Cooker

Abstract

To provide a cooker in which uneven distribution of moisture inside a pot being kept warm is suppressed.SOLUTION: A cooker includes: a pot that stores a material to be cooked including rice and water; a heating part for heating the pot; a lid body for covering an upper opening of the pot so as to open and close it freely; a blower part provided on the lid body; and a control part for controlling the heating part and the blower part, and executing a warmth retention process for keeping the material to be cooked warm. When a predetermined time elapses from the start of the warmth retention process or when the temperature of the pot becomes lower than a predetermined temperature after the start of the warmth retention process, the control part executes heating control for controlling the heating part to heat the pot and evaporating the moisture positioned on the bottom part of the pot in the pot to generate steam. The control part controls the blower part to send cooling air for cooling the steam generated by the heating control, into the pot.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a cooking device having a rice cooking function. [Background technology]

[0002] A conventional cooking device of this type is, for example, the rice cooker described in Patent Document 1. The rice cooker described in Patent Document 1 includes a pot stored in a main body, a lid that covers the opening of the pot in an openable and closable manner, a heating means for heating the pot, and a pump that sends air from the outside to the inside of the main body. The rice cooker has a function of keeping cooked rice warm at a temperature suitable for preventing deterioration of the rice. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2008-113987 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The rice cooker described in Patent Document 1 still has room for improvement in terms of preventing uneven distribution of moisture inside the pot during warming.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide a cooking device that suppresses uneven distribution of moisture inside a pot while it is being kept warm. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The cooking device according to the present disclosure includes: A pot for containing food to be cooked, including rice and water; A heating unit for heating the pan; A lid that can freely open and close the upper opening of the pot; A blower provided on the lid; A control unit that controls the heating unit and the blower unit to perform a warming process of keeping the food warm; Equipped with the control unit controls the heating unit to heat the pot when a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the warming process, or when the temperature of the pot becomes lower than a predetermined temperature after the start of the warming process, and performs heating control to evaporate moisture located on the bottom of the pot in the pot to generate steam; The control unit controls the blower unit to blow cooling air into the pot to cool the steam generated by the heating control. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a cooking device in which uneven distribution of moisture inside a pot during warming is suppressed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cooking device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] 2 is a cross-sectional view of the cooking device shown in FIG. 1 along line II-II. [Diagram 3] 2 is a top view of an outer lid provided in the cooking device of FIG. 1. [Figure 4] 2 is a bottom view of an outer lid provided in the cooking device of FIG. 1. [Diagram 5] 5 is a graph showing an example of changes in temperature at the bottom of a pot and in the amount of blown air during a rice cooking process and a warming process in the cooker of FIG. 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] <Knowledge that formed the basis of this disclosure>

[0010] The present inventors conducted extensive research into ways to prevent uneven distribution of moisture inside a pot during warming, and as a result, arrived at the following findings.

[0011] In conventional cooking devices, when the temperature inside the pot drops from the temperature during rice cooking to the temperature for keeping the rice warm, the steam inside the pot condenses to produce water (water droplets). This water moves downward along the inner wall of the pot and between the food being cooked (e.g., rice), and accumulates on the bottom of the pot. In other words, inside the pot while it is being kept warm, moisture is unevenly distributed at the bottom of the pot. As a result, the part of the rice adjacent to the bottom of the pot is exposed to the water that has accumulated on the bottom of the pot during the keeping warm process, and becomes watery. In addition, because the water moves downward inside the pot, the part of the rice near the surface is prone to drying out.

[0012] Therefore, the inventors discovered that a heating control is performed in which the bottom of the pot is heated during warming to raise the temperature of the bottom of the pot above the warming temperature. By this heating control, the moisture that has accumulated on the bottom of the pot evaporates into steam, which moves to the space above the rice in the pot.

[0013] Furthermore, the inventors came up with the idea of ​​blowing cooling air into the pot to cool the steam generated by the heating control. The cooling air cools and condenses the steam in the space above the rice. The water produced by the condensation adheres to the surface of the rice.

[0014] As a result, it is possible to prevent both the wateriness of the rice adjacent to the bottom of the pot and the drying of the rice near the surface. Based on this novel finding, the present inventors have arrived at the following disclosure.

[0015] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, A pot for containing food to be cooked, including rice and water; A heating unit for heating the pan; A lid that can freely open and close the upper opening of the pot; A blower provided on the lid; A control unit that controls the heating unit and the blower unit to perform a warming process of keeping the food warm; Equipped with the control unit controls the heating unit to heat the pot when a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the warming process, or when the temperature of the pot becomes lower than a predetermined temperature after the start of the warming process, and performs heating control to evaporate moisture located on the bottom of the pot in the pot to generate steam; The control unit controls the blower unit to blow cooling air into the pot to cool the steam generated by the heating control. A cooking device is provided.

[0016] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided the cooking device according to the first aspect, wherein the blower section takes in outside air and blows the outside air into the pot as the cooling air.

[0017] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a heating cooker as described in the first or second aspect, wherein the control unit controls the blower unit to start blowing the cooling air when the temperature of the bottom of the pot rises to a predetermined blowing start temperature after the heating control is started.

[0018] According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided the heating cooker according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the control unit controls the blower unit to start blowing the cooling air when a predetermined heating time has elapsed since the start of the heating control.

[0019] According to a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, The control unit controls the blower unit to blow air into the pot during a rice cooking process of cooking the food to be cooked, The control unit controls the blower unit so that the volume of the cooling air is smaller than the volume of the air blown in the rice cooking process. The present invention provides a cooking device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects.

[0020] According to a sixth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided the heating cooker according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the control unit controls the blower unit so that the volume of the cooling air becomes smaller as the amount of the food to be cooked increases.

[0021] According to a seventh aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided the heating cooker according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the control unit controls the blower unit so that the volume of the cooling air increases as the amount of the food to be cooked increases.

[0022] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, terms indicating specific directions or positions (e.g., terms including "up", "down", "right" and "left") are used assuming a state during normal use, but the use of these terms is for the purpose of facilitating understanding of the present disclosure with reference to the drawings, and the meanings of these terms do not limit the technical scope of the present disclosure. In addition, the following description is essentially merely illustrative, and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, its applications, or its uses. Furthermore, the drawings are schematic, and the ratios of the dimensions do not necessarily correspond to the actual ones.

[0023] <Embodiment> A cooking device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the cooking device according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the cooking device of Fig. 1 taken along line II-II. Fig. 3 is a top view of an outer lid provided in the cooking device of Fig. 1. Note that in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 described below, a part of the upper outer casing member 41 and a part of the lower outer casing member 42 are omitted in order to explain the internal structure of the outer lid 4.

[0024] The cooking device 1 is a cooking device having a rice cooking function. In this embodiment, the cooking device 1 will be described as being a pressure rice cooker.

[0025] As shown in Fig. 1, cooking device 1 includes a generally bottomed, cylindrical main body 2 with a pot storage section 21 formed therein, and a pot 3 that is stored in pot storage section 21 and contains food to be cooked 100, including rice and water. As shown in Fig. 2, pot 3 has a bottom 31, a peripheral wall section 32 that extends upward from the edge of bottom section 31, and a pot flange section 33 that protrudes outward from the upper edge of peripheral wall section 32. The upper edge of peripheral wall section 32 defines an upper opening of pot 3.

[0026] An outer lid 4 that opens and closes freely is attached to the top of the main body 2. The outer lid 4 is an example of a "lid body" in this disclosure. A roughly disk-shaped inner lid that can seal the top opening of the pot 3 may be detachably attached to the underside of the outer lid 4 (the surface that covers the top opening of the pot 3).

[0027] Pot storage section 21 of main body 2 has a tubular section 211 arranged to leave a specified gap with peripheral wall section 32 of stored pot 3, and a main body flange section 212 protruding outward from the upper part of tubular section 211. The upper end of tubular section 211 supports pot flange section 33 when pot 3 is stored in pot storage section 21.

[0028] An opening is provided in the center of the bottom of cylindrical portion 211. A temperature sensor 22 for measuring the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 is arranged in this opening so as to be able to abut against bottom 31 of pot 3 stored in pot storage portion 21. The temperature of pot 3 is approximately the same as the temperature of food 100 stored in pot 3. Therefore, by detecting the temperature of pot 3 with temperature sensor 22, the temperature of food 100 can be detected.

[0029] Cylindrical portion 211 has an outer peripheral surface 211a on the opposite side to the surface facing pot 3 stored in pot storage portion 21. Heating portion 5 for heating pot 3 is attached to outer peripheral surface 211a. In this embodiment, heating portion 5 has a bottom coil 51 and a wall coil 52. Bottom coil 51 is disposed around an opening provided in cylindrical portion 211 so as to face bottom 31 of pot 3 in the up-down direction. Wall coil 52 is disposed away from bottom coil 51 so as to face peripheral wall 32 of pot 3. Bottom coil 51 and wall coil 52 each inductively heat pot 3. Bottom coil 51 mainly heats bottom 31 of pot 3, and wall coil 52 mainly heats peripheral wall 32 of pot 3.

[0030] The outer lid 4 includes an upper outer casing member 41 and a lower outer casing member 42 that form the outer casing of the outer lid 4. A hinge (not shown) is provided at the rear part of the outer lid 4 to connect the outer lid 4 and the main body flange portion 212. The outer lid 4 opens and closes by rotating about the hinge.

[0031] A steam exhaust pipe 43 is provided inside the outer lid 4, connecting the internal space of the pot 3 with the outside of the cooking appliance 1. Here, the internal space of the pot 3 refers to the space formed between the surface 100a of the food 100 contained in the pot 3 and the surface of the lower outer casing member 42 when the outer lid 4 is closed. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, a steam exhaust port 411, which is one end of the steam exhaust pipe 43, is formed in the upper outer casing member 41. As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, a steam inlet 421, which is the other end of the steam exhaust pipe 43, is formed in the lower outer casing member 42. The steam exhaust pipe 43 is provided with a steam valve 431 that can open and close the steam exhaust pipe 43.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 3, an air blower 6 is provided inside outer lid 4 to blow air into the internal space of pot 3 when outer lid 4 is in a state where the upper opening of pot 3 is closed.

[0033] Fig. 4 is a bottom view of the outer lid provided in the cooking device in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 4, the blower 6 has a pump 61 that draws gas from the internal space of the outer lid 4, and a gas heating unit 62 that heats the gas. Here, the internal space of the outer lid 4 communicates with the outside of the cooking device 1 through a gap between the upper outer casing member 41 and the lower outer casing member 42. Therefore, the pump 61 can draw outside air from the internal space of the outer lid 4.

[0034] The pump 61 and the gas heating unit 62 are connected by a first air supply pipe 63. Outside air sucked by the pump 61 is sent to the gas heating unit 62 through the first air supply pipe 63. The gas heating unit 62 is connected to the first air supply pipe 63 and has a tube section through which outside air passes, and a heating body arranged around the tube section. In this embodiment, the heating body is a coil that inductively heats the tube section and the outside air passing through the tube section.

[0035] The outer lid 4 is provided with a second air supply pipe 64, one end of which is connected to the pipe of the gas heating section 62. The other end of the second air supply pipe 64 is configured as an air supply port 422 (see FIG. 3) formed in the lower outer casing member 42.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 2 is equipped with a control unit 7. The control unit 7 has a memory unit that stores a plurality of rice cooking sequences for cooking the food 100 containing rice and water, and at least one warming sequence for keeping the cooked food 100 warm. Here, the "rice cooking sequence" refers to a rice cooking procedure in which the power supply time, heating temperature, heating time, heating output, and airflow rate are predetermined for each of the four main steps, namely, the preheating step, the temperature increase step, the boiling maintenance step, and the steaming step, which will be described later. Each rice cooking sequence corresponds to one of the multiple rice cooking courses executed in the cooking device 1. In addition, the "warming sequence" refers to a warming procedure in which the power supply time, heating temperature, heating time, heating output, and airflow rate are predetermined for each of the steps, namely, the temperature maintenance step and the reheating step, which will be described later.

[0037] The control unit 7 is electrically connected to each of the temperature sensor 22, the heating unit 5, the steam valve 431, the pump 61, and the gas heating unit 62. Here, "electrically connected" includes all of the following: current can be conducted between multiple components, multiple components are capacitively coupled, and multiple components are electromagnetically coupled. The control unit 7 controls the heating unit 5, the steam valve 431, the pump 61, and the gas heating unit 62 through the electrical connections based on the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 measured by the temperature sensor 22, and executes a rice cooking process for cooking the food 100 and a warming process for keeping the food 100 warm after cooking.

[0038] The operation of the cooking device 1 according to this embodiment will be described below. Fig. 5 is a graph showing an example of changes in temperature at the bottom of the pot and in the amount of blown air during the rice cooking process and the warming process in the cooking device of Fig. 1.

[0039] First, the user places the pot 3 containing the food to be cooked 100, which includes rice and water, in the pot storage section 21. After that, when the user issues a command to start cooking rice using an operation section (not shown) provided on the outer lid 4, the rice cooking process starts under the control of the control section 7 (time t0 in FIG. 5). The rice cooking process includes a preheating process that starts at the same time as the rice cooking process starts, a temperature increasing process, a boiling maintenance process, and a steaming process.

[0040] The preheating process is a process in which rice is soaked in water that is lower than the gelatinization temperature to allow the rice to absorb water in advance so that the rice can be fully gelatinized to the center in the subsequent process. In this preheating process, the control unit 7 raises the temperature of the water in the pot 3 to a temperature close to the temperature at which the rice starts to gelatinize (for example, about 60°C), and then controls the heat of the heating unit 5 based on the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 so as to maintain the raised temperature. This promotes water absorption by the rice. In the processes following the preheating process, the control unit 7 controls the heat of the heating unit 5, for example, by duty control that repeatedly turns the heating unit 5 on (ON) and off (OFF) at regular time intervals.

[0041] Furthermore, during the preheating step, the control unit 7 controls the steam valve 431 to open the steam exhaust pipe 43. When a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the preheating step (time t1 in FIG. 5), the process proceeds to the temperature increasing step.

[0042] The temperature-raising process is a process in which pot 3 is heated quickly over high heat to bring the water in pot 3 to a boiling state (about 100°C). In this temperature-raising process, control unit 7 controls heating unit 5 so as to rapidly heat pot 3 to bring the water in pot 3 to a boiling state. Control unit 7 also controls steam valve 431 to open steam exhaust pipe 43 during the temperature-raising process. When the water in pot 3 has boiled (time t2 in FIG. 5), the process transitions to the boiling maintenance process.

[0043] The boiling maintaining step is a step of maintaining the boiling state of the water in the pot 3, gelatinizing the rice starch, and raising the degree of gelatinization to about 50% to 80%. In this boiling maintaining step, the control unit 7 controls the heating unit 5 and the steam valve 431 so as to maintain the boiling state of the water in the pot 3.

[0044] More specifically, in the boiling maintenance process, the control unit 7 controls the steam valve 431 to open and close the steam exhaust pipe 43, thereby maintaining the pressure inside the pot 3 at a pressure above atmospheric pressure (e.g., 1.2 atmospheres).

[0045] When most of the water in pot 3 has evaporated due to boiling, the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 begins to rise above the boiling point of water (time t3 in FIG. 5). At this time, in order to further increase the pressure in pot 3, control unit 7 controls steam valve 431 to close steam exhaust pipe 43, and controls blower unit 6 to blow heated outside air into pot 3.

[0046] More specifically, control unit 7 drives both pump 61 and gas heating unit 62. In this embodiment, control unit 7 adjusts the suction volume of pump 61 so that air is blown into pot 3 against the pressure of the air inside pot 3. Pump 61 sucks outside air from the internal space of outer lid 4 and supplies it to gas heating unit 62 via first air supply pipe 63. For example, the volume of air blown in the boiling maintenance step is 1.0 liter per minute. Here, the volume of air refers to the volume of gas sent into pot 3 within a unit time (for example, 1 minute).

[0047] The outside air supplied to the gas heating section 62 is heated while passing through the gas heating section 62. The outside air heated by the gas heating section 62 passes through the second air supply pipe 64 and is blown into the pot 3 via the air supply port 422 of the lower outer casing member 42. That is, the outside air blown by the air supply section 6 is blown downward into the pot 3 as shown by the arrow in FIG. 2. For example, the temperature of the outside air blown in the boiling maintenance process is about 150°C when it passes through the air supply port 422. Because the outside air blown into the pot 3 is heated, a decrease in the temperature of the pot 3 due to the air supply (i.e., a decrease in the temperature of the food to be cooked 100) is suppressed.

[0048] In this embodiment, when the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 exceeds the boiling point of water in pot 3 (e.g., 105°C) (at time t4 in FIG. 5), control unit 7 controls steam valve 431 to open steam exhaust pipe 43 and reduce the pressure in pot 3. Also, at time t4, control unit 7 stops driving pump 61 and gas heating unit 62 to stop blowing air.

[0049] When the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 reaches a predetermined temperature (e.g., 130°C) above the boiling point (time t5 in Figure 5), or when a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the boiling maintenance process, the steaming process begins.

[0050] The steaming process is a process in which excess moisture is evaporated using preheating, and the degree of gelatinization of the rice is increased to nearly 100%. When the process shifts from the boiling maintenance process to the steaming process, the control unit 7 stops the operation of the heating unit 5 or reduces the heat of the heating unit 5. This causes the temperature of the pot 3 to drop. The control unit 7 controls the air blowing unit 6 to blow air into the pot 3 while the temperature of the pot 3 is dropping. More specifically, the control unit 7 controls the pump 61 and the gas heating unit 62 in the same manner as when blowing air in the boiling maintenance process. In this embodiment, the volume of the air blown in the steaming process is 1.0 liter per minute. The control unit 7 stops the operation of the pump 61 and the gas heating unit 62 when a predetermined time (e.g., 15 seconds) has elapsed since the start of air blowing.

[0051] After the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 reaches a predetermined temperature (e.g., 100°C), i.e., after time t6 in Fig. 5, control unit 7 controls heating unit 5 to maintain the predetermined temperature. When a predetermined time has passed since the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 reached the predetermined temperature (time t11 in Fig. 5), the steaming process ends. In other words, the rice cooking process ends and the process moves to a warming process.

[0052] The warming process includes a temperature maintaining step following the rice cooking step and two reheating steps.

[0053] In the temperature maintaining step, the control unit 7 stops the operation of the heating unit 5 or reduces the heat of the heating unit 5 until the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 drops to a warming temperature (e.g., 65°C) suitable for keeping the food 100 warm. The control unit 7 also controls the steam valve 431 to open the steam exhaust pipe 43. Note that the steam exhaust pipe 43 is maintained in an open state in the warming step.

[0054] When the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 drops to the warming temperature (time t12 in FIG. 5), control unit 7 adjusts the heat of heating unit 5 so as to maintain the temperature of pot 3 at the warming temperature.

[0055] In the heat retention process, the moisture that existed as steam inside pot 3 condenses and becomes liquid water as the temperature of pot 3 drops. The water travels downward inside pot 3 through the gaps in peripheral wall 32 of pot 3 and food 100 to be cooked (see FIG. 2). As a result, water accumulates on bottom 31 of pot 3 over time.

[0056] When a predetermined time (for example, 6 hours) has elapsed since the start of the temperature maintaining step, i.e., the start of the warming step (time t21 in FIG. 5), the first reheating step is started. Here, each reheating step includes a heating control step and an air blowing temperature adjustment step, which will be described next.

[0057] Control unit 7 performs heating control when a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the warming process, or when the temperature of pot 3 falls below a predetermined temperature after the start of the warming process. Here, heating control refers to control in which control unit 7 controls heating unit 5 to heat pot 3, and evaporates moisture located on bottom 31 of pot 3 within pot 3 to generate steam.

[0058] More specifically, in the heating control step, controller 7 drives at least bottom coil 51 of bottom coil 51 and wall coil 52. By driving bottom coil 51, which is closer to bottom 31 of pot 3, the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 can be increased more quickly compared to a configuration in which only wall coil 52 is driven. Furthermore, driving wall coil 52 in addition to bottom coil 51 can promote the increase in temperature of bottom 31. When both bottom coil 51 and wall coil 52 are driven, the heating power of bottom coil 51, which contributes more to the temperature increase of bottom 31, may be made stronger than the heating power of wall coil 52.

[0059] The heating control process is started after moisture has accumulated on the bottom 31 of the pot 3. In this embodiment, the heating control process in the first reheating process is started 6 hours after the start of the warming process. The heating control is preferably performed until the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 becomes high enough to evaporate the water accumulated on the bottom 31 of the pot 3. In this embodiment, the heating control is performed until the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 reaches 90°C. This makes it possible to evaporate the moisture accumulated on the bottom 31 of the pot 3 and more reliably reduce the amount of water on the bottom 31. In other words, it is possible to suppress uneven distribution of moisture inside the pot 3 during the warming process.

[0060] In the heating control step, the control unit 7 controls the blower unit 6 to blow cooling air into the pot 3 to cool the steam generated by the heating control. More specifically, the control unit 7 drives the pump 61 while maintaining the gas heating unit 62 in a stopped state. Therefore, the outside air sent from the pump 61 to the gas heating unit 62 passes through the gas heating unit 62 without being heated, and is blown as cooling air from the blower port 422 into the pot 3. Therefore, the temperature of the cooling air blown out from the blower port 422 is approximately the same as the temperature of the outside air around the cooking appliance 1, and is lower than the temperature of the steam in the pot 3.

[0061] For example, the control unit 7 controls the pump 61 so that the volume of the cooling air is smaller than the volume of the air blown in the rice cooking process (in this embodiment, the boiling maintenance process and the steaming process). In this embodiment, the volume of the cooling air is 0.5 liters per minute as shown in Fig. 5, which is smaller than the volume of the air blown in the rice cooking process. For example, the volume of the cooling air may be smaller than the maximum volume of the air blown in the rice cooking process, or may be smaller than the minimum volume of the air blown in the rice cooking process.

[0062] The control unit 7 may also control the blower unit 6 to blow a volume of cooling air according to the amount of food 100 contained in the pot 3. For example, the control unit 7 may control the blower unit so that the volume of cooling air decreases as the amount of food 100 increases, or the volume of cooling air increases as the amount of food 100 increases. Here, the amount of food 100 may be, for example, the amount of food 100 input by the user via the operation unit when cooking begins (e.g., the total number of rice pieces). The amount of food 100 may be the weight of food 100 measured by a weight sensor provided in the pot storage unit 21.

[0063] The blowing of the cooling air may start simultaneously with the start of the heating control process, or after the start of the heating control process. Moreover, the blowing of the cooling air may start while the heating control is being performed, or after the end of the heating control.

[0064] For example, control unit 7 controls blower unit 6 to start blowing cooling air when the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 rises to a predetermined air-blowing start temperature after heating control starts, or when a predetermined heating time has elapsed since heating control started. In this embodiment, control unit 7 causes blower unit 6 to start blowing cooling air when the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 rises to 70°C, which is the air-blowing start temperature (time t22 in FIG. 5), or when 12 minutes, which is the heating time, has elapsed since heating control started, whichever comes first.

[0065] By blowing cooling air into pot 3, steam generated by evaporation of water accumulated on bottom 31 of pot 3 is condensed and turned back into water within pot 3. This reduces the amount of steam discharged to the outside of cooking appliance 1 via steam exhaust pipe 43. In other words, during the warming process, uneven distribution of moisture within pot 3 can be suppressed while maintaining the amount of moisture within pot 3.

[0066] By starting to blow cooling air after the start of heating control, it is possible to start blowing cooling air while steam is generated in the internal space of pot 3. This makes it easier for steam to condense due to the cooling air, compared to a configuration in which blowing cooling air starts simultaneously with the start of heating control.

[0067] When the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 rises to 90° C. (time t23 in FIG. 5), the process moves to the air blowing temperature adjustment process.

[0068] In the air blowing temperature adjustment step, the control unit 7 stops the operation of the heating unit 5 or reduces the heat of the heating unit 5 until the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 drops to a temperature suitable for keeping the food 100 warm (e.g., 65°C), just like in the temperature maintenance step. In this embodiment, the control unit 7 does not stop the operation of the heating unit 5, but reduces the heat of the heating unit 5 to be weaker than the heat during the heat control step. This causes the temperature of the pot 3 to drop more slowly than when the heating unit 5 is stopped, making it less likely that a temperature difference will occur between the temperature of the pot 3 and the rice in the pot 3, thereby suppressing the formation of dew in the pot 3.

[0069] Furthermore, at the start of the air blowing temperature adjustment step, control unit 7 controls air blower 6 to continue blowing the cooling air in the heating control step. Therefore, condensation of steam in pot 3 progresses due to both the decrease in temperature of pot 3 and the blowing of cooling air.

[0070] When the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 drops to the warming temperature (time t24 in FIG. 5), control unit 7 adjusts the heat of heating unit 5 so as to maintain the temperature of pot 3 at the warming temperature. Control unit 7 also stops the operation of both pump 61 and gas heating unit 62, and stops the blowing of cooling air. When a predetermined time (e.g., 12 hours) has elapsed since the start of the warming step (time t31 in FIG. 5), the process moves to the heating control step in the second re-heating step.

[0071] In the second reheating step, the control unit 7 controls the heating unit 5 and the air blowing unit 6 in the same manner as in the first reheating step described above. That is, the control unit 7 drives the heating unit 5 to heat the pot 3 at the start of the heating control step, and stops driving the heating unit 5 or reduces the heat of the heating unit 5 when the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 rises to a predetermined temperature (e.g., 90°C) (time t33 in FIG. 5). The control unit 7 also controls the air blowing unit 6 to start blowing cooling air when the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 rises to a predetermined temperature (e.g., 70°C) (time t32 in FIG. 5), and to stop blowing cooling air when the temperature drops to a warming temperature (time t34 in FIG. 5). Here, in this embodiment, the warming temperature in the second air blowing temperature adjustment step is 70°C, which is different from the warming temperature in the temperature maintenance step and the first air blowing temperature adjustment step.

[0072] The second air blowing temperature adjustment process ends, for example, 96 hours after the start of the warming process. This ends the warming process. When the warming process ends, the control unit 7 stops driving the heating unit 5.

[0073] According to the cooking device 1 of this embodiment, heating control is started when a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the warming step. This heating control makes it possible to evaporate water that has accumulated on the bottom 31 of the pot 3. In other words, the water that has accumulated on the bottom 31 of the pot 3 can be moved as steam to the space above the rice (food 100) in the pot 3. This makes it difficult for the rice adjacent to the bottom 31 of the pot 3 to be exposed to water for a long period of time, improving the wateriness of that portion of the rice.

[0074] Furthermore, according to the cooking device 1, cooling air that cools the steam generated by the heating control is blown into the pot 3. This allows the steam in the pot 3 to be cooled and condensed in the space above the rice. In other words, it is possible to reduce the amount of moisture lost as steam from inside the pot 3 to the outside of the cooking device 1. This makes it possible to prevent the rice in the vicinity of the surface 100a from drying out.

[0075] This provides a cooking device 1 that suppresses uneven distribution of moisture inside the pot 3 during warming. This improves both the wateriness of the rice adjacent to the bottom 31 of the pot 3 and the dryness of the rice near the surface 100a.

[0076] Furthermore, in the cooking device 1 according to this embodiment, the blower unit 6 takes in outside air and blows the outside air as cooling air into the pot 3. For example, in a configuration in which the blower unit 6 blows the air taken in from inside the pot 3 as cooling air, the air needs to be cooled before being blown in order to make the temperature of the cooling air lower than the temperature of the steam in the pot 3. In this case, a member for cooling the air needs to be provided.

[0077] On the other hand, according to the configuration of the present embodiment, the outside air taken in by the blower 6 is blown as cooling air, so that a member for lowering the temperature of the cooling air is not required. Therefore, it is possible to suppress an increase in the number of steps and costs involved in manufacturing the cooking appliance 1.

[0078] At the start of heating control, the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 has not risen from the temperature during the warming process, and little steam is generated by heating control. Therefore, even if cooling air is blown at the start of heating control, only a small amount of moisture adheres to the rice near surface 100a due to condensation of the steam. In fact, if cooling air is blown at the start of heating control, pot 3 itself may be cooled by the cooling air, which may hinder heating of pot 3 by heating control.

[0079] On the other hand, in the cooking device 1 according to the present embodiment, blowing of cooling air is started when the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 rises to the blowing start temperature. At the time when the bottom 31 of the pot 3 rises to the blowing start temperature, more steam has been generated in the pot 3 compared to when the heating control started. In other words, in the cooking device 1, blowing of cooling air is started when a lot of steam has been generated in the pot 3. This makes it possible to more reliably cool and condense the steam in the pot 3. Also, compared to a configuration in which blowing of cooling air is started at the start of heating control, it is possible to suppress the inhibition of heating of the pot 3 by the cooling air.

[0080] Moreover, according to the cooking device 1 of this embodiment, blowing of cooling air is started when the heating time has elapsed since the start of heating control. At the point when the heating time has elapsed since the start of heating control, more steam has been generated in the pot 3 compared to when the heating control started. In other words, in the cooking device 1, blowing of cooling air is started when a lot of steam has been generated in the pot 3. This makes it possible to more reliably cool and condense the steam in the pot 3. Also, compared to a configuration in which blowing of cooling air is started at the start of heating control, it is possible to suppress the inhibition of heating of the pot 3 by the cooling air.

[0081] Furthermore, with the cooking device according to the first embodiment, the volume of the cooling air is smaller than the volume of the air blown in the rice cooking process, so the steam in the pot is less likely to be pushed out of the pot 3 by the cooling air. In other words, the amount of moisture lost as steam to the outside of the pot 3 can be reduced. Furthermore, because the volume of the cooling air is small, the cooling air is less likely to concentrate on only a portion of the rice. This makes it possible to suppress local temperature drops and drying of the rice.

[0082] As the amount of rice contained in the pot 3 increases, the space above the rice in the pot 3 becomes smaller. Specifically, the vertical dimension D1 of that space (see FIG. 2), i.e., the distance between the surface of the lower outer casing 42 and the surface 100a of the rice, becomes smaller. Therefore, for a given volume of cooling air, the greater the amount of rice, the more likely it is that the cooling air will directly hit the surface 100a of the rice. For example, the greater the amount of rice, the more likely it is that the cooling air will be concentrated and hit a portion of the surface 100a of the rice.

[0083] According to the cooking device 1 of this embodiment, the larger the amount of rice, the smaller the volume of the cooling air. Therefore, when the amount of rice is large, the cooling air is less likely to concentrate on a part of the surface 100a of the rice, compared to a configuration in which the volume of the cooling air increases with the increase in the amount of rice or is constant. Therefore, it is possible to suppress local temperature drops and drying of the rice.

[0084] Furthermore, even when the amount of rice is large, i.e., when the space is small, the steam in the pot 3 is less likely to be pushed out of the cooking device 1 by the cooling air compared to a configuration in which the amount of cooling air increases with the amount of rice or is constant. This makes it possible to reduce the amount of moisture lost from the inside of the pot 3 to the outside as steam. This makes it possible to prevent the rice from drying out.

[0085] As the amount of rice contained in pot 3 increases, the amount of moisture in pot 3 increases, and the amount of steam generated by the heating control also increases. On the other hand, the space above the rice in pot 3, i.e., the space in which the steam generated by the heating control remains, becomes smaller.

[0086] According to the cooking device 1 of this embodiment, the greater the amount of rice, the greater the volume of cooling air. Therefore, when the amount of rice is large, steam can be condensed more reliably in the pot 3 compared to a configuration in which the volume of cooling air decreases or remains constant as the amount of rice increases. Also, the amount of moisture lost from the inside of the pot 3 to the outside as steam decreases, so the rice can be prevented from drying out.

[0087] The present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be implemented in various other aspects. For example, the cooking device 1 is a pressure rice cooker in the above, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the cooking device 1 may be a non-pressure rice cooker, an automatic cooking pot or a pressure cooking pot with a rice cooking function, etc.

[0088] When an inner lid is attached to the underside of the outer lid 4, the inner lid may be provided with a hole through which the air blown out from the air outlet 422 passes, at a position corresponding to the air outlet 422 of the outer lid 4. This can reduce the obstruction of air flow caused by the provision of the inner lid.

[0089] In the above embodiment, the heating elements of the heating unit 5 and the gas heating unit 62 are coils for induction heating, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the heating elements of the heating unit 5 and the gas heating unit 62 may be heaters that generate heat themselves and heat the object by thermal conduction.

[0090] In addition, in the above embodiment, air is blown to increase the pressure inside the pot 3 during the rice cooking process, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, air may be blown during the rice cooking process when the steam exhaust pipe 43 is open. The outside air blown during the rice cooking process does not need to be heated by the gas heating unit 62.

[0091] Also, in the above embodiment, the heating control process in the reheating process is started when a predetermined time (e.g., 6 hours and 12 hours) has elapsed since the start of the warming process, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the heating control process may be started when the temperature of the pot 3 becomes lower than a predetermined temperature after the start of the warming process. In this case, the temperature of the pot 3 may be the temperature of the bottom 31 of the pot 3 measured by the temperature sensor 22, or may be the temperature of a part other than the bottom 31 of the pot 3. For example, the heating control process may be started when the temperature of the pot 3 becomes lower than 60°C after the start of the warming process.

[0092] In the heating control step, of the bottom coil 51 and the wall coil 52, only the wall coil 52 may be driven.

[0093] In the heating control step, gas heating section 62 may heat the outside air supplied from pump 61 as long as the temperature of the outside air blown out from air outlet 422 is lower than the temperature of the steam in pot 3.

[0094] Also, in the above embodiment, in the heating control step, control unit 7 starts blowing cooling air when the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 rises to the air blowing start temperature or when the heating time has elapsed since the start of heating control, whichever comes first, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. Control unit 7 may start blowing cooling air only when the temperature of bottom 31 of pot 3 rises to the air blowing start temperature or when the heating time has elapsed since the start of heating control. Also, blowing of cooling air may be started simultaneously with the start of heating control.

[0095] Any of the various embodiments or modifications described above can be appropriately combined to achieve the effects of each of them. In addition, combinations of embodiments, combinations of examples, or combinations of embodiments and examples are possible, and combinations of features of different embodiments or examples are also possible.

[0096] Although the present disclosure has been fully described in connection with the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, various changes and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and such changes and modifications should be understood to be included within the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims unless they depart therefrom. [Industrial Applicability]

[0097] INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The cooking device according to the present disclosure can suppress uneven distribution of moisture inside a pot while it is kept warm, and is therefore useful as a cooking device for cooking food that contains rice and water. [Explanation of symbols]

[0098] 1 Cooker 2 Main unit 3. Pot 31 Bottom 4 Outer lid 5 Heating section 51 Bottom coil 52 Wall coil 6 Blower section 61 Pump 62 Gas heating section 63 First Air Pipe 64 No. 2 air supply pipe 7 Control section 100 Cooked items

Claims

1. A pot for containing food to be cooked, including rice and water; A heating unit for heating the pan; A lid that can freely open and close the upper opening of the pot; A blower provided on the lid; A control unit that controls the heating unit and the blower unit to perform a warming process of keeping the food warm; Equipped with the control unit controls the heating unit to heat the pot when a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the warming process, or when the temperature of the pot becomes lower than a predetermined temperature after the start of the warming process, and performs heating control to evaporate moisture located on the bottom of the pot in the pot to generate steam; The control unit controls the blower unit to blow cooling air into the pot to cool the steam generated by the heating control. Heating cooker.

2. The cooking device according to claim 1 , wherein the blower takes in outside air and blows the outside air into the pot as the cooling air.

3. 3. The cooking device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the blower unit to start blowing the cooling air when the temperature of the bottom of the pot rises to a predetermined blowing start temperature after the start of the heating control.

4. The cooking device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit controls the blower unit to start blowing the cooling air when a predetermined heating time has elapsed since the start of the heating control.

5. The control unit controls the blower unit to blow air into the pot during a rice cooking process of cooking the food to be cooked, The control unit controls the blower unit so that the volume of the cooling air is smaller than the volume of the air blown in the rice cooking process. The cooking device according to claim 1 or 2.

6. The cooking device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control unit controls the blower unit so that the amount of the cooling air becomes smaller as the amount of the food to be cooked increases.

7. The cooking device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control unit controls the blower unit so that the amount of the cooling air becomes larger as the amount of the food to be cooked increases.

Images