Amount of food eaten detection unit and amount of food eaten management system

Abstract

To obtain an amount of food eaten detection unit and an amount of food eaten management system capable of detecting the weight of food and drink without using an exclusive container.SOLUTION: An amount of food eaten detection unit includes a weight sensor, a first elastic body formed by a material that elastically deforms and fitted into a recess disposed in the container or allowing a protrusion disposed in the container to be fitted, a second elastic body arranged under the first elastic body and formed by a material that elastically deforms with the weight sensor embedded, a first hard member formed by a material having hardness higher than the first elastic body and the second elastic body do, and disposed between the first elastic body and the second elastic body vertically, a second hard member formed by a material having hardness higher than the first elastic body and the second elastic body do to hold the second elastic body from the first hard member, and a communication part for transmitting weight information including information about the weight measured by the weight sensor to an external device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an intake detection unit that detects an intake amount indicating an amount of food consumed by a user, and an intake management system that manages the intake amount. [Background technology]

[0002] A technology has been proposed as a user's food and drink management and analysis system that uses a container equipped with a weight change detection means provided at the bottom of the container and a container control means that transmits the weight change detected by the weight change detection means to a management control means (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In Patent Document 1, a dedicated container is prepared for each type of food and drink, and the type of food and drink is associated with the dedicated container corresponding to it by a dish information management means. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-161571 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In Patent Document 1, a dedicated dish is required for each type of food and drink, and users cannot use any dish. Since the appearance and feel of the dish are important when eating, if users are forced to use dedicated dishes, it may reduce the motivation of users to manage their eating and drinking. In addition, dedicated dishes equipped with electronic components such as a weight change detection means are at risk of malfunction when used in a dishwasher or microwave oven.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and provides an intake detection unit and an intake management system that can detect the weight of food and drink without using a dedicated container. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The intake detection unit of the present disclosure comprises a weight sensor, a first elastic body made of an elastically deformable material and fitted into a recess provided in a container or into which a protrusion provided in the container is fitted, a second elastic body arranged below the first elastic body, made of an elastically deformable material and in which the weight sensor is embedded, a first hard member made of a material harder than the first elastic body and the second elastic body and arranged between the first elastic body and the second elastic body in the vertical direction, a second hard member made of a material harder than the first elastic body and the second elastic body and sandwiching the second elastic body between the first hard member, and a communication unit that transmits weight information including information regarding the weight measured by the weight sensor to an external device.

[0007] The food intake management system disclosed herein comprises the above-mentioned food intake detection unit and an intake management section, which comprises a weight acquisition section that acquires the weight information from the food intake detection unit, a cooked food information acquisition section that acquires cooked food information including at least one of the types of ingredients used in the food or beverage, the amounts of the ingredients, and the cooking method of the food or beverage, and an intake output section that outputs the acquired weight information in correspondence with the cooked food information. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present disclosure, the consumption detection unit is integrated with the container via a recessed or protruding portion, such as a foot or a thread end, provided on the container and detects the weight of the object, so that the weight of food or drink can be detected without using a dedicated container. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 2A to 2C are diagrams illustrating the configuration of an intake amount detection unit and a container according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 2] 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which the intake amount detection unit and a container according to embodiment 1 are integrated together. FIG. [Diagram 3] 1 is a schematic vertical cross-sectional view of an eating amount detection unit and a container according to embodiment 1, which are integrated together. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of an intake amount detection unit according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a usage state of the intake amount detection unit according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] 5A to 5C are diagrams illustrating a weight detection operation by the intake amount detection unit according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating an intake amount detection unit according to a first modification and a second modification of the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a schematic configuration diagram of an intake amount management system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed on a terminal device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a functional block diagram of a server device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining an example of the configuration of intake management information according to the second embodiment. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of an intake amount management system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a schematic configuration diagram of an intake amount management system according to a third embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a cooking device according to a third embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating cooking ingredient-cooking device management information according to the third embodiment. [Figure 16] 11 is a flowchart showing the operation of an intake amount management system according to the third embodiment. [Figure 17] 13 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of an eating amount detection unit and a cooking appliance according to embodiment 4. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of an eating amount detection unit and an eating amount management system according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to the form of the drawings shown below. In addition, in the following description, terms indicating directions (e.g., "up", "down", "right", "left", "front", "rear", etc.) are used as appropriate to facilitate understanding, but these terms are for the purpose of explanation and do not limit the present disclosure. In addition, the same components are given the same symbols in each drawing.

[0011] Embodiment 1 Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of an eating amount detection unit 10 and a container 1 according to embodiment 1. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the eating amount detection unit 10 and the container 1 according to embodiment 1 integrated together. Fig. 3 is a schematic vertical cross-sectional view of the eating amount detection unit 10 and the container 1 integrated together according to embodiment 1. The eating amount detection unit 10 is a device that is coupled to the container 1 and detects the weight of the container 1 and an object such as food or drink placed in the container 1.

[0012] The container 1 is a container such as a bowl, a soup bowl, or a plate that a user uses for eating and drinking. In Figs. 1 and 2, food and drink X to be placed in the container 1 is also shown. Although Figs. 1 to 3 show a bowl-shaped container 1 as an example, the specific shape and size of the container 1 are not limited, and a general container can be used. The bottom of the container 1 is provided with a protruding portion 2 that protrudes downward. Inside the protruding portion 2, a recessed portion 3 that is recessed from bottom to top is formed. The protruding portion 2 and the recessed portion 3 are generally referred to as a high pedestal or a thread end.

[0013] The intake amount detection unit 10 includes a first elastic body 11 and a base portion 12 provided below the first elastic body 11. The base portion 12 is provided with an operation input portion 13 and a light emitting portion 14.

[0014] The first elastic body 11 is made of an elastically deformable material and is connected to the convex portion 2 or the concave portion 3 provided on the container 1. In this embodiment, the first elastic body 11 has a truncated cone shape and is fitted into the concave portion 3 of the container 1 to come into contact with the concave portion 3, integrating the container 1 with the consumption amount detection unit 10. The first elastic body 11 may have a groove into which the convex portion 2 of the container 1 is fitted. Specifically, for example, a groove into which the lower portion of the cylindrical convex portion 2 is fitted may be formed on the upper surface of the truncated cone-shaped first elastic body 11.

[0015] The base portion 12 is a member that supports the first elastic body 11. When the user eats or drinks, the base portion 12 is placed on a table or the like.

[0016] The operation input unit 13 accepts operation inputs to the intake amount detection unit 10. The operation input unit 13 may be configured with a hardware switch or a touch panel. The operation input unit 13 may include a measurement operation unit that instructs the intake amount detection unit 10 to start or stop weight measurement, or a user input unit that selects a user who uses the intake amount detection unit 10. The operation input unit 13 may include one or more operation input units, and different operation inputs to the operation input unit 13 in the following description may be made to one physical operation input unit or to physically different operation input units.

[0017] The light-emitting unit 14 is a device that indicates the state of the eating amount detection unit 10 by light. The state of the eating amount detection unit 10 includes states such as whether the weight of an object is being measured and which of multiple users is using the unit. The light-emitting unit 14 has one or more light-emitting elements, and indicates the state of the eating amount detection unit 10 by the light-emitting pattern of the one or more light-emitting elements. For example, the state of the eating amount detection unit 10 may be indicated by the light-emitting pattern of which of the multiple light-emitting elements of the light-emitting unit 14 is lit. Also, for example, the state of the eating amount detection unit 10 may be indicated by the light-emitting pattern in which one light-emitting element of the light-emitting unit 14 emits a different light color. Also, for example, the state of the eating amount detection unit 10 may be indicated by the light-emitting pattern in which one or more light-emitting elements of the light-emitting unit 14 are lit or flashing.

[0018] Also, instead of or in addition to the light-emitting unit 14, a display device capable of displaying characters, figures, etc., such as a 7-segment LED or a liquid crystal screen, may be provided. This display device may display the state of the eating amount detection unit 10, or may display the weight of the object detected by the eating amount detection unit 10. Also, instead of or in addition to the light-emitting unit 14, an audio output device such as a speaker that outputs audio may be provided. This audio output device may output the state of the eating amount detection unit 10 as audio, or may output the weight of the object detected by the eating amount detection unit 10 as audio.

[0019] Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the eating amount detection unit 10 according to embodiment 1. Fig. 4 shows a schematic vertical cross-sectional view of the structure of the base part 12. The eating amount detection unit 10 includes a weight sensor 15, a control part 16, a communication part 17, a power supply part 18, and a storage part 19 within the base part 12, and a power switch 20 on the base part 12.

[0020] The base portion 12 includes a first hard member 121, a second hard member 122, and a second elastic body 123. The first hard member 121 constitutes the upper surface of the base portion 12, and the second hard member 122 constitutes the bottom surface of the base portion 12. The first hard member 121 and the second hard member 122 are plate-shaped members made of a material harder than the first elastic body 11 and the second elastic body 123. The first hard member 121 and the second hard member 122 are made of a material that does not deform even when a maximum load, for example, a load of about 1 kg, which is assumed to be the load of the container 1 and the food and drink X to be placed therein, is applied. The second elastic body 123 is provided between the first hard member 121 and the second hard member 122 in the vertical direction. That is, the second hard member 122 sandwiches the second elastic body 123 between the first hard member 121 and the second hard member 122. The second elastic body 123 is made of an elastically deformable material. In the second elastic body 123, the weight sensor 15, the control unit 16, the communication unit 17, the power supply unit 18, and the storage unit 19 are embedded.

[0021] The first elastic body 11 and the second elastic body 123 are made of a material such as silicone rubber. The hardness of the first elastic body 11 and the second elastic body 123 may be the same or different. For example, when the first elastic body 11 and the second elastic body 123 are made of silicone rubber, the first elastic body 11 may have a hardness of 30, and the second elastic body 123 may have a hardness of 50. The hardness of rubber is expressed as a value from 0 to 100, with the closer the value is to 0, the softer the material is, and the closer the value is to 100, the harder the material is. By making the first elastic body 11 out of a material that is softer, i.e., that is easily elastically deformed, the degree of adhesion with the convex portion 2 or concave portion 3 of the container 1 can be increased.

[0022] The first hard member 121 and the second hard member 122 may be made of a material having a higher hardness than the first elastomer 11 and the second elastomer 123, for example, polypropylene. When the first elastomer 11 and the second elastomer 123 are made of the materials exemplified above, for example, the first hard member 121 and the second hard member 122 may be made of a material having a Rockwell hardness of R90.

[0023] Weight sensor 15 is a sensor that measures the weight of an object placed on eating amount detection unit 10. Weight sensor 15 in this embodiment is equipped with a strain gauge type sensor element. When an object is placed on eating amount detection unit 10, weight sensor 15 detects the strain of second elastic body 123 that is deformed by the load of the object, and measures the weight of the object by converting the amount of strain into electrical resistance. The measurement result of weight sensor 15 is input to control unit 16.

[0024] The control unit 16 detects one or more of the weight of the container 1, the weight of the container 1 and the food / drink X, and the weight of the food / drink X, based on the measurement result of the weight sensor 15. In addition, the control unit 16 controls the operations of the light-emitting unit 14, the weight sensor 15, the communication unit 17, and the power supply unit 18, based on an input from the operation input unit 13.

[0025] The control unit 16 is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit). Each function executed by the control unit 16 is realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. The software and firmware are written as programs and stored in the storage unit 19. The CPU realizes each function by reading and executing the programs stored in the storage unit 19.

[0026] The control unit 16 may be a dedicated hardware. In this case, the control unit 16 may be, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a combination of these. Each functional unit realized by the control unit 16 may be realized by individual hardware, or each functional unit may be realized by a single piece of hardware. Note that some of the functions of the control unit 16 may be realized by dedicated hardware, and some may be realized by software or firmware.

[0027] The memory unit 19 stores information related to the control by the control unit 16 of the intake amount detection unit 10, and also stores information related to the weight of the object measured by the weight sensor 15. The memory unit 19 is, for example, a non-volatile or volatile semiconductor memory such as a RAM, a ROM, a flash memory, an EPROM, or an EEPROM.

[0028] The communication unit 17 is a communication circuit that transmits and receives signals to and from an external device. The communication unit 17 communicates with an external device such as a server device or a mobile terminal, and transmits weight information including information on the weight of the object to the external device. The communication unit 17 and the external device communicate with each other via wired communication or wireless communication.

[0029] The power supply unit 18 is a device that supplies power to the electrical components that make up the eating amount detection unit 10. The power supply unit 18 is connected to a power switch 20, and starts supplying power to the electrical components of the eating amount detection unit 10 when the power switch 20 is turned on, and stops supplying power when the power switch 20 is turned off.

[0030] The power supply unit 18 may also include a storage battery and a power receiving coil that receives power contactlessly from an external power supply coil and supplies power to the storage battery. In this case, for example, the power receiving coil is embedded in the lower part of the second elastic body 123, that is, at a position closer to the second hard member 122 than the first hard member 121, and is fed with power from a power supply coil provided under the eating amount detection unit 10. In this way, by configuring the power supply unit 18 to be powered contactlessly, it is not necessary to provide a power supply port to which a power cable is connected, so that all of the members constituting the power supply unit 18 can be embedded in the second elastic body 123. This makes it possible to prevent water from coming into contact with the power supply unit 18. In addition, since a power cable is not connected to the eating amount detection unit 10, the convenience of the user who has the eating amount detection unit 10 together with the container 1 can be improved.

[0031] The power supply unit 18 may include a power supply port to which a power cable connected to a commercial power source is connected, a storage battery that is charged via the power cable connected to the power supply port, and a watertight lid that opens and closes the power supply port. The watertight lid is made of, for example, silicone rubber, and is a lid that prevents water from entering the power supply port when attached to the power supply port. When charging the storage battery, the watertight lid is removed and a power cable is connected to the power supply port, and power is supplied to the storage battery via the power cable. When the eating amount detection unit 10 is used for a meal together with the container 1, the power cable is removed from the power supply port and the power supply port is closed by the watertight lid. In this way, the power cable can be disconnected from the eating amount detection unit 10 during a meal, which improves the convenience of the user who has the eating amount detection unit 10 together with the container 1.

[0032] 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a usage state of the intake amount detection unit 10 according to the embodiment 1. In FIG. 5, an example is shown in which weight information detected by the intake amount detection unit 10 is displayed on the terminal device 300.

[0033] The terminal device 300 is a terminal device such as a smartphone, tablet, or personal computer, and includes a display unit 301. The display unit 301 is a display device capable of displaying graphics, such as a liquid crystal display, an organic electroluminescence display, or electronic paper. The display unit 301 displays elements E1 and E2 on the display screen. The element E1 is information that identifies the consumption amount detection unit 10 or the container 1 attached thereto. In the example of FIG. 5, the name of a rice bowl, which is the container 1, is shown as element E1. The element E2 is the weight of the food or drink. In the example of FIG. 5, the weight is displayed in text as element E2.

[0034] The intake amount detection unit 10 and the terminal device 300 are communicatively connected to each other directly or via another communication server and a network. The intake amount detection unit 10 transmits weight information to the terminal device 300 in response to a request from the terminal device 300.

[0035] Fig. 6 is a diagram for explaining the weight detection operation by the eating amount detection unit 10 according to the first embodiment. The vertical axis of Fig. 6 indicates detected weight, and the horizontal axis indicates time. The operation of the eating amount detection unit 10 will be explained with reference to Figs. 4 to 6, taking as an example a case where a user uses the container 1 to eat a meal. Here, it is assumed that the eating amount detection unit 10 is integrated with the empty container 1 and placed on a table or the like.

[0036] At time t1, when a weight measurement command is input to the operation input unit 13 of the intake amount detection unit 10 integrated with the empty container 1, the intake amount detection unit 10 measures the weight of the object. In detail, the entire load of the container 1 is applied to the second hard member 122 placed on a table or the like through the first elastic body 11 fitted into the protrusion 2. The first hard member 121 and the second hard member 122 are made of a material that is harder than the second elastic body 123 and is not deformed by the load of the container 1, so that the second elastic body 123 is deformed by the load of the container 1. The deformation of the second elastic body 123 is transmitted to the weight sensor 15 embedded in the second elastic body 123, and the weight sensor 15 measures the weight of the container 1, which is the object. The weight of the container 1 is stored in the memory unit 19.

[0037] At time t2, a user puts food or drink X into the container 1. Here, it is assumed that N grams of food or drink X has been put in. Subsequently, at time t3, when an instruction to measure weight is input to the operation input unit 13, the consumption amount detection unit 10 measures the weight of the object again. This time, the total weight of the container 1 and the food or drink X is measured. The control unit 16 detects the weight N of the food or drink X by subtracting the weight of the container 1 measured at time t1 from the total weight of the container 1 and the food or drink X measured at time t2. The weight of the food or drink X is stored in the memory unit 19.

[0038] At time t4, when an instruction to output the measured weight is input to the operation input unit 13, the communication unit 17 transmits weight information including the weight N to the terminal device 300. The terminal device 300 receives the weight information and displays the weight of the food or drink X as element E2, as shown in Fig. 5. The weight information transmitted by the communication unit 17 may include information specifying the consumption amount detection unit 10, in which case information about the consumption amount detection unit 10 or the container 1 integrated therewith is displayed as element E1, as shown in Fig. 5.

[0039] After time t4, when the user starts to eat the food or drink X, the weight of the food or drink X gradually decreases as shown by the dashed line in Fig. 6. Then, when the user finishes eating all the food or drink X in the container 1, the weight detected by the consumption amount detection unit 10 becomes the weight of the container 1.

[0040] In the above description, an example is shown in which the weight of food or drink X in container 1 is measured at time t3, but it may also be measured at time t5 when the user finishes eating the food or drink X. In this case, the user inputs a weight measurement instruction to operation input unit 13 at time t3, and weight information of food or drink X obtained based on the weight measured at this time is transmitted to terminal device 300. In this way, by detecting the weight of food or drink X when the user finishes eating, it is possible to detect the weight of what the user actually ate, even if the user is unable to finish all of the food or drink X in container 1.

[0041] In the above description, the weight of the empty container 1 is measured at time t1. Instead of measuring the weight of the empty container 1, the weight detected by the weight sensor 15 may be reset to zero. In this case, the weight of only the food or drink X can be measured at time t3.

[0042] The timing at which the user instructs operation input section 13 to measure the weight may be notified by light emitting section 14 or a display section (not shown) provided on intake amount detection unit 10 .

[0043] (Variation 1) 7 is a diagram illustrating the intake amount detection unit 10 according to Modification 1 and Modification 2 of Embodiment 1. In the first embodiment, an example in which the intake amount detection unit 10 detects the weight of an empty container 1 is described, but in Modification 1, an example in which the reader 21 reads the weight of an empty container 1 from an IC tag 4 is described.

[0044] As shown in FIG. 7, the container 1 is provided with an IC tag 4 that outputs the weight of the empty container 1 by short-range wireless communication. The IC tag 4 is, for example, an RFID tag that applies RFID technology. In general, there are two types of IC tags 4: one that has a built-in battery and one that does not have a built-in battery, but is charged by electromagnetic waves from the reader 21 and operates including the peripheral circuits with the power. The former requires periodic battery replacement but can communicate stably over long distances, while the latter does not require any batteries and is maintenance-free, but is prone to power shortages when the peripheral circuits are operated simultaneously. Either method may be adopted for the IC tag 4, but since it is sufficient to transmit an electromagnetic wave signal including the weight of the empty container 1, it is sufficient to use one that does not have a built-in battery. Since the IC tag 4 communicates with the reader 21 by electromagnetic waves, wiring for power supply and wiring for signal lines are not required. The IC tag 4 may be attached to the bottom of the container 1 by an adhesive sticker or the like, for example.

[0045] The reader 21 is embedded in the first elastic body 11 or the base portion 12, and is a device that reads information from the IC tag 4. The reader 21 reads the weight of the container 1 from the IC tag 4, and the read weight of the container 1 is stored in the memory unit 19 (see FIG. 4).

[0046] According to such a first modification, the user does not need to perform an operation to instruct measurement of the weight of the empty container 1, thereby improving user convenience.

[0047] The IC tag 4 and the reader 21 are preferably provided in positions facing each other when the container 1 and the consumption amount detection unit 10 are integrated via the first elastic body 11. This reduces errors in reading the IC tag 4 by the reader 21. The IC tag 4 may also include information such as the name of the container that identifies the container 1 or the shape of the container 1, in addition to the weight of the container 1. Such information can be acquired by the consumption amount detection unit 10 via the reader 21, transmitted from the consumption amount detection unit 10 to the terminal device 300, and displayed on the terminal device 300.

[0048] (Variation 2) In the second modification, an example in which the intake amount detection unit 10 is provided with a biometric information detection unit 22 will be described. As shown in FIG. 7, the base unit 12 is provided with the biometric information detection unit 22. The biometric information detection unit 22 is a device that detects biometric information such as fingerprints, veins, face, and irises, and outputs the detected biometric information as a signal. The biometric information detection unit 22 is, for example, a photographing device, but is not limited thereto. When the biometric information detection unit 22 is a device that detects fingerprints, it is provided near the operation input unit 13 to improve the operability of the user. The signal of the biometric information detected by the biometric information detection unit 22 is transmitted to an external device such as a terminal device 300 via the communication unit 17.

[0049] The signal of the biological information may be transmitted from the communication unit 17 to the external device together with the weight information, or only the signal of the biological information may be transmitted to the external device by the intake amount detection unit 10 before starting a meal. The external device such as the terminal device 300 manages the signal of the biological information in advance in association with user identification information such as a name that identifies a user, and when the signal of the biological information is acquired, it manages the associated information of the user in association with the weight information. In this way, the external device can manage the intake amount for each user. Furthermore, the user only needs to have the biological information read by the biological information detection unit 22, and does not need to input the user information himself, which improves the convenience of the user.

[0050] As described above, the consumption amount detection unit 10 of this embodiment is integrated with the container 1, and can detect the weight of food and drink X placed in the container 1 by the weight sensor 15. The consumption amount detection unit 10 and the container 1 are integrated and separable via a recessed or protruding portion such as a pedestal or a thread end provided on the container 1, so that the user can use any container 1. Since the weight of food and drink can be detected without using a dedicated container, user convenience can be improved. In addition, by removing the consumption amount detection unit 10 from the container 1, the container 1 can be used in a dishwasher, a microwave oven, or the like.

[0051] Furthermore, the intake amount detection unit 10 of this embodiment includes a communication unit 17 that transmits weight information measured by the weight sensor 15 to an external device. This allows the user to record the weight of food and drink without having to measure the weight of the food and drink on a scale, or input or write down the measured weight information into an external device. In this way, this embodiment reduces the effort required to record weight, and allows the weight of food and drink to be managed with the same operations as for a normal meal, making it easy to continue managing the intake amount.

[0052] Embodiment 2 In this embodiment, an eating amount management system including an eating amount detection unit 10 will be described. The eating amount detection unit 10 used in this embodiment and the following embodiments may be the one described in the first embodiment, the first modification, and the second modification, or may have a part of its function or structure different from those described in the first embodiment. In other words, the eating amount detection unit 10 may have a function of transmitting the weight of the container 1 and the food or drink X or the weight of the food or drink X to an external device, and may not have any of the structures and functions described in the first embodiment, the first modification, and the second modification.

[0053] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of an intake amount management system 100 according to the second embodiment. The intake amount management system 100 is a system that manages the intake amount of a user based on weight information transmitted from an intake amount detection unit 10. The intake amount management system 100 includes an intake amount detection unit 10, a server device 200, and a terminal device 300. In FIG. 8, the food and drink of one meal of the user is illustrated as a food and drink group 500, and containers 1A, 1B, and 1C containing different foods and drinks XA, XB, and XC are shown. When there is no need to distinguish between the foods and drinks XA, XB, and XC, they are collectively referred to as foods and drinks X, and when there is no need to distinguish between the containers 1A, 1B, and 1C, they are collectively referred to as container 1.

[0054] The server device 200 is an intake management unit that manages weight information detected by the intake detection unit 10 and cooked food information, which will be described later. The server device 200 also transmits various information to be provided to the user to the terminal device 300. The server device 200 communicates with the intake detection unit 10 and the terminal device 300 via a network 400. The network 400 is, for example, but is not limited to, a wireless LAN or the Internet.

[0055] The terminal device 300 includes the display unit 301 described in the first embodiment, and displays information output from the server device 200.

[0056] The server device 200 and the terminal device 300 may be realized by one device. For example, the function of the server device 200 as an intake management unit (described later) may be realized by the terminal device 300, and the function of the terminal device 300 (described later) may be realized by the server device 200. The function of the server device 200 may also be realized by multiple devices.

[0057] FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining an example of a screen displayed on the terminal device 300 according to the second embodiment. The terminal device 300 is provided with a touch panel superimposed on the display unit 301, and the display unit 301 displays an intake amount management screen G1. The intake amount management screen G1 is a screen for displaying the intake amount for one meal for each user. The intake amount management screen G1 includes elements F1 to F3 and buttons B1 and B2. The element F1 indicates information for identifying a user, such as a user name or a user ID. The element F2 indicates the date and time when a meal was taken. As illustrated in FIG. 9, the element F2 may indicate a date and a time period for a meal, such as "dinner". The element F3 indicates food and drink and the amount of food and drink consumed. In the example of FIG. 9, the name of the food and drink, the weight consumed, and the calories corresponding to the weight are displayed for each container. The button B1 is a data measurement button. When the button B1 is selected, a signal is transmitted from the terminal device 300 to the intake amount detection unit 10, requesting the transmission of weight information. Button B2 is a button for instructing the display of detailed information. When button B2 is selected, the display unit 301 displays detailed information about the cooking ingredient, such as ingredients and cooking method.

[0058] 9 is displayed by a dedicated application or a browser installed on the terminal device 300. When the intake management screen G1 is displayed by a browser, information to be displayed as the intake management screen G1 is transmitted from the server device 200.

[0059] 10 is a functional block diagram of the server device 200 according to embodiment 2. The server device 200 includes a weight acquisition unit 201, a cooking ingredient information acquisition unit 202, an intake amount management unit 203, an intake amount output unit 204, and a storage unit 205.

[0060] The weight acquisition unit 201 acquires weight information from the consumption amount detection unit 10. The weight acquisition unit 201 may acquire the weight of food or drink X from the consumption amount detection unit 10 as the weight information, or may acquire the total weight of the container 1 and the food or drink X as the weight information. In the latter case, the weight acquisition unit 201 obtains the weight of the food or drink X by subtracting the weight of the empty container 1 from the total weight. In the following description, the weight of the food or drink X will simply be expressed as the weight of the food or drink X acquired by the weight acquisition unit 201, without distinguishing whether the weight of the food or drink X is acquired from the consumption amount detection unit 10 or calculated by the weight acquisition unit 201. The weight of the food or drink X is stored in the storage unit 205 as weight information 206.

[0061] Here, the weight information 206 is information that associates the weight of food or drink X, the consumption amount detection unit 10 that is the transmission source of the weight of the food or drink X, and the date and time when the weight of the food or drink X was acquired. The weight of food or drink X acquired based on the information from the consumption amount detection unit 10 is stored as weight information 206 in chronological order for each consumption amount detection unit 10.

[0062] The cooking ingredient information acquisition unit 202 acquires cooking ingredient information including at least one of the types of ingredients used in food or drink X, the amounts of the ingredients, and the cooking method of the food or drink from an external device. The external device may be a terminal device 300 or a cooking appliance as described in the embodiment below, and is not particularly limited. The cooking ingredient information may be input to the server device 200 using an input device such as a keyboard. The information acquired by the cooking ingredient information acquisition unit 202 is stored in the storage unit 205 as cooking ingredient information 207.

[0063] The cooking information 207 of the present embodiment is, for example, information associating the name, the type of ingredients used, the amount of ingredients, the calories per unit amount of the food X, and the cooking method of the food X for each food X. Specifically, if the food X is pork soup, the ingredients such as pork, green onion, miso, and water, the calories per unit amount, and the cooking method such as stewing are associated with the name "pork soup". The cooking information 207 may include nutritional information indicating whether or not the food corresponds to an allergen, in addition to major nutrients such as carbohydrates, sugar, protein, lipids, vitamins, and iron. The cooking information 207 may also include information regarding the cooking mode of the cooking food. For example, if the cooking food is cooked in a rice cooker, the information is information regarding which cooking mode was used, such as normal cooking, sugar-reduced cooking, or cooking with ingredients other than rice such as barley rice.

[0064] The intake amount management unit 203 manages weight information 206 and cooked food information 207 in association with each other. Specifically, the intake amount management unit 203 manages the intake amount acquired by the user through a meal by associating weight information 206 with cooked food information 207 for each user. The information managed by the intake amount management unit 203 is stored in the memory unit 205 as intake amount management information 208.

[0065] The intake output unit 204 obtains weight information 208b of food / drink X and cooked food information 208c from the intake management information 208, and outputs them in association with each other. In this embodiment, the intake output unit 204 is a communication circuit that transmits information to the terminal device 300 as a communication signal. The server device 200 may be provided with a display device (not shown) and output information to the display device. In this case, the intake output unit 204 is realized by a display circuit that controls the display device. The intake output unit 204 may also be an application program that outputs information in a pre-specified data format and a control circuit that executes the application program.

[0066] Fig. 11 is a diagram for explaining an example of the configuration of the intake amount management information 208 according to the second embodiment. The intake amount management information 208 is information in which date and time information 208a, weight information 208b, cooked food information 208c, user information 208d, and intake amount detection unit information 208e are associated with each other. The date and time information 208a is the date and time when the weight of food or drink X was acquired. The weight information 208b is the weight of food or drink X acquired by the weight acquisition unit 201, and corresponds to the weight information 206 described above. The cooked food information 208c corresponds to the cooked food information 207 described above.

[0067] The user information 208d is user identification information for identifying a user, and is information such as a user name or a user ID. The user information 208d may be in one-to-one correspondence with the intake amount detection unit information 208e, in which case each intake amount detection unit 10 is used exclusively for the user. Alternatively, the user information 208d may be obtained from the intake amount detection unit 10 together with weight information. For example, in the second modification of the first embodiment, an example in which the intake amount detection unit 10 transmits biometric information has been described, but the user information 208d may be obtained from this biometric information. In addition, the user information 208d may be obtained based on user information input to the operation input unit 13 of the intake amount detection unit 10, or the user information 208d may be obtained from the terminal device 300. The user information 208d may include information related to food, drink, or meals, such as the user's target calorie intake, allergy information, sex, age, body type, and weight. Furthermore, the user information 208d may be managed in a database (not shown) in association with information about food, drink, or meals of each user, and information extracted from the database may be displayed on the intake management screen G1 (see FIG. 9).

[0068] The intake amount detection unit information 208e is information that identifies the intake amount detection unit 10 that is the source of the weight information. The intake amount detection unit information 208e is information that is provided to each intake amount detection unit 10. When the intake amount detection unit 10 is shared by multiple users, as shown in Fig. 11, even if the intake amount detection unit information 208e is the same, the intake amount can be managed for each user by using different user information 208d.

[0069] Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing the operation of the intake amount management system 100 according to embodiment 2. Fig. 12 shows the flow of operations of the intake amount detection unit 10, the server device 200, and the terminal device 300 when the weight of food or drink X is measured by one intake amount detection unit 10. Here, an example will be described in which an intake amount detection unit 10 having the same configuration as the intake amount detection unit 10 described in embodiment 1 is used.

[0070] It is assumed that an empty container 1 is attached to the consumption amount detection unit 10. An operation input to start weight measurement is performed on the operation input unit 13 (step S1). Then, the consumption amount detection unit 10 measures the weight of the empty container 1 (step S2). Next, the consumption amount detection unit 10 transmits weight information indicating the weight of the container 1 measured in step S2 to the server device 200 (step S3). Upon receiving the weight information, the server device 200 stores the received information as the weight of the container 1 (step S7).

[0071] It is assumed that food or drink X is then placed in the container 1 attached to the intake amount detection unit 10.

[0072] Next, an operation input to start weight measurement is performed on the operation input section 13 of the intake amount detection unit 10 (step S4). Then, the intake amount detection unit 10 measures the weight of the container 1 containing the food or drink X (step S5) and transmits the weight information to the server device 200 (step S6). Upon receiving the weight information, the server device 200 stores the received information as the total weight of the container 1 and the food or drink X (step S8).

[0073] The server device 200 calculates the weight of food / drink X by subtracting the container charge stored in step S7 from the total weight stored in step S8 (step S9). Next, the server device 200 acquires the cooked food information (step S10) and outputs the weight information and cooked food information in association with each other (step S11). Specifically, the server device 200 searches the intake management information 208 or the cooked food information 207 using the intake detection unit 10 that is the transmission source of the weight of food / drink X as a key, and transmits the cooked food information and weight information associated with the intake detection unit 10 as a pair to the terminal device 300.

[0074] The terminal device 300 displays the intake management screen G1 on the display unit 301 based on the information acquired from the server device 200 (step S12). When there are a plurality of containers 1, such as containers 1A, 1B, and 1C containing foods and beverages XA, XB, and XC, as illustrated in Fig. 8, an intake detection unit 10 is attached to each container 1, and the process shown in steps S1 to S11 in Fig. 12 is executed. The process in step S12 may be executed after acquiring weight information from all of the intake detection units 10 attached to the containers 1A, 1B, and 1C, respectively.

[0075] As shown in FIG. 8, when there is a food group 500 including a plurality of foods and a plurality of intake amount detection units 10 associated with the foods, the process shown in FIG. 12 is executed for each intake amount detection unit 10.

[0076] Embodiment 3 In the second embodiment, an example is shown in which the intake amount detection unit 10 detects the weight of an object using an operation input to the intake amount detection unit 10 as a trigger. In the present embodiment, an example is shown in which the intake amount management system 100A includes a cooker 600, and the intake amount detection unit 10 detects the weight of an object using a signal from the cooker 600 as a trigger. In the present embodiment, the differences from the second embodiment are mainly described.

[0077] 13 is a schematic configuration diagram of an intake amount management system 100A according to embodiment 3. The intake amount management system 100A includes one or more cookers 600 in addition to the intake amount management system 100 of embodiment 2.

[0078] The cooking appliance 600 is a device for cooking food and drink. The cooking appliance 600 is, for example, an electric pan, rice cooker, microwave oven, oven, electric pressure cooker, IH cooking heater, grill, etc., which is equipped with a pan-shaped container and a lid for heating and cooking food and drink in the container. The cooking appliance 600 is connected to the network 400 and communicates with the intake amount detection unit 10, the server device 200, and the terminal device 300 via the network 400. Note that the cooking appliance 600 is not limited to the one exemplified here, as long as it can cook food and drink and communicate with the server device 200, etc. via the network 400. Also, different types of cooking appliances 600 may be connected to the intake amount management system 100A.

[0079] Fig. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a cooker 600 according to embodiment 3. Cooker 600 includes a storage unit 601 that stores food and drink, and an opening / closing unit 602 that opens and closes storage unit 601. Cooker 600 of this embodiment includes storage unit 601 which is a pot-shaped cooking vessel, and opening / closing unit 602 is a lid that opens and closes the top surface of storage unit 601. Cooker 600 has a housing 603 that stores storage unit 601 therein, and opening / closing unit 602 is attached to housing 603 so as to be openable and closable.

[0080] The cooking appliance 600 further includes a heating unit 604, a control unit 605, a signal output unit 606, and an operation unit 607. The heating unit 604 is a device for heating ingredients placed in the storage unit 601, and is, for example, an induction heating coil, an electric heater, a magnetron, or a semiconductor oscillator that oscillates high frequency waves. The control unit 605 controls the heating unit 604 to heat the food and drink in the storage unit 601 based on a control program based on a pre-stored cooking recipe and instructions to the operation unit 607. The signal output unit 606 functions as a cooking information output unit that outputs cooking information to an external device such as the consumption amount detection unit 10, the server device 200, or the terminal device 300. The signal output unit 606 is a communication circuit that transmits the cooking information as a communication signal. The operation unit 607 accepts instruction inputs related to cooking, such as a cooking menu for the food and drink to be cooked by the cooking appliance 600.

[0081] When cooking appliance 600 is a device for cooking food in a heating chamber, such as a microwave oven or a grill, container 601 is the heating chamber, and opening / closing part 602 is a door for opening and closing the heating chamber.

[0082] When a cooking menu and an instruction to start cooking are input to operation unit 607, cooking appliance 600 cooks ingredients according to a control program based on a cooking recipe associated with the input cooking menu. The control program may be pre-stored in cooking appliance 600, or a part or all of the control program may be obtained from an external server via communication.

[0083] FIG. 15 is a diagram explaining cooking ingredient-cooking appliance management information 209 according to the third embodiment. Cooking ingredient-cooking appliance management information 209 is information that associates cooking appliances 600 with cooking ingredients cooked in the cooking appliances 600. Cooking appliance information 209a is information that identifies one or more cooking appliances 600 connected to food intake management system 100A. Cooking appliance information 209a only needs to be able to uniquely identify each cooking appliance 600, and may use the name or ID of cooking appliance 600, etc. Cooking ingredient information 209b is information that includes at least one of the types of ingredients used in the cooking ingredient cooked in cooking appliance 600, the amounts of the ingredients, and the cooking method of the cooking ingredient.

[0084] In this embodiment, the cooked ingredient-cooking appliance management information 209 is stored and managed in the server device 200. The server device 200 acquires cooking appliance information 209a of the cooking appliance 600 connected to the intake amount management system 100A by communication from the cooking appliance 600 or by input to the server device 200. When the cooking appliance 600 cooks an item, it transmits cooked ingredient information 209b corresponding to the cooking to the server device 200 via the signal output unit 606. The cooking appliance 600 outputs cooked ingredient information 209b when cooking starts, when cooking ends, when the opening / closing unit 602 of the cooking appliance 600 is opened after cooking ends, when an instruction is input to the operation unit 607, when a request signal is received from the server device 200, etc.

[0085] 16 is a flowchart showing the operation of the intake amount management system 100A according to embodiment 3. Here, it is assumed that the cooking appliance 600 and the intake amount detection unit 10 are associated in advance by the server device 200, and the associated information is stored in the server device 200. For example, when the cooking appliance 600 is a rice cooker and the intake amount detection unit 10 is integrated with a container 1A that is a rice bowl, the cooking appliance 600 and the intake amount detection unit 10 are associated with each other.

[0086] Cooking conditions such as a cooking mode are set for the cooker 600 (S31). Then, a cooking start instruction is input to the cooker 600, and the cooker 600 starts cooking food based on the setting in step S31 and transmits a signal indicating that cooking has started to the server device 200 (step S32). The cooker 600 performs cooking according to a predetermined control program, and when cooking is completed, transmits a signal indicating that cooking has completed to the server device 200 (step S33). The cooker 600 may transmit the cooking ingredient information 209b shown in FIG. 15 to the server device 200 in step S32 or step S33.

[0087] Here, a user using cooking appliance 600 recognizes that cooking in cooking appliance 600 has finished by visually checking cooking appliance 600 or by listening to an audio output from cooking appliance 600.

[0088] The user performs an operation to turn on the power of the intake amount detection unit 10 (step S39). Then, the intake amount detection unit 10 goes into a standby state for measuring weight, and transmits a signal indicating the standby state to the server device 200 (step S40).

[0089] When the user opens the opening / closing part 602 of the cooking appliance 600, a first signal indicating that the food can be removed is transmitted to the server device 200 (step S34). The fact that the opening / closing part 602 is opened means that the food or drink X cooked in the cooking appliance 600 is about to be poured into the container 1. For this reason, the server device 200 transmits a weight measurement instruction to the consumption amount detection unit 10 to measure weight information of the container 1 before the food or drink X is poured out (step S36). The first signal indicating that the food can be removed from the cooking appliance 600 may be transmitted to the server device 200 based on an input to the operation part 607. The first signal may also include information for identifying the cooking appliance 600.

[0090] Upon receiving the instruction transmitted in step S36, the intake amount detection unit 10 measures the weight of the container 1, which is the target object (step S41).

[0091] The user serves food and drink from the cooking appliance 600 with its opening / closing part open into the container 1, and when serving is complete, the opening / closing part 602 is closed and a signal indicating that the opening / closing part 602 has been closed is transmitted to the server device 200 (step S35). The fact that the opening / closing part 602 is closed means that serving of food and drink from the cooking appliance 600 into the container 1 has been completed. Therefore, the server device 200 transmits a weight measurement instruction to the consumption amount detection unit 10 to measure the total weight of the served food and drink X and the container 1 (step S37).

[0092] Upon receiving the instruction transmitted in step S37, the intake amount detection unit 10 measures the weight of the target food or drink (step S42). More specifically, the intake amount detection unit 10 measures the weight of the food or drink X by subtracting the weight of the container 1 measured in step S41 from the total weight of the container 1 and the food or drink X measured in step S42. Next, the server device 200 transmits weight information including the weight of the food or drink X measured in step S42 to the server device 200 (step S43). The server device 200 stores the weight of the food or drink X included in the received weight information (step S38). The stored weight information of the food or drink X is associated with the cooking ingredient information 209b extracted from the cooking ingredient-cooking appliance management information 209 held by the server device 200, and is output to an external device such as the terminal device 300.

[0093] Embodiment 4 In the third embodiment, an example was shown in which server device 200 associates cooker 600 with consumption amount detection unit 10 based on a signal transmitted from cooker 600 to server device 200. In the present embodiment, an example in which association is performed between cooker 600B and consumption amount detection unit 10B will be described. In the present embodiment, differences from the third embodiment will be mainly described.

[0094] FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the eating amount detection unit 10B and the cooking appliance 600B according to the fourth embodiment. The eating amount detection unit 10B and the cooking appliance 600B detect their proximity to each other by short-distance wireless communication. In this embodiment, the eating amount detection unit 10B includes an IC tag 23 such as an RFID tag, and the cooking appliance 600B includes a proximity detection unit 608. The cooking appliance 600B may include an IC tag, and the eating amount detection unit 10B may include a proximity detection unit. The IC tag 23 can output a signal including information identifying the eating amount detection unit 10B. The proximity detection unit 608 detects that the IC tag 23 has come close, and obtains information identifying the eating amount detection unit 10B from the IC tag 23. The cooking appliance 600B and the eating amount detection unit 10B may communicate with each other by wireless LAN or NFC (Near Field Communication).

[0095] In this configuration, when a user brings the eating amount detection unit 10B integrated with the empty container 1 close to the cooking appliance 600B during a meal, the cooking appliance 600B recognizes the eating amount detection unit 10B based on information from the IC tag 23 of the eating amount detection unit 10B. The cooking appliance 600B then transmits a proximity signal to the server device 200, including information identifying the cooking appliance 600B and the eating amount detection unit 10B that are in close proximity.

[0096] Server device 200, which has received the proximity signal, searches through cooked ingredient-cooking ingredient management information 209 (see FIG. 15) using cooking appliance 600B included in the proximity signal as a key, and acquires cooked ingredient information 209b associated with cooking appliance 600B. Server device 200 then acquires weight information from consumption amount detection unit 10B as described in other embodiments, and outputs the acquired weight information to terminal device 300 in association with cooked ingredient information 209b associated with cooking appliance 600B.

[0097] In this manner, in the present embodiment, the intake amount detection unit 10B and the cooking appliance 600 are dynamically associated with each other. Therefore, the user only needs to take a typical mealtime action of bringing the cooking appliance 600B close to the intake amount detection unit 10B integrated with the empty container 1 to serve the food, and does not need to perform any special operation for association. This improves the user's convenience in managing the intake amount.

[0098] Various aspects of the present disclosure are summarized below as appendices.

[0099] (Appendix 1) A weight sensor; A first elastic body made of an elastically deformable material and fitted into a recess provided in the container, or into which a protrusion provided in the container is fitted; a second elastic body arranged below the first elastic body, made of an elastically deformable material, and having the weight sensor embedded therein; a first hard member that is made of a material having a higher hardness than the first elastic body and the second elastic body and is provided between the first elastic body and the second elastic body in the up-down direction; a second hard member that is made of a material having a higher hardness than the first elastic body and the second elastic body and that sandwiches the second elastic body between the first hard member and the second hard member; a communication unit that transmits weight information including information about the weight measured by the weight sensor to an external device. Eating quantity detection unit. (Appendix 2) A control unit is provided for detecting the weight of the food or drink based on the weight of the empty container and the weight of the container containing the food or drink. Attachment 1 describes an intake detection unit. (Appendix 3) a reader for reading information on the weight of the empty container from an IC tag attached to the container; The communication unit transmits the weight information, which includes the weight of the container containing the food or drink measured by the weight sensor and the weight of the empty container read by the reading device, to an external device. Attachment 1 describes an intake detection unit. (Appendix 4) a reader for reading information on the weight of the empty container from an IC tag attached to the container; and a control unit that detects the weight of the food or drink based on the weight of the container containing the food or drink and the weight of the empty container read by the reading device. Attachment 1 describes an intake detection unit. (Appendix 5) a power supply unit for supplying power to the weight sensor and the communication unit, The power supply unit and the communication unit are embedded in the second elastic body. An intake amount detection unit according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 4. (Appendix 6) The power supply unit includes: A storage battery, The battery includes a receiving coil that receives power from an external power supply coil in a non-contact manner and supplies the power to the storage battery. Attachment 5 describes an eating amount detection unit. (Appendix 7) The power supply unit includes: a power supply port to which a power cable connected to a commercial power source is connected; a storage battery that is charged via the power cable connected to the power supply port, A watertight cover is attached to the power supply port. Attachment 5 describes an eating amount detection unit. (Appendix 8) The device includes a light-emitting unit whose light-emitting pattern is controlled based on information input from outside that identifies a user who uses the container. An intake amount detection unit according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 7. (Appendix 9) An operation input unit for causing the weight sensor to start measuring the weight is provided. An intake amount detection unit according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 8. (Appendix 10) The operation input unit includes: a first operation input unit that causes the weight sensor to start measuring the weight of the empty container; and a second operation input unit for causing the weight sensor to start measuring the weight of the container containing food or drink. 10. The consumption detection unit according to claim 9. (Appendix 11) An eating amount detection unit according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 10, An eating amount management unit is provided, The eating amount management unit includes: a weight acquisition unit that acquires the weight information from the eating amount detection unit; a cooking information acquisition unit that acquires cooking information including at least one of types of ingredients used in the food and drink, amounts of the ingredients, and a cooking method of the food and drink; and an intake output unit that outputs the acquired weight information and the cooked food information in association with each other. Food intake management system. (Appendix 12) A cooker for cooking the food and drink is provided, The cooking device is a signal output unit that outputs a first signal to the eating amount management unit, the first signal indicating that the cooked food or drink can be taken out; The eating amount management unit includes: a storage unit that stores food and cooking appliance management information that associates the cooking item information with the cooking appliance; When the first signal is acquired, the cooking information associated with the cooking appliance that is the output source of the first signal is acquired from the food and cooking appliance management information; The intake amount output unit outputs the weight information acquired after acquiring the first signal in association with the cooked food information. Attachment 11. An intake management system as described in claim 11. (Appendix 13) The cooking device is A storage section for storing the food and drink; an opening / closing unit that opens and closes the storage unit, The signal output unit outputs the first signal when the opening / closing unit is opened. Attachment 12. An intake management system as described in claim 12. (Appendix 14) A cooker for cooking the food and drink is provided, The cooking device is One of the cooking appliance and the eating amount detection unit includes a proximity detection unit that detects the proximity of the other, The cooking appliance or the eating amount detection unit having the proximity detector transmits a proximity signal including information for identifying the cooking appliance and the eating amount detection unit that are in proximity to the eating amount management unit, The eating amount management unit includes: a storage unit that stores food and cooking appliance management information that associates the cooking item information with the cooking appliance; When the proximity signal is acquired, the cooking information associated with the cooking appliance included in the proximity signal is acquired from the food and cooking appliance management information; The eating amount output unit is The weight information acquired after acquiring the proximity signal is output in association with the cooking information. Attachment 11. An intake management system as described in claim 11. (Appendix 15) The eating amount management unit includes: a storage unit that stores consumption management information that associates the cooking information, a cooking device that cooks the food and drink, and the consumption detection unit; The intake output unit outputs the food information associated with the intake detection unit that transmitted the weight information and the acquired weight information in association with each other. Attachment 11. An intake management system as described in claim 11. (Appendix 16) The cooking device is a cooking information output unit that outputs the cooking information to the eating amount management unit; The food intake management system according to any one of Supplementary Note 12 to Supplementary Note 15. (Appendix 17) The eating amount detection unit includes: A biological information detection unit that detects biological information; a storage unit that stores correspondence information in which the biometric information and user identification information are associated with each other; The communication unit transmits the user identification information associated with the detected biological information to the intake amount management unit together with the weight information, The eating amount output unit is The acquired weight information and the user specific information are output in association with each other. The food intake management system according to any one of Supplementary Note 11 to Supplementary Note 16. [Explanation of symbols]

[0100] 1 container, 1A container, 1B container, 1C container, 2 convex portion, 3 concave portion, 4 IC tag, 10 eating amount detection unit, 10B eating amount detection unit, 11 first elastic body, 12 base portion, 13 operation input portion, 14 light emitting portion, 15 weight sensor, 16 control portion, 17 communication portion, 18 power supply portion, 19 memory portion, 20 power switch, 21 reading device, 22 biometric information detection portion, 23 IC tag, 30 hardness, 50 hardness, 100 eating amount management system, 100A eating amount management system, 121 first hard member, 122 second hard member, 123 second elastic body, 200 server device, 201 weight acquisition portion, 202 cooking information acquisition portion, 203 eating amount management portion, 204 eating amount output portion, 205 memory portion, 206 Weight information, 207 cooked food information, 208 eating amount management information, 208a date and time information, 208b weight information, 208c cooked food information, 208d user information, 208e eating amount detection unit information, 209 cooker management information, 209a cooker information, 209b cooked food information, 300 terminal device, 301 display unit, 400 network, 500 food and drink group, 600 cooker, 600B cooker, 601 storage unit, 602 opening / closing unit, 603 housing, 604 heating unit, 605 control unit, 606 signal output unit, 607 operation unit, 608 proximity detection unit, B1 button, B2 button, E1 element, E2 element, F1 element, F2 element, F3 element, G1 eating amount management screen.

Claims

1. A weight sensor; A first elastic body is made of an elastically deformable material and is fitted into a recess provided on the container, or a protrusion provided on the container is fitted into the first elastic body; a second elastic body arranged below the first elastic body, made of an elastically deformable material, and having the weight sensor embedded therein; a first hard member that is made of a material having a higher hardness than the first elastic body and the second elastic body and is provided between the first elastic body and the second elastic body in the up-down direction; a second hard member that is made of a material having a higher hardness than the first elastic body and the second elastic body and that sandwiches the second elastic body between the first hard member and the second hard member; a communication unit that transmits weight information including information about the weight measured by the weight sensor to an external device. Eating quantity detection unit.

2. A control unit is provided for detecting the weight of the food or drink based on the weight of the empty container and the weight of the container containing the food or drink.

2. The intake amount detection unit according to claim 1.

3. a reader for reading information on the weight of the empty container from an IC tag attached to the container; The communication unit transmits the weight information, which includes the weight of the container containing the food or drink measured by the weight sensor and the weight of the empty container read by the reading device, to an external device.

2. The intake amount detection unit according to claim 1.

4. a reader for reading information on the weight of the empty container from an IC tag attached to the container; A control unit is provided for detecting the weight of the food or drink based on the weight of the container containing the food or drink and the weight of the empty container read by the reading device.

2. The intake amount detection unit according to claim 1.

5. a power supply unit for supplying power to the weight sensor and the communication unit, The power supply unit and the communication unit are embedded in the second elastic body. The eating amount detection unit according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. The power supply unit includes: A storage battery, The battery includes a receiving coil that receives power from an external power supply coil in a non-contact manner and supplies the power to the storage battery.

6. The intake amount detection unit according to claim 5.

7. The power supply unit includes: a power supply port to which a power cable connected to a commercial power source is connected; a storage battery that is charged via the power cable connected to the power supply port, A watertight cover is attached to the power supply port.

6. The intake amount detection unit according to claim 5.

8. The device includes a light-emitting unit whose light-emitting pattern is controlled based on information input from outside that identifies a user who uses the container. The eating amount detection unit according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

9. An operation input unit for causing the weight sensor to start measuring the weight is provided. The eating amount detection unit according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

10. The operation input unit includes: an operation input unit that causes the weight sensor to start measuring the weight of the empty container; and an operation input unit that causes the weight sensor to start measuring the weight of the container containing food or drink. The intake amount detection unit according to claim 9.

11. The eating amount detection unit according to any one of claims 1 to 4, An eating amount management unit is provided, The eating amount management unit includes: a weight acquisition unit that acquires the weight information from the eating amount detection unit; a cooking information acquisition unit that acquires cooking information including at least one of types of ingredients used in the food and drink, amounts of the ingredients, and a cooking method of the food and drink; and an intake output unit that outputs the acquired weight information and the cooked food information in association with each other. Food intake management system.

12. A cooker for cooking the food and drink is provided, The cooking device is a signal output unit that outputs a first signal to the eating amount management unit, the first signal indicating that the cooked food or drink can be taken out; The eating amount management unit includes: a storage unit that stores food and cooking appliance management information that associates the cooking item information with the cooking appliance; When the first signal is acquired, the cooking information associated with the cooking appliance that is the output source of the first signal is acquired from the food and cooking appliance management information; The intake amount output unit outputs the weight information acquired after acquiring the first signal in association with the cooked food information. The food intake management system according to claim 11.

13. The cooking device is A storage section for storing the food and drink; an opening / closing unit that opens and closes the storage unit, The signal output unit outputs the first signal when the opening / closing unit is opened. The food intake management system according to claim 12.

14. A cooker for cooking the food and drink is provided, The cooking device is One of the cooking appliance and the eating amount detection unit includes a proximity detection unit that detects the proximity of the other, The cooking appliance or the eating amount detection unit having the proximity detector transmits a proximity signal including information for identifying the cooking appliance and the eating amount detection unit that are in proximity to the eating amount management unit, The eating amount management unit includes: a storage unit that stores food and cooking appliance management information that associates the cooking item information with the cooking appliance; When the proximity signal is acquired, the cooking information associated with the cooking appliance included in the proximity signal is acquired from the food and cooking appliance management information; The eating amount output unit is The weight information acquired after acquiring the proximity signal is output in association with the cooking information. The food intake management system according to claim 11.

15. The eating amount management unit includes: a storage unit that stores consumption management information that associates the cooking information, a cooking device that cooks the food and drink, and the consumption detection unit; The intake output unit outputs the food information associated with the intake detection unit that transmitted the weight information and the acquired weight information in association with each other. The food intake management system according to claim 11.

16. The cooking device is a cooking information output unit that outputs the cooking information to the eating amount management unit; The food intake management system according to claim 12.

17. The eating amount detection unit includes: A biological information detection unit that detects biological information; a storage unit that stores correspondence information in which the biometric information and user identification information are associated with each other; The communication unit transmits the user identification information associated with the detected biological information to the intake amount management unit together with the weight information, The eating amount output unit is The acquired weight information and the user specific information are output in association with each other. The food intake management system according to claim 11.

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