Control method of cooking appliance, cooking appliance and control device

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of household appliances, in particular to a cooking utensil control method, a control device, a controller and a cooking utensil, the cooking utensil control method comprising S1 judging the current state of the cooking utensil, S2 controlling the air extraction device to extract air from the feeding channel according to the current state of the cooking utensil being a non-feeding state. According to the cooking utensil control method provided by the present application, when the cooking utensil is used to cook food, the current state of the cooking utensil is judged, and according to the result of the judgment, the non-feeding state, the air extraction device is used to extract air from the feeding channel at this time, so as to discharge the water vapor and air in the feeding channel, so as to avoid the condensate remaining in the feeding channel to affect the feeding of the cooking cavity and the occurrence of the humid odor in the feeding channel.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of household appliance technology, and more specifically to a control method, cooking appliance, and control device for a cooking appliance. Background Technology

[0002] This section provides only background information relevant to this disclosure and is not necessarily prior art.

[0003] Automatic cooking appliances (such as automatic rice cookers) usually have a food supply device, which is connected to the cooking cavity of the appliance through a feeding channel to automatically feed the food into the cooking cavity.

[0004] In the existing technology, during the cooking process, the high temperature inside the cooking cavity is transferred to the feeding channel. The temperature changes in the feeding channel will produce condensation. The condensation can easily cause the food to clump together in the feeding channel, thus affecting the feeding of food into the cooking cavity. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to at least solve the problems of condensation, dampness, and odor in the feed channel. This purpose is achieved through the following technical solution:

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, a first aspect of the present invention provides a method for controlling a cooking appliance, the method comprising:

[0007] Determine the current state of the cooking utensils;

[0008] If the cooking appliance is currently in a non-feeding state, control the air extraction device to extract air from the feeding channel.

[0009] According to the control method of the cooking appliance provided by the present invention, when cooking food with the cooking appliance, the current state of the cooking appliance is judged, and if the judgment result is a non-feeding state, the air is extracted by the air extraction device to remove the water vapor and air in the feeding channel, so as to avoid the situation where condensate water remains in the feeding channel and affects the feeding of the cooking chamber and the occurrence of dampness and odor in the feeding channel.

[0010] In addition, the control method for the cooking appliance described above according to the present invention may also have the following additional technical features:

[0011] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the step of determining the current state of a cooking appliance includes:

[0012] Get the runtime of the cooking appliance;

[0013] The current state of the cooking appliance is determined based on its runtime and a first time threshold.

[0014] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the step of determining the current state of the cooking appliance based on the running time of the cooking appliance and a first time threshold includes:

[0015] Compare the runtime of cooking appliances with the first time threshold;

[0016] If the cooking appliance's running time is less than or equal to a first time threshold, the cooking appliance is determined to be in the cooking start stage.

[0017] Based on the fact that the cooking appliance is in the initial stage of cooking, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be a non-feeding state.

[0018] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the control method of the cooking appliance further includes:

[0019] Once the air is completely drawn from the feeding channel, control the food supply device to add food into the cooking chamber.

[0020] Once the ingredients have been added to the cooking chamber, the outlet of the feeding channel is closed, and the heating mechanism of the cooking appliance is activated to heat and cook the ingredients in the cooking chamber.

[0021] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the step of determining the current state of a cooking appliance includes:

[0022] Get the runtime of the cooking appliance;

[0023] The current state of the cooking appliance is determined based on its running time and a second time threshold.

[0024] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the step of determining the current state of the cooking appliance based on the running time of the cooking appliance and a second time threshold includes:

[0025] Compare the runtime of the cooking appliances and the second time threshold;

[0026] Based on the cooking appliance's running time being greater than or equal to the second time threshold, the cooking appliance is determined to be in the post-boiling stage.

[0027] Based on the fact that the cooking appliance is in the post-boiling stage, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be non-feeding state.

[0028] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the step of determining the current state of a cooking appliance includes:

[0029] Obtain the current status of the food supply device;

[0030] Based on the fact that the current state of the food supply device is stopped, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be non-feeding state.

[0031] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the step of determining that the current state of the cooking appliance is a non-feeding state based on the fact that the current state of the food supply device is a stopped state includes:

[0032] Based on the fact that the food supply device is currently in a stopped state, obtain the current state of the cooking cavity;

[0033] Determine if there is food inside the cooking cavity;

[0034] Based on the presence of ingredients inside the cooking cavity, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be a non-feeding state.

[0035] According to some embodiments of the present invention, determining that the current state of the cooking appliance is a non-feeding state based on the presence of food ingredients in the cooking cavity includes:

[0036] Based on the ingredients inside the cooking cavity, obtain the current temperature of the cooking cavity;

[0037] Compare the current temperature of the cooking cavity with the preset temperature;

[0038] Based on the fact that the current temperature of the cooking cavity is greater than or equal to the preset temperature, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be non-feeding state.

[0039] or,

[0040] Based on the ingredients present in the cooking cavity, obtain the current cooking time of the cooking cavity;

[0041] Compare the current cooking time in the cooking cavity with the time threshold;

[0042] If the current cooking time in the cooking chamber is less than the time threshold, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be non-feeding state.

[0043] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the step of controlling the vacuum device to evacuate air from the feeding channel based on the current state of the cooking appliance being a non-feeding state includes:

[0044] Control the closing of the feed inlet that connects the feed channel to the cooking chamber;

[0045] The air extraction device is controlled to perform low-speed suction of the feed channel according to preset parameters.

[0046] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the step of controlling the suction device to perform low-speed suction of the feed channel according to preset parameters includes:

[0047] Control the air extraction device to operate for a preset duration;

[0048] And / or control the air extraction device to operate intermittently at a preset frequency;

[0049] And / or control the air extraction device to operate at a preset power.

[0050] A second aspect of the present invention provides a cooking appliance for implementing the cooking appliance control method described above, the cooking appliance comprising:

[0051] The machine body is provided with a cooking chamber and a feeding channel communicating with the cooking chamber;

[0052] A food supply device, wherein the food supply device is connected to the feeding channel;

[0053] An air extraction device, wherein the air extraction device is connected to the feed channel;

[0054] A controller, which is electrically connected to the air extraction device.

[0055] According to some embodiments of the present invention, the controller includes:

[0056] The judgment module is used to determine the current state of the cooking utensils;

[0057] The control module is used to control the air extraction device to extract air from the feeding channel based on the current state of the cooking appliance being non-feeding.

[0058] A third aspect of the present invention provides a control device comprising a computer-readable storage medium and a controller of a cooking appliance as described above, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when executed by the controller of the cooking appliance, implement a control method of the cooking appliance as described above. Attached Figure Description

[0059] Various other advantages and benefits will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the following detailed description of preferred embodiments. The accompanying drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the invention. Furthermore, the same reference numerals denote the same parts throughout the drawings. In the drawings:

[0060] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a cooking appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention in a first state is shown.

[0061] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the cooking appliance in its second state (partial structure not shown);

[0062] Figure 3 for Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the cooking appliance in its third state (partial structure not shown);

[0063] Figure 4 for Figure 3 A cross-sectional view of the cooking utensil shown in Figure AA;

[0064] Figure 5 for Figure 3 A cross-sectional view of the cooking appliance shown in the image;

[0065] Figure 6 for Figure 5 An enlarged structural diagram of section C of the cooking appliance shown (with the sealing valve in the closed state);

[0066] Figure 7 for Figure 5 An enlarged structural diagram of section C of the cooking appliance shown (the sealing valve is in the open state);

[0067] Figure 8 A flowchart illustrating a control method for a cooking appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown schematically;

[0068] Figure 9 A schematic diagram of the controller according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0069] Figure 10 A schematic diagram of the structure of a control device for a cooking appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0070] The accompanying figure is labeled as follows:

[0071] 100 refers to cooking utensils;

[0072] 10 represents the body;

[0073] 11 is the top cover;

[0074] 111 is the top cover, and 112 is the inner cover;

[0075] 12 represents the pot body;

[0076] 121 is the cooking cavity;

[0077] 13 is a steamer basket;

[0078] 14 represents the pot body;

[0079] 20. Air extraction device;

[0080] 21 represents the fan;

[0081] 30 is a food supply device;

[0082] 31 is a storage silo;

[0083] 32 is the feed pipe;

[0084] 33 is the material discharge bin;

[0085] 331 is the feed channel;

[0086] 34 is the driving component;

[0087] 35 is a plugging valve;

[0088] 351 is the valve seat;

[0089] 3511 is a cavity;

[0090] 352 is the valve stem;

[0091] 353 is an elastic element;

[0092] 354 is the valve core;

[0093] 40 is the control device;

[0094] 41 is a computer-readable storage medium;

[0095] 42 is the controller;

[0096] 421 is the acquisition module;

[0097] 422 is the control module. Detailed Implementation

[0098] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. While exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure may be implemented in various forms and should not be limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0099] It should be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular exemplary embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “described” as used herein may also mean including the plural forms. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” are inclusive and therefore indicate the presence of the stated features, elements, and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof.

[0100] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature.

[0101] In the description of this invention, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "set" and "connection" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention according to the specific circumstances.

[0102] For ease of description, spatial relative terms may be used in the text to describe the relationship of one element or feature relative to another element or feature, as shown in the figure. These relative terms include, for example, "above," "circumferential," "peripheral," "outer," "bottom," "back to back," "top," "inner," etc. Such spatial relative terms are intended to include different orientations of the mechanism in use or operation, in addition to those depicted in the figure. For example, if the mechanism in the figure is flipped, then an element described as "below other elements or features" or "below other elements or features" will subsequently be oriented as "above other elements or features" or "above other elements or features." Therefore, the example term "below" can include both upper and lower orientations. The mechanism may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or in other directions), and the spatial relative descriptors used in the text will be interpreted accordingly.

[0103] like Figures 1 to 10 As shown, this invention proposes a control method for a cooking appliance 100. This control method is implemented using an automatic cooking appliance 100 (e.g., an automatic rice cooker). Specifically, the control method includes:

[0104] S1: Determine the current state of the cooking appliance 100. S2: If the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is a non-feeding state, control the vacuum device 20 to vacuum the feeding channel 331.

[0105] When implementing the control method of the cooking appliance 100, when the user uses the cooking appliance 100 to cook, the cooking appliance 100 is started. The cooking appliance 100 is monitored after it is started to obtain its current state. The controller 42 obtains the current state of the cooking appliance 100 and judges it separately to distinguish whether the cooking appliance 100 is in the feeding state. When the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is not in the feeding state, the controller 42 controls the vacuum device 20 to start. The vacuum device 20 is used to draw the gas in the feeding channel 331, thereby drying the water vapor and / or condensate in the feeding channel 331, so that there is no residual condensate in the feeding channel 331. This avoids the adverse effects of condensate on feeding, reduces the failure rate of the cooking appliance 100, and effectively improves the user experience.

[0106] It should be noted that the cooking appliance 100 being in a non-feeding state specifically refers to the situation after the food supply device 30 has finished feeding food into the cooking cavity 121 through the feeding channel 331, or just before the food supply device 30 is about to feed food into the cooking cavity 121 through the feeding channel 331. Before the food supply device 30 is about to feed food into the cooking cavity 121 through the feeding channel 331, the connection between the feeding channel 331 and the cooking cavity 121 can be in an open or closed state. After the food supply device 30 has finished feeding food into the cooking cavity 121 through the feeding channel 331, the controller 42 controls the connection between the feeding channel 331 and the cooking cavity 121 to be closed (when closed, the connection between the feeding channel 331 and the cooking cavity 121 is in a sealed state) to avoid the cooking cavity 121 having an adverse effect on the feeding channel 331 (such as water vapor entering the feeding channel 331 during cooking).

[0107] It should be noted that the food supplied by the food supply device 30 includes solid food (such as rice or beans) as well as liquid (usually water).

[0108] In some embodiments of the present invention, the cooking appliance 100 has multiple preset cooking modes according to different ingredients and different cooking needs. Each cooking mode corresponds to a different running time. The cooking operation includes multiple stages according to time nodes, such as preparation stage, feeding stage, heating stage, boiling stage, post-boiling stage and heat preservation stage. The control method of the cooking appliance 100 can judge the current state of the cooking appliance 100 according to the running time of the cooking appliance 100, thereby providing a basis for controlling the suction device 20 to suction the feeding channel 331.

[0109] The current state of the cooking appliance 100 is determined by measuring its runtime, and control is applied to the cooking appliance 100 based on the determination result. This includes:

[0110] The execution step S1 includes two steps, S11 and S12. Specifically, S11 obtains the running time of the cooking appliance 100, and S12 determines the current state of the cooking appliance 100 based on the running time of the cooking appliance 100 and the first time threshold.

[0111] When performing step S11, the acquisition module 421 of the controller 42 acquires the running time of the cooking appliance 100 and feeds back the acquired running time to the control module 422 of the controller 42. The control module 422 receives the running time of the cooking appliance 100 and makes a judgment based on the current state of the cooking appliance 100 according to the running time of the cooking appliance 100.

[0112] When performing step S12, the control module 422 compares the received running time of the cooking appliance 100 with the pre-stored first time threshold and second time threshold (the second time threshold is greater than the first time threshold), and judges the current state of the cooking appliance 100 based on the comparison result.

[0113] Furthermore, the control module 422 compares the running time of the cooking appliance 100 with a first time threshold. When the running time of the cooking appliance 100 is less than or equal to the first time threshold, the control module 422 determines that the cooking appliance 100 is in the initial stage, that is, the cooking appliance 100 is in the just-started stage. Since the cooking appliance 100 is in the initial stage, the food supply device 30 has not yet put food into the cooking cavity 121 through the feeding channel 331. The control module 422 determines that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is a non-feeding state. At this time, the vacuum device 20 can be activated to perform a vacuuming operation on the feeding channel 331.

[0114] It should be understood that, in this embodiment, the first time threshold is used to determine whether the cooking appliance 100 is in the initial stage or the feeding stage. That is, when the running time of the cooking appliance 100 is less than or equal to the first time threshold, the cooking appliance 100 is in the initial stage. In the initial stage, the cooking appliance 100 performs power-on and other related actions (but does not perform the action of feeding food into the cooking cavity 121). In the feeding stage, the food supply device 30 feeds food into the cooking cavity 121. Therefore, the control module 422 can control the vacuum device 20 to perform a vacuuming operation on the feeding channel 331 in the initial stage to prevent the feeding channel 331 from being contaminated by the cooking appliance. The feed channel 331 is kept dry to prevent residual condensation from the previous cooking process or condensation from forming in the feed channel 331 due to climate or long-term storage. This ensures that the feed channel 331 is dry, allowing food to enter the cooking appliance 100 effectively through the feed channel 331, reducing the failure rate of the cooking appliance 100 and improving the user experience. In addition, the suction device 20 can also eliminate odors in the feed channel 331 to avoid adverse effects on food cooking, thereby improving the cooking quality of the food.

[0115] It should be noted that the first time threshold can be 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 8 minutes, etc., and can be set according to the specific application scenario. In this embodiment, the first time threshold is set to 3 minutes. After the cooking appliance 100 is powered on and started, the control module 422 controls the vacuum device 20 to perform a vacuuming operation on the feeding channel 331. When the running time of the cooking appliance 100 reaches 3 minutes, the control module 422 controls the vacuum device 20 to stop running. Then, the control module 422 controls the food supply device 30 to put food into the cooking cavity 121 and to cook the food. That is, before putting food into the cooking cavity 121, the vacuum device 20 is started to vacuum the feeding channel 331 to prevent the moisture (condensation or water vapor) in the feeding channel 331 from affecting the food entry process, thus ensuring the effective operation of the cooking appliance 100.

[0116] Furthermore, when the running time of the cooking appliance 100 is greater than the first time threshold and less than the second time threshold, the control module 422 determines that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is the feeding state, that is, the food supply device 30 feeds food into the cooking cavity 121 through the feeding channel 331. Specifically, when the running time of the cooking appliance 100 is equal to the first time threshold, the vacuum device 20 completes the vacuuming operation of the feeding channel 331 before the food is added, and the running time of the cooking appliance 100 enters the interval between the first time threshold and the second time threshold. In this interval, the control module 422 controls the food supply device 30 to add food into the cooking cavity 121, and after the food is added, the control module 422 controls the heating mechanism to heat and cook the food in the cooking cavity 121, so that the food boils to a cooked state. When the running time of the cooking appliance 100 reaches the second time threshold, the cooking appliance 100 enters the post-boiling stage. When the cooking appliance 100 enters the post-cooking state, the control module 422 further controls the cooking appliance 100.

[0117] It should be understood that, in this embodiment, the second time threshold is used to define the time point at which the cooking appliance 100 enters the cooking boiling stage. Before the second time threshold (when the running time of the cooking appliance 100 is greater than the first time threshold), the cooking appliance 100 performs the operation of adding ingredients and heating and cooking the ingredients. When the running time of the cooking appliance 100 reaches the second time threshold (greater than or equal to the second time threshold), the control module 422 controls the cooking appliance 100 to perform further operations.

[0118] In addition, when the cooking time is between the first time threshold and the second time threshold, the vacuum device 20 is in a stopped state, and the vacuum device 20 does not perform vacuuming operation on the feeding channel 331.

[0119] It should be noted that the second time threshold can be 30min, 40min, 50min, ..., and can be set according to the specific application scenario. In this embodiment, the first time threshold is set to 30min, that is, after the cooking appliance 100 is powered on and started, it runs for 30 minutes and then the cooking appliance 100 reaches the second time threshold, thus entering the cooking boiling stage.

[0120] Furthermore, when the running time of the cooking appliance 100 is greater than or equal to the second time threshold, the control module 422 determines that the cooking appliance 100 is in the post-boiling stage, that is, the food has been cooked in the cooking chamber 121 and is in the post-boiling stage. Based on the fact that the cooking appliance 100 is in the post-boiling stage, the control module 422 determines that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state. The control module 422 controls the closing of the feeding port connecting the feeding channel 331 to the cooking chamber 121, and controls the start of the vacuum device 20. The air intake channel 331 is evacuated to remove water vapor and / or condensate from it, ensuring no residual condensate remains and preventing adverse effects on the food. This reduces the failure rate of the cooking appliance 100 and effectively improves the user experience. Furthermore, the air intake channel 331 is evacuated to eliminate odors and prevent them from negatively impacting food cooking, thus improving the quality of the food.

[0121] It should be understood that when the cooking appliance 100 is in the boiling stage, the suction device 20 is used to suction the feeding channel 331. This can prevent the high temperature in the cooking cavity 121 from being transferred to the feeding channel 331 during the cooking process, which would cause condensation or water vapor to appear in the suction channel. This further ensures that the feeding channel 331 is clean and dry, thereby ensuring the smooth passage of food through the feeding channel 331.

[0122] In this embodiment, the vacuum device 20 vacuums the feeding channel 331 before the food is added (when the cooking appliance 100's operating time is less than or equal to a first time threshold) and / or after the cooking appliance 100 enters the boiling stage (when the cooking appliance 100's operating time is greater than or equal to a second time threshold) to prevent the generation of condensate, water vapor, and odors in the feeding channel 331. When the vacuum device 20 performs the vacuuming operation on the feeding channel 331, the vacuum device 20 performs low-speed vacuuming of the feeding channel 331 according to preset parameters.

[0123] In some examples of this embodiment, the vacuum device 20 is controlled to operate for a preset duration. Specifically, based on the control module 422 of the controller 42 determining that the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state, the control module 422 controls the vacuum device 20 to start, using the vacuum device 20 to extract the gas in the feeding channel 331 to avoid the influence of residual condensate in the feeding channel 331 on the food entering the cooking cavity 121. During the process of the vacuum device 20 evacuating the feeding channel 331, the acquisition module 421 of the controller 42 acquires the operating time of the vacuum device 20 and feeds the acquired operating time back to the control module 422. The control module 422 compares the received operating time with the preset duration. When the operating time reaches the preset duration, the control module 422 controls the vacuum device 20 to stop operating.

[0124] By setting a preset duration for the operation of the vacuum device 20, the drying effect of the feed channel 331 is further ensured. In addition, setting a preset duration can effectively reduce the energy consumption of the vacuum device 20 and reduce the operating cost of the cooking appliance 100.

[0125] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the preset time can be 20s, 30s or 40s, etc., and the preset time can be set according to the specific cooking mode.

[0126] In some examples of this embodiment, the vacuum device 20 is controlled to operate intermittently at a preset frequency. Specifically, when the cooking appliance 100 is not in a feeding state, the control module 422 activates the vacuum device 20. After activation, the vacuum device 20 draws air from the feeding channel 331, thereby removing the gas inside the feeding channel 331 and preventing residual condensation in the feeding channel 331 from affecting the food entering the cooking cavity 121. During the vacuuming process of the vacuum device 20 in the feeding channel 331, the vacuum device 20 can operate intermittently at a preset frequency within a preset time period, that is, it operates at a fixed time step, stops for a fixed time step, and then operates again at a fixed time step. By setting the vacuum device 20 to operate intermittently at a preset frequency, the continuous working time of the vacuum device 20 can be effectively reduced, thereby effectively reducing the failure rate of the vacuum device 20 due to prolonged operation, and thus reducing the maintenance cost of the cooking appliance 100.

[0127] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the preset frequency can be once or multiple times (two or more times). When the preset frequency is multiple times, the fixed time step can be 10s, 20s or 30s, etc. The fixed time step can be set according to the specific cooking mode.

[0128] In some examples of this embodiment, the vacuum device 20 is controlled to operate at a preset power. Specifically, the control module 422 controls the vacuum device 20 to start when the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state. The vacuum device 20 draws in the gas in the feeding channel 331 to remove the gas. Since the gas in the feeding channel 331 is drawn out by the vacuum device 20, it effectively avoids the presence of condensate in the feeding channel 331, thus preventing the residual condensate from adversely affecting the food entering the cooking cavity 121. During the vacuuming process of the vacuum device 20 in the feeding channel 331, the vacuum device 20 can operate intermittently according to a preset frequency within a preset time, and the vacuum device 20 operates intermittently according to a preset power. By setting the operating power of the vacuum device 20, the energy consumption of the vacuum device 20 is effectively reduced while ensuring the vacuuming effect in the feeding channel 331, thereby reducing the user's operating costs.

[0129] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the suction device 20 operates at a preset power and at a low speed. At this time, the suction capacity of the suction device 20 is sufficient to meet the suction requirements of the feed channel 331. Furthermore, the preset power can be set according to the specific cooking mode, which will not be elaborated upon in this embodiment.

[0130] Based on the control method of the cooking appliance 100 described above, the following explanation will take an automatic rice cooker cooking rice as an example:

[0131] The user inputs the rice cooking input into the automatic rice cooker (the user can control the input on the automatic rice cooker or wirelessly input it via a mobile terminal). Before the automatic rice cooker's food supply device 30 feeds rice into the cooking chamber 121 (at this time, the connection between the feeding channel 331 and the cooking chamber 121 can be in a connected or disconnected state), the controller 42 determines that the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state based on the cooking appliance 100's running time being less than or equal to a first time threshold, and controls the suction device 20 to perform a suction operation on the feeding channel 331. When the cooking appliance 100's running time is greater than the first time threshold but less than a second time threshold, the controller 42 controls the suction device 20 to stop operating and controls the food supply device 30 to add rice and water into the cooking chamber 121. 21. Simultaneously, the heating mechanism of the cooking appliance 100 is activated to heat the rice-water mixture in the cooking chamber 121. The rice-water mixture boils under heating conditions. When the running time of the cooking appliance 100 reaches the second time threshold, the controller 42 determines that the cooking appliance 100 is in the post-boiling stage. At this time, the cooking appliance 100 is also in a non-feeding state. The controller 42 controls the vacuum device 20 to start again and uses the vacuum device 20 to suck the feed channel 331. Under the suction action of the vacuum device 20, the gas in the feed channel 331 is extracted from the feed channel 331. After the vacuum device 20 runs (runs at low speed) for a period of time, the controller 42 controls the vacuum device 20 to stop running, so as to ensure that the feed channel 331 is dry and has good throughput.

[0132] In some embodiments of the present invention, the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is determined by whether there is food in the cooking cavity 121.

[0133] Furthermore, in the execution step S1, specifically including S11: obtaining the current state of the food supply device 30; S12: determining that the current state of the cooking utensil 100 is a non-feeding state based on the fact that the current state of the food supply device 30 is a stopped state.

[0134] Specifically, the acquisition module acquires the operating parameters of the food supply device 30 of the cooking appliance 100 and feeds the acquired parameters back to the controller 42 of the cooking appliance 100. The controller 42 receives the parameters and analyzes and judges them. When the acquired parameters meet the judgment criteria, the cooking appliance 100 is determined to be in a non-feeding state. When the acquired parameters do not meet the judgment criteria, the cooking appliance 100 is determined to be in a feeding state.

[0135] By monitoring and judging the status of the food supply device 30, it is possible to quickly determine whether the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state, which simplifies the control logic and improves the response speed of the cooking appliance 100.

[0136] It should be noted that the acquisition module acquires data from the food supply device 30. Specifically, the acquired data may include changes in the food in the storage bin 31 of the food supply device 30, whether there is food passing through the feeding channel 331, and the operating data of the drive unit 34 that drives the food from the storage bin 31 into the feeding channel 331 (the drive unit 34 may be a motor installed in the feeding mechanism in the storage bin 31, a fan installed in the cooking appliance 100 and connected to the discharge bin 33, or the drive unit 34 of other feeding mechanisms). This allows the controller 42 to accurately obtain the current state of the food supply device 30, thereby effectively improving the control precision.

[0137] In some examples of this embodiment, when the food supply device 30 of the cooking appliance 100 is in a stopped state and there is no food in the cooking cavity 121, the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state.

[0138] During step S12, the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is used as the running time of the cooking appliance 100. The running time is compared with the preset cooking time. If the running time is less than the start feeding time in the preset cooking time, the cooking appliance 100 is determined to be in a non-feeding state.

[0139] Specifically, when a user cooks using the cooking appliance 100, the user selects the desired cooking mode on the cooking appliance 100. The desired cooking mode corresponds to a preset cooking time, which includes a preparation stage, an ingredient feeding stage, a cooking stage, and a heat-keeping stage. When the cooking appliance 100 is started, the acquisition module acquires the running time of the cooking appliance 100. When the running time of the cooking appliance 100 is in the preparation stage (the running time of the cooking appliance 100 is less than the preset cooking time, i.e., within the time period before the ingredient feeding stage), the cooking appliance 100 is judged to be in a non-ingredient feeding state, and the air extraction is controlled. The device 20 performs an air extraction operation on the feeding channel 331, that is, before the food enters the cooking chamber 121 through the feeding channel 331, the feeding channel 331 is evacuated to avoid the feeding channel 331 from residual condensate water in the previous cooking process of the cooking appliance 100, or the condensate water in the feeding channel 331 caused by climate or long-term storage of the cooking appliance 100. This ensures that the feeding channel 331 is dry, so that the food can effectively enter the cooking appliance 100 through the feeding channel 331, reducing the failure rate of the cooking appliance 100 and improving the user experience.

[0140] In some examples of this embodiment, when the food supply device 30 of the cooking appliance 100 is in a stopped state and there is food in the cooking cavity 121, the cooking appliance 100 is also in a non-feeding state.

[0141] In step S12, the specific steps include: step S121: obtaining the current state of the cooking cavity 121 based on the current state of the food supply device 30 being in a stopped state; step S122: determining whether there is food in the cooking cavity 121; and step S123: determining that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is a non-feeding state based on the presence of food in the cooking cavity 121.

[0142] Specifically, the acquisition module acquires data on the current state of the food supply device 30 and feeds the acquired data back to the controller 42. The controller 42 receives the data and compares the data separately. When the data meets the preset conditions, it determines that the food supply device 30 is in a stopped state. The acquisition module acquires data on the cooking cavity 121 of the cooking appliance 100 and feeds the acquired data back to the controller 42. The controller 42 analyzes and compares the acquired data to confirm whether there is food in the cooking cavity 121. When there is no food in the cooking cavity 121, the controller 42 determines that the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state.

[0143] In some examples of this embodiment, step S123 specifically includes step S1231: obtaining the current temperature of the cooking cavity 121 based on the presence of ingredients in the cooking cavity 121; step S1232: comparing the current temperature of the cooking cavity 121 with a preset temperature; and step S1233: determining that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is a non-feeding state based on the fact that the current temperature of the cooking cavity 121 is greater than or equal to the preset temperature.

[0144] Specifically, based on the controller 42's determination that there is food in the cooking cavity 121, the acquisition module acquires the current temperature in the cooking cavity 121 and feeds the acquired temperature back to the controller 42 of the cooking appliance 100. The controller 42 receives the current temperature of the cooking cavity 121 and compares the current temperature of the cooking cavity 121 with the preset temperature of the cooking cavity 121. When the current temperature of the cooking cavity 121 is less than the preset temperature, the controller 42 determines that the food in the cooking cavity 121 is in the heating stage (the stage before boiling), and thus determines that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is not in the non-feeding state. When the current temperature of the cooking cavity 121 is greater than or equal to the preset temperature, the controller 42 determines that the food in the cooking cavity 121 is in the boiling stage, and thus determines that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is in the non-feeding state.

[0145] The cooking cavity 121 contains food ingredients. During the heating process of the cooking appliance 100, the temperature inside the cooking cavity 121 gradually increases. When the current temperature of the cooking cavity 121 is greater than or equal to the preset temperature, the cooking cavity 121 is in a high-temperature state. The controller 42 determines that the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state at this time. When the cooking cavity 121 is in a high-temperature state, the air extraction device 20 is synchronously controlled to extract the gas in the feeding channel 331 (the feeding channel 331 is disconnected from the cooking cavity 121) to avoid the gas in the feeding channel 331 from being subject to temperature changes and condensation in the feeding channel 331, thus eliminating the influence of condensation on the feeding process of the feeding channel 331.

[0146] It should be noted that the preset temperature is 80℃, 90℃, or 100℃. The specific value of the preset temperature can be set according to different application scenarios. In this example, the preset temperature is 100℃. At 100℃, the food is in a boiling state. At this time, the temperature inside the cooking cavity 121 is the highest. At this time, the control of the air extraction device 20 extracts the gas from the feeding channel 331, which can minimize the occurrence of condensation in the feeding channel 331 due to temperature changes. This further ensures that the feeding channel 331 is kept in a dry state, and further ensures that the food has good passage in the feeding channel 331, so as to eliminate the malfunction of the cooking appliance 100 caused by condensation, and further improve the user experience.

[0147] In addition, in order to further ensure the suction effect of the feed channel 331 and prevent the cooking appliance 100 from generating condensate again during the temperature drop after boiling, the vacuum device 20 can continue to run until the cooking is finished, or until the temperature in the cooking cavity 121 drops to a point where condensate will not be generated in the feed channel 331.

[0148] In some examples of this embodiment, step S123 specifically includes step S1231: obtaining the current cooking time of the cooking cavity 121 based on the presence of ingredients in the cooking cavity 121; step S1232: comparing the current cooking time of the cooking cavity with a time threshold; and step S1233: determining that the current state of the cooking appliance is a non-feeding state based on the fact that the current cooking time of the cooking cavity 121 is less than the time threshold, and determining that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is a non-feeding state.

[0149] Specifically, based on the controller 42's determination that there are ingredients in the cooking cavity 121, the acquisition module acquires the current cooking time in the cooking cavity 121 and feeds back the acquired current cooking time to the controller 42 of the cooking appliance 100. The controller 42 acquires the current cooking time of the cooking cavity 121 and compares the current cooking time of the cooking cavity 121 with the cooking time threshold of the cooking cavity 121. When the current cooking time of the cooking cavity 121 is greater than the preset time, the controller 42 determines that the ingredients in the cooking cavity 121 are in the boiling stage, thereby determining that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is in the non-feeding state. When the current cooking time of the cooking cavity 121 is less than or equal to the cooking time threshold, it is determined that the current state of the cooking appliance 100 is not in the non-feeding state.

[0150] The cooking chamber 121 contains ingredients. During the heating process of the cooking appliance 100, the cooking time of the cooking chamber 121 continuously increases. When the current cooking time of the cooking chamber 121 exceeds the preset time, the cooking chamber 121 is in a high-temperature state (the cooking chamber 121 is in the boiling stage). The controller 42 determines that the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state at this time. When the cooking chamber 121 is in a high-temperature state, the air extraction device 20 is synchronously controlled to extract the gas in the feeding channel 331 (the feeding channel 331 is disconnected from the cooking chamber 121) to avoid the gas in the feeding channel 331 from being subject to temperature changes and generating condensation in the feeding channel 331, thus eliminating the influence of condensation on the feeding process of the feeding channel 331.

[0151] It should be noted that in this example, the specific value of the duration threshold can be set according to different application scenarios, such as 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc.

[0152] In some examples of this embodiment, the step of controlling the vacuum device 20 to evacuate the feed channel 331 based on the current state of the cooking appliance 100 being a non-feeding state includes S31: controlling the vacuum device 20 to operate for a preset duration.

[0153] Specifically, when the controller 42 determines that the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state, the controller 42 controls the vacuum device 20 to start, using the vacuum device 20 to extract the gas in the feeding channel 331 to avoid the influence of residual condensation in the feeding channel 331 on the food entering the cooking cavity 121. During the process of the vacuum device 20 evacuating the feeding channel 331, the acquisition module acquires the working time of the vacuum device 20 and feeds the acquired working time back to the controller 42. The controller 42 compares the acquired working time with a preset time. When the working time reaches the preset time, the controller 42 controls the vacuum device 20 to stop operating.

[0154] By setting a preset duration for the operation of the vacuum device 20, the drying effect of the feed channel 331 is further ensured. In addition, setting a preset duration can effectively reduce the energy consumption of the vacuum device 20 and reduce the operating cost of the cooking appliance 100.

[0155] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the preset time can be 20s, 30s or 40s, etc., and the preset time can be set according to the specific cooking mode.

[0156] In some examples of this embodiment, the step of controlling the vacuum device 20 to evacuate the feed channel 331 based on the current state of the cooking appliance 100 being a non-feeding state includes S32: controlling the vacuum device 20 to operate intermittently at a preset frequency.

[0157] Specifically, when the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state, the controller 42 activates the vacuum device 20. The activated vacuum device 20 then draws air from the feeding channel 331, removing the gas inside and preventing residual condensation from affecting the food entering the cooking cavity 121. During the vacuuming process, the vacuum device 20 operates intermittently at a preset frequency within a preset time period. This means it operates at fixed time intervals, stops for a fixed time interval, and then operates again at a fixed time interval. By setting the vacuum device 20 to operate intermittently at a preset frequency, the continuous operating time of the vacuum device 20 is effectively reduced, thereby reducing the likelihood of malfunctions due to prolonged operation and lowering the failure rate of the vacuum device 20. This reduces the maintenance cost of the cooking appliance 100.

[0158] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the preset frequency can be once or multiple times (two or more times). When the preset frequency is multiple times, the fixed time step can be 10s, 20s or 30s, etc. The fixed time step can be set according to the specific cooking mode.

[0159] In some examples of this embodiment, the step of controlling the vacuum device 20 to evacuate the feed channel 331 based on the current state of the cooking appliance 100 being a non-feeding state includes S33: controlling the vacuum device 20 to operate at a preset power.

[0160] Specifically, when the cooking appliance 100 is in a non-feeding state, the controller 42 controls the vacuum device 20 to start. The vacuum device 20 draws in the gas in the feeding channel 331 to remove the gas. Since the gas in the feeding channel 331 is drawn out by the vacuum device 20, it effectively avoids the presence of condensation in the feeding channel 331, thus preventing the residual condensation from adversely affecting the food entering the cooking cavity 121. During the vacuuming process of the vacuum device 20 in the feeding channel 331, the vacuum device 20 can operate intermittently according to a preset frequency within a preset time, and the vacuum device 20 operates intermittently according to a preset power. By setting the operating power of the vacuum device 20, the energy consumption of the vacuum device 20 is effectively reduced while ensuring the vacuuming effect in the feeding channel 331, thereby reducing the user's operating costs.

[0161] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the suction device 20 operates at a preset power and at a low speed. At this time, the suction capacity of the suction device 20 is sufficient to meet the suction requirements of the feed channel 331. Furthermore, the preset power can be set according to the specific cooking mode, which will not be elaborated upon in this embodiment.

[0162] Based on the control method of the cooking appliance 100 described above, the following explanation will take an automatic rice cooker cooking rice as an example:

[0163] When the user inputs "cook rice" into the automatic rice cooker, before the food supply device 30 feeds rice into the cooking chamber 121 (at this time, the connection between the feeding channel 331 and the cooking chamber 121 is closed, and the controller 42 determines that the automatic rice cooker is in a non-feeding state), the controller 42 controls the vacuum device 20 to start. The vacuum device 20 sucks air from the feeding channel 331, removing the gas from the feeding channel 331 (to prevent condensation from gas remaining in the feeding channel 331 during the previous cooking). After the vacuum device 20 runs (at low speed) for a period of time, the control device 40 controls the vacuum device 20 to stop. After the vacuum device 20 stops, the control device 40 connects the feeding channel 331 to the cooking chamber 121 and controls the food supply device 30 to add rice into the cooking chamber 121. After the rice is added... (Simultaneously inject the water required for cooking rice into the cooking cavity 121), the controller 42 controls the connection between the feeding channel 331 and the cooking cavity 121 to close, the cooking appliance 100 heats the rice-water mixture in the cooking cavity 121 until the rice-water mixture boils, at this time the controller 42 determines that the automatic rice cooker is in a non-feeding state, the controller 42 controls the vacuum device 20 to start again, the vacuum device 20 sucks the feeding channel 331 again, under the suction action of the vacuum device 20, the gas in the feeding channel 331 is drawn away from the feeding channel 331 (the high temperature in the cooking cavity 121 during the cooking process is transferred to the feeding channel 331 to avoid condensation due to uneven heating and cooling of the feeding channel 331), after the vacuum device 20 runs (runs at low speed) for a period of time, the control device 40 controls the vacuum device 20 to stop running, so as to ensure that the feeding channel 331 is dry and has good permeability.

[0164] like Figures 1 to 10 As shown, the present invention also provides a cooking appliance 100, which includes a body 10, a food supply device 30, a vacuum device 20 and a controller 42. The body 10 is provided with a cooking cavity 121 and a feeding channel 331 connected to the cooking cavity 121. The food supply device 30 is connected to the feeding channel 331, the vacuum device 20 is connected to the feeding channel 331, and the controller 42 is electrically connected to the vacuum device 20.

[0165] Specifically, the food supply device 30 and the vacuum device 20 are respectively connected to the body 10. The food supply device 30 is connected to the cooking chamber 121 of the body 10 through the feeding channel 331, and the vacuum device 20 is connected to the feeding channel 331. When the food is cooked by the cooking appliance 100, the controller 42 judges the current state of the cooking appliance 100. When the judgment result is that it is not in the feeding state, the controller controls the vacuum device 20 to vacuum the feeding channel 331, thereby expelling the water vapor in the cooking chamber 121, so as to avoid the situation where there is residual condensate in the feeding channel 331, which would affect the feeding of the cooking chamber 121.

[0166] In an embodiment of the present invention, the body 10 includes a pot body 14, a pot body 12 (which may be equipped with a steamer 13) and a top cover 11 (the top cover 11 includes a top cover 111 and an inner cover 112). The pot body 12 is disposed on the pot body 14, and a cooking cavity 121 is formed inside the pot body 12. The cooking cavity 121 communicates with the outside through the opening of the pot body 12. The top cover 11 is engaged with the pot body 14 in an opening and closing manner to open or close the opening.

[0167] It should be noted that the pot body 12 and the cooker body 14 can be a fixed structure or a separable structure. In this embodiment, the cooker body 14 is provided with a receiving cavity (a heating mechanism is provided in the receiving cavity, such as a heating tube, an IH coil, and a heating plate). The pot body 12 is separable and is arranged in the receiving cavity. After cooking is completed, the user can separate the pot body 12 from the cooker body 14, thereby improving the convenience of the user during use.

[0168] In an embodiment of the present invention, the food supply device 30 includes a storage bin 31, a feed pipe 32, a discharge bin 33, and a sealing valve 35. The discharge bin 33 is connected to the storage bin 31 via the feed pipe 32. The discharge bin 33 is located on the upper cover 11 and is connected to the cooking chamber 121. The sealing valve 35 is located inside the discharge bin 33 and is used to open or close the outlet of the discharge bin 33 (the outlet is connected to the cooking chamber 121). The air extraction device 20 includes a fan 21 (which may also be a vacuum pump, etc.). The air inlet of the fan 21 (which may be located on the upper cover 11) is connected to the discharge bin 33, and the outlet of the fan 21 is connected to the discharge bin 33. Connected to the outside, when it is necessary to add food to the cooking chamber 121, the sealing valve 35 closes the outlet of the feeding bin 33, and the fan 21 starts (at high speed) to evacuate the feeding bin 33, creating a negative pressure at the feeding bin 33. Under the action of the negative pressure, the food in the storage bin 31 enters the feeding bin 33 through the feeding pipe 32. After the fan 21 runs for a period of time (which can be specifically set), the fan 21 stops running, the sealing valve 35 is opened, and under the action of gravity, the food in the feeding bin 33 falls into the cooking chamber 121, thereby realizing the automatic addition of food to the cooking chamber 121.

[0169] It should be understood that when the amount of ingredients is large, the fan 21 can be started multiple times during the ingredient feeding process to ensure that the ingredients in the cooking cavity 121 are fed.

[0170] like Figures 5 to 7 As shown, the sealing valve 35 is driven by a drive member 34 to open or close. The drive member 34 can be an air pump, water pump, motor, or wax motor, etc. In the embodiment of the present invention, the drive member 34 is an air pump. The sealing valve 35 includes a valve seat 351, a valve stem 352, and a valve core 354. The valve seat 351 is disposed in the discharge bin 33 and has a cavity 3511 communicating with the air pump. A portion of the valve stem 352 is movably disposed in the cavity 3511. The valve core 354 is disposed on the body of the valve stem 352 located outside the cavity 3511. The air pump drives the valve stem 352 to move relative to the valve seat 351, so that the valve core 354 opens or closes the outlet of the discharge bin 33. Specifically, the valve core 354 is disposed at one end of the valve stem 352, and the other end of the valve stem 352 is disposed within the cavity 3511 of the valve seat 351. The valve stem 352 can move relative to the valve seat 351, thereby controlling the valve core 354. The valve core 354 has a state of opening the outlet of the discharge bin 33 and a state of closing the outlet of the discharge bin 33. When it is necessary to open the outlet of the discharge bin 33, the air pump sends gas into the cavity 3511. As gas is injected into the cavity 3511, the air pressure increases, and the high-pressure gas acts on the valve stem 354. 52 is located at the other end of the cavity 3511, thereby pushing the valve stem 352 to move relative to the valve seat 351. The movement of the valve stem 352 drives the valve core 354 to change position, so as to open the outlet of the discharge bin 33. When it is necessary to close the outlet of the discharge bin 33, the air pump can reverse to extract the gas in the cavity 3511. As the air pressure in the cavity 3511 decreases, the valve stem 352 drives the valve core 354 to move, so as to close the outlet of the discharge bin 33. When it is necessary to open the outlet of the discharge bin 33, the air pump can be reversed to extract the gas in the cavity 3511.

[0171] In addition, such as Figure 6 As shown, the sealing valve 35 may also include an elastic element 353 (e.g., a spring). The elastic element 353 is disposed in the cavity 3511 and cooperates with the valve stem 352 and the inner wall of the cavity 3511 respectively. The elastic force of the elastic element 353 drives the valve stem 352 to drive the valve core 354 to keep the outlet of the discharge bin 33 in a closed state to avoid the external environment from affecting the cooking cavity 121. At the same time, the elastic element 353 can realize the automatic reset of the valve core 354, reducing the energy consumption of the air pump.

[0172] Furthermore, the controller includes a control module 422, which is used to determine the current state of the cooking appliance and to control the air extraction device to extract air from the feeding channel if the current state of the cooking appliance is a non-feeding state.

[0173] It should be noted that the controller also includes an acquisition module, which is used to acquire parameters during the operation of the cooking appliance, including running time and temperature inside the cooking cavity.

[0174] In this invention, the cooking appliance 100 is an automatic rice cooker or the like. For the structure of other parts of the cooking appliance 100, please refer to the prior art. Here, this invention will not repeat the details.

[0175] like Figure 10 As shown, the present invention also provides a control device, characterized in that the control device includes a computer-readable storage medium and a controller of the cooking appliance as described above, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when the controller of the cooking appliance executes the instructions, implement the control method of the cooking appliance as described above.

[0176] It should be noted that the computer-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, optical discs, variable memory (PRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), other types of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other optical and magnetic storage media, which will not be described in detail here.

[0177] The computer-readable storage medium 41 provided in this embodiment is based on the same inventive concept as the control method of the cooking appliance 100 provided in the above embodiment, and has the same beneficial effects as the methods adopted, run or implemented by the application program stored therein.

[0178] It should be noted that the flowcharts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawings illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in a flowchart or block diagram may represent a module, segment, or portion of code containing one or more executable instructions for implementing a specified logical function. It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions marked in the blocks may occur in a different order than those marked in the drawings. For example, two consecutive blocks may actually be executed substantially in parallel, and they may sometimes be executed in reverse order, depending on the functions involved. It should also be noted that each block in the block diagrams and / or flowcharts, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and / or flowcharts, can be implemented using a dedicated hardware-based system that performs the specified function or action, or using a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0179] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method implementations, and will not be repeated here.

[0180] In the embodiments provided by this invention, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and method can be implemented in other ways. The apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. Furthermore, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Additionally, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some communication interface; the indirect coupling or communication connection between devices or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0181] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment, depending on actual needs.

[0182] In addition, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present invention can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

[0183] If the aforementioned functions are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this invention, essentially, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a portion of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this invention. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0184] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, and not to limit them. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some or all of the technical features. Such modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, and they should all be covered within the scope of the claims and specification of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for controlling a cooking utensil, characterized in that, The cooking appliance includes a body, a food supply device, and a vacuum device. The body includes a pot and a lid. The interior of the pot forms a cooking cavity, which communicates with the outside through an opening in the pot. The lid is used to open or close the opening of the pot. The food supply device includes a feeding bin, and the feeding channel of the feeding bin is connected to the cooking chamber; The air extraction device includes a fan, and the air inlet of the fan is connected to the material discharge bin; The control method for the cooking appliance includes: Determine the current state of the cooking utensils; If the current state of the cooking appliance is non-feeding, the air extraction device is controlled to extract air from the feeding channel. The current state of the cooking appliance is determined based on at least one of the current state of the food supply device, the running time of the cooking appliance, and the temperature of the cooking cavity.

2. The control method for cooking appliances according to claim 1, characterized in that, The steps for determining the current state of cooking appliances include: Get the runtime of the cooking appliance; The current state of the cooking appliance is determined based on its runtime and a first time threshold.

3. The control method for cooking appliances according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of determining the current state of the cooking appliance based on its running time and a first time threshold includes: Compare the runtime of cooking appliances with the first time threshold; If the cooking appliance's running time is less than or equal to a first time threshold, the cooking appliance is determined to be in the cooking start stage. Based on the fact that the cooking appliance is in the initial stage of cooking, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be a non-feeding state.

4. The control method for cooking appliances according to claim 3, characterized in that, The control method for the cooking appliance also includes: Once the air is completely drawn from the feeding channel, control the food supply device to add food into the cooking chamber. Once all the ingredients have been placed in the cooking cavity, the heating mechanism of the cooking appliance is activated to heat and cook the ingredients.

5. The control method for cooking appliances according to claim 1, characterized in that, The steps for determining the current state of cooking appliances include: Get the runtime of the cooking appliance; The current state of the cooking appliance is determined based on its running time and a second time threshold.

6. The control method for cooking appliances according to claim 5, characterized in that, The step of determining the current state of the cooking appliance based on its running time and a second time threshold includes: Compare the runtime of the cooking appliances with the second time threshold; Based on the cooking appliance's running time being greater than or equal to the second time threshold, the cooking appliance is determined to be in the post-boiling stage. Based on the fact that the cooking appliance is in the post-boiling stage, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be non-feeding state.

7. The method for controlling a cooking appliance according to claim 1, characterized in that, The steps for determining the current state of cooking appliances include: Obtain the current status of the food supply device; Based on the fact that the food supply device is currently in a stopped state, the cooking appliance is determined to be in a non-feeding state.

8. The method for controlling a cooking appliance according to claim 7, characterized in that, The step of determining that the current state of the cooking appliance is a non-feeding state based on the fact that the current state of the food supply device is a stopped state includes: Based on the fact that the food supply device is currently in a stopped state, obtain the current state of the cooking cavity; Determine if there is food inside the cooking cavity; Based on the presence of ingredients inside the cooking cavity, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be a non-feeding state.

9. The method for controlling a cooking appliance according to claim 8, characterized in that, Based on the presence of food ingredients inside the cooking cavity, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be a non-feeding state, including: Based on the ingredients inside the cooking cavity, obtain the current temperature of the cooking cavity; Compare the current temperature of the cooking cavity with the preset temperature; Based on the fact that the current temperature of the cooking cavity is greater than or equal to the preset temperature, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be non-feeding state. or, Based on the ingredients present in the cooking cavity, obtain the current cooking time of the cooking cavity; Compare the current cooking time in the cooking cavity with the time threshold; If the current cooking time in the cooking chamber is greater than the time threshold, the current state of the cooking appliance is determined to be a non-feeding state.

10. The method for controlling a cooking appliance according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, The step of controlling the suction device to evacuate air from the feeding channel based on the current state of the cooking appliance being non-feeding includes: Control the closing of the feed inlet that connects the feed channel to the cooking chamber; The air extraction device is controlled to perform low-speed suction of the feed channel according to preset parameters.

11. The method for controlling a cooking appliance according to any one of claims 10, characterized in that, The step of controlling the suction device to perform low-speed suction of the feed channel according to preset parameters includes: Control the air extraction device to operate for a preset duration; And / or control the air extraction device to operate intermittently at a preset frequency; And / or control the air extraction device to operate at a preset power.

12. A cooking appliance for implementing the cooking appliance control method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that, The cooking appliance includes: The machine body is provided with a cooking cavity; A food supply device, wherein the feeding channel of the food supply device is connected to the cooking cavity; An air extraction device, wherein the air extraction device is connected to the feed channel; A controller, which is electrically connected to the air extraction device.

13. The cooking utensil according to claim 12, characterized in that, The controller includes: The control module is used to determine the current state of the cooking appliance and, if the current state of the cooking appliance is non-feeding, to control the air extraction device to extract air from the feeding channel.

14. A control device, characterized in that, The control device includes a computer-readable storage medium and a controller for the cooking appliance according to claim 12, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when the controller of the cooking appliance executes the instructions, implement the control method for the cooking appliance according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

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