with the post-cleaning, the electromagnet 15 of the lid holding device 12 is energized to pull one end of the plate material 13b, and the latch of the lid 11 is turned off. This allows
The lid 11 is closed by its own weight. On the other hand, the rice in the pan is piled up like a mountain, and in fact, the vibration table provided at the bottom of the rice cooker 10 horizontally vibrates the rice cooker 10 to put the rice in the pan. Arrange on average. After that, a waiting time is taken to immerse the rice in water for a predetermined time, and then energy is input to the rice cooker 10.

The above is the case where the rice cooker switch 19b is selected, but when the rice weighing switch 19a is selected, the carrier 8a is rocked to the rice cooker 10 side from the beginning, and the rice is weighed as described above, and the weighing is performed. The crushed rice passes through the rice washing container 4a, is stored in the pan of the rice cooker 10 via the carrier 8a, and the lid 11 is closed.

When the rice washing switch 19c is pressed, the process up to the point before the rice cooking energy is input to the rice cooker 10 is the rice cooking switch 19c.
The procedure is the same as when b is selected. This is used, for example, when cooking cooked rice.

〔The invention's effect〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the rice and water are stirred by the stirring member driven by the motor to wash the rice, and the conveying device holds the bottom plate to such an extent that water leaks. It is possible to drain water from the bottom of the container, reduce the amount of water used for washing rice and the time for washing rice, and improve the efficiency of washing rice.

Moreover, this transport device not only serves as an inclined transport path for easy movement of water and rice when swinging, but also works in conjunction with the opening and closing operation of the bottom plate of the rice washing container, and moreover, it is on the side of the drain receiving part of the drainage during rice washing. It has a unique effect of distributing rice to the rice cooker side when feeding rice.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of the device of the present invention, FIGS. 2 and 3 are front and bottom views of a rice washing transport mechanism according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of a lid holding mechanism according to the present invention. 5 (a) and 5 (b) are plan views of the lid holding mechanism according to the present invention in a non-lid holding state and a lid holding state, respectively, and FIGS. 6 and 7 are flow charts showing the operation of the apparatus of the present invention. is there. 2 ... rice storage room, 3 ... rice weighing device, 4 ... rice washing device,
4a ... rice washing container, 4b ... stirring member, 4c ... motor, 4d ...
... bottom plate, 5 ... water supply device, 6 ... control device, 8 ... transport device, 10 ... rice cooker, the same reference numerals in the drawings indicate the same or corresponding parts.

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claim: What is claimed is: 1. An automatic rice preparation device that automatically performs a series of work for measuring rice from the storage of rice, washing the rice, and supplying water corresponding to the washed rice in the pan of the rice cooker,
A rice washing container having a cylindrical bottom plate to which rice is fed, a bottom plate which can be opened and closed, a stirring member housed in the rice washing container and driven by a motor, a water supply device for supplying water into the rice washing container, and the bottom plate A transport device having a swingable gutter-shaped transport body that swings about an intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction below the transport device, and a drainage receiving portion is provided in one of the tilt directions of the transport device when swinging, The transfer device drains the water after washing rice from the bottom of the rice washing container to the outside of the main body from the drainage receiving part through the transfer device by holding the bottom plate to the extent that water leaks when swinging one side, and shaking the other side. An automatic rice preparation device, characterized in that the bottom plate is opened at the time of operation so that the washed rice is charged into the rice cooker via the transfer device.