Rice cooker

Abstract

To provide a rice cooker for preventing a situation where rice cooking intended by a user is not performed.SOLUTION: A rice cooker includes: a housing; a pot; a rice container; a water container to be removably attached to a predetermined water container position in the rice cooker; a rice supply part for supplying rice inside the rice container into the pot; a water supply part for supplying water inside the water container into the pot; a heating part for heating the pot; a control part; a communication part; and a water container sensor. The control part performs a rice cooking operation including supplying rice and water into the pot so as to perform heating. The communication part wirelessly receives an operation instruction signal including a rice cooking start instruction and rice cooking stop instruction from a terminal. The control part does not receive the rice cooking start instruction only unless a predetermined rice cooking start condition is satisfied after stopping the rice cooking operation in response to the received stop instruction. The control part notifies the terminal when the water container sensor detects that the water container is not attached to the water container position in a rice cooking reservation state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 15

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a rice cooker. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art A known conventional rice cooker is a fully automatic rice cooker that includes a storage section for storing rice and a rice cooking section, and integrates a series of processes for storing rice and cooking rice (see Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 5-220047 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Conventional rice cookers are equipped with a mechanism for transferring rice from the storage section to the rice cooking section. Conventional rice cookers may also be equipped with a mechanism for supplying water to the rice cooking section. This allows rice and water to be supplied to the rice cooking section without visually inspecting the inside of the rice cooking section. In such rice cookers, even if the rice cooking or warming operation is stopped during or after cooking and rice remains in the rice cooking section, rice and water may be supplied to the rice cooking section for the next cooking step, contrary to the user's intention, and further cooking may begin. The rice cooked in this way may have a worse taste than rice cooked when rice and water are supplied to an empty rice cooking section.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a rice cooker that can prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A rice cooker according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a housing and A pot and A rice container for storing rice; A water container for storing water; A rice feeding unit that supplies rice in the rice container to the pot; A water supply unit that supplies water from the water container to the pot; A heating unit for heating the pan; A control unit controls the rice sending unit, the water sending unit, and the heating unit to perform a rice cooking operation including supplying rice and water to the pot and heating the rice and water; A communication unit that wirelessly receives an operation instruction signal including a rice cooking start instruction for instructing the start of the rice cooking operation and a stop instruction for instructing the stop of the rice cooking operation from a terminal, The water container is detachably attached to a predetermined water container position of the rice cooker, The rice cooker further includes a water container sensor that detects whether the water container is attached to the water container position, After the control unit stops the rice cooking operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit, the control unit does not accept the rice cooking start instruction from the terminal via the communication unit unless a predetermined rice cooking start condition is satisfied, When the control unit is in a rice cooking reservation state in which the rice cooking operation starts at a rice cooking start time according to a set time, the water container sensor detects that the water container is not attached to the water container position, and notifies the terminal. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the rice cooker of the present disclosure, it is possible to prevent situations where rice is not cooked as intended by the user. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of a rice cooker according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view showing the rice cooker of FIG. 1 with the lid in an open state. [Diagram 3] 2 is a perspective view of the rice cooker of FIG. 1 with the lid open and the water container removed. FIG. [Figure 4]2 is a cross-sectional view of the rice cooker shown in FIG. 1 along line A1-A1. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the rice cooker of FIG. 1 with the lid, the water container, and the top wall of the rice container removed. [Figure 6] 2 is a plan view of the rice cooker of FIG. 1, showing a state in which the upper wall of the lid and the operation board have been removed. FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the rice cooker in FIG. 1 with the bottom wall of the housing removed. [Figure 8] 2 is a cross-sectional view of the rice cooker shown in FIG. 1 along line A2-A2. [Figure 9] 9 is a partial enlarged view of the area surrounded by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 8. [Figure 10] FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration example of the rice washing device in FIG. 4. [Figure 11] 8 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a control unit in FIG. 7. [Figure 12] 2 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a remote control system for the rice cooker in FIG. 1. [Figure 13] 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the overall flow of a rice cooking operation performed by the rice cooker of FIG. 1. [Figure 14] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a stop operation performed by the rice cooker of FIG. 1. [Figure 15] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a rice cooking reservation operation by the rice cooker of FIG. 1. [Figure 16] 16 is a flow chart showing a modified example of the rice cooking reservation operation of FIG. 15. [Figure 17] FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram showing an example of exclusive control of the rice cooker in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] A rice cooker according to one aspect of the present invention includes a housing and A pot and A rice container for storing rice; A water container for storing water; A rice feeding unit that supplies rice in the rice container to the pot; A water supply unit that supplies water from the water container to the pot; A heating unit for heating the pan; A control unit that controls the rice sending unit, the water sending unit, and the heating unit to perform a rice cooking operation including supplying rice and water into the pot and heating the rice and water, and a heat keeping operation that controls the heating unit to keep the pot warm; A communication unit that wirelessly receives an operation instruction signal including a rice cooking start instruction for instructing the start of the rice cooking operation and a stop instruction for instructing the stop of the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation from a terminal, After the control unit stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit, the control unit will not accept the rice cooking start instruction from the terminal via the communication unit unless a predetermined rice cooking start condition is satisfied.

[0010] With this configuration, it is possible to prevent situations where rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when the rice cooking or warming operation is stopped while there is rice remaining in the pot, and then remote control is performed from the terminal, causing more rice and water to be added on top of the rice remaining in the pot.

[0011] The rice cooker may further include an operation unit that inputs the rice cooking start instruction to the control unit. After the rice cooking operation or the warming operation is stopped in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit, the control unit will not accept the rice cooking start instruction from the operation unit unless the rice cooking start condition is satisfied.

[0012] This configuration makes it possible to prevent a person other than the terminal operator, such as a child, from operating the operation unit of the rice cooker to give an instruction to start cooking rice after the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation has been stopped by remote control from the terminal. This makes it possible to prevent situations where rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice remaining in the pot.

[0013] The rice cooker may further include a lid that freely opens and closes the opening of the pot, and an opening / closing sensor that detects the opening and closing of the lid. In this case, when the control unit stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit and the opening / closing sensor detects that the lid has been opened and then closed, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied and the control unit becomes able to accept the rice cooking start instruction.

[0014] If the lid is opened and then closed, it is assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot have been removed by the person who opened the lid. Therefore, this configuration can prevent situations where rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice remaining in the pot.

[0015] The rice cooker may further include a lid that is detachably attached to the housing and that, when attached to the housing, freely opens and closes the opening of the pot, and a lid sensor that detects whether the lid is attached to the housing. In this case, when the control unit stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit and the lid sensor detects that the lid has changed from a state in which it is not attached to the housing to a state in which it is attached, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied and the control unit becomes able to accept the rice cooking start instruction.

[0016] When the lid body goes from not being attached to the housing to being attached, it is assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot have been removed by the person who removed the lid body from the housing or attached it to the housing. Therefore, this configuration can prevent situations where rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water is added on top of the rice remaining in the pot.

[0017] The pot may be removably housed in the housing. The rice cooker may further include a pot sensor that detects that the pot is housed in the housing and that the pot is removed from the housing. In this case, when the control unit stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit and the pot sensor detects that the pot is housed in the housing after being removed from the housing, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied and the control unit becomes able to accept the rice cooking start instruction.

[0018] When the pot is removed from the housing and then placed back into the housing, it is assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot have been removed by the user. Therefore, this configuration can prevent situations in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot.

[0019] The rice cooker may further include a permission switch that, when turned on, permits the control unit to accept a rice cooking start instruction from the terminal. In this case, when the permission switch is in the on state after the control unit stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied and the control unit can accept the rice cooking start instruction.

[0020] When the user presses the permission switch to turn it on, it is assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot have been removed by the user. Therefore, this configuration can prevent situations where rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot.

[0021] The rice cooker may further include a temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the pot. In this case, when the control unit stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit and the temperature sensor detects that the temperature of the pot is equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold value after the rice cooking operation is completed, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied and the control unit is able to accept the rice cooking start instruction.

[0022] When the temperature of the pot is equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold, it is assumed that the keep-warm operation is completed or interrupted, and the rice and water remaining in the pot are removed by the user. Therefore, this configuration can prevent situations in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot.

[0023] After the control unit stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication unit, when a predetermined time has elapsed from the time the control unit received the stop instruction, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied and the control unit becomes capable of accepting the rice cooking start instruction.

[0024] If a certain amount of time has passed since the cancellation command was received, it is expected that the user will have removed the rice and water remaining in the pot. Therefore, this configuration can prevent situations in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water is added on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot.

[0025] After starting the rice cooking operation, the control unit may not accept the stop instruction from the terminal via the communication unit unless a predetermined stop condition is satisfied.

[0026] According to this configuration, by not accepting a remote instruction to stop cooking from the terminal unless the stop condition is met, it is possible to prevent the rice cooking operation from being stopped inadvertently in the middle of the rice cooking operation. Furthermore, by not accepting a remote instruction to stop cooking from the terminal unless the stop condition is met, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice cooking is not performed as intended by the user, such as when an instruction to start cooking is given after the rice cooking operation is stopped and more rice and water are added on top of the rice remaining in the pot.

[0027] After the control unit starts the rice cooking operation, when the rice cooking operation is completed, the cancellation condition may be satisfied and the control unit may be capable of receiving the cancellation instruction from the terminal via the communication unit.

[0028] According to this configuration, the control unit does not accept a remote instruction to stop cooking from the terminal unless the cooking operation is completed, thereby preventing the cooking operation from being inadvertently stopped in the middle of the cooking operation.

[0029] The control unit may notify the terminal when an abnormality is detected in a rice cooking reservation state in which the rice cooking operation is to be started at a rice cooking start time according to a set time.

[0030] With this configuration, the user can be notified of the abnormality and have an opportunity to resolve the abnormality. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked in an abnormal state and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0031] When the control unit has made the notification, the control unit may start the rice cooking operation at the rice cooking start time only if it receives a reservation continuation instruction to continue the rice cooking reservation state from the terminal before the rice cooking start time.

[0032] With this configuration, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked in an abnormal state and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0033] The rice cooker may further include a lid that can be opened and closed freely to cover the opening of the pot, and an opening / closing sensor that detects the opening and closing of the lid, and when the opening / closing sensor detects that the lid is open, the control unit may detect the abnormality and notify the terminal.

[0034] If the lid is open, rice cannot be cooked properly; however, with this configuration, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked with the lid open and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0035] The water container may be detachably attached to a predetermined water container position of the rice cooker, and the rice cooker may further include a water container sensor that detects whether the water container is attached to the water container position. When the water container sensor detects that the water container is not attached to the water container position in the rice cooking reservation state, the control unit may detect the abnormality and notify the terminal.

[0036] If the water container is not attached to the water container position, the rice cooker cannot supply water to the pot and cannot cook rice normally. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked without the water container attached to the water container position and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0037] The rice container may be detachably attached to a predetermined rice container position of the rice cooker, and the rice cooker may further include a rice container sensor that detects whether the rice container is attached to the rice container position. When the rice container sensor detects that the rice container is not attached to the rice container position in the rice cooking reservation state, the control unit may detect the abnormality and notify the terminal.

[0038] If the rice container is not attached to the rice container position, the rice cooker cannot supply rice into the pot and cannot cook rice normally. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked without the rice container attached to the rice container position and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0039] The rice cooker may further include a lid that is detachably attached to the housing and that, when attached to the housing, covers the opening of the pot in an openable and closable manner, and a lid sensor that detects whether the lid is attached to the housing. When the lid sensor detects that the lid is not attached to the housing in the rice cooking reservation state, the control unit may detect the abnormality and notify the terminal.

[0040] If the lid body is not attached to the housing, rice cannot be cooked properly; however, with this configuration, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked without the lid body being attached to the housing, and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0041] The terminal may include a first terminal and a second terminal. After receiving the rice cooking start instruction from the first terminal via the communication unit, the control unit may not receive the operation instruction signal from the second terminal via the communication unit until the rice cooking operation is completed.

[0042] According to this configuration, it is possible to prevent the rice cooking settings made by the user of the first terminal who started cooking rice from being changed by a person using the second terminal.

[0043] The terminal may include a first terminal and a second terminal. After receiving a setting change instruction to change a setting related to the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation from the first terminal via the communication unit, the control unit may not receive the rice cooking start instruction and the setting change instruction from the second terminal via the communication unit until the rice cooking operation is completed.

[0044] This configuration prevents a situation in which a user of a second terminal issues a command to start cooking rice even though the user of a first terminal has already started cooking rice, causing more rice and water to be added on top of the rice remaining in the pot of the rice cooker.

[0045] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate. However, more detailed description than necessary may be omitted. For example, detailed description of already well-known matters or duplicate description of substantially the same configuration may be omitted. This is to avoid the following description becoming unnecessarily redundant and to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0046] It should be noted that the accompanying drawings and the following description are provided to enable those skilled in the art to fully understand the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the subject matter described in the claims.

[0047] For convenience of explanation, some of the drawings show an X-axis, a Y-axis, and a Z-axis that are perpendicular to each other. In this specification, the X-axis direction is also called the horizontal direction or width direction, the Y-axis direction is also called the front-rear direction or depth direction, the positive direction of the Z-axis is also called the upward direction, and the negative direction of the Z-axis is also called the downward direction. In addition, in this specification, terms indicating directions such as "upper", "lower", "front", and "rear" are used assuming a state during normal use. However, these terms are not intended to limit the state of use of the rice cooker of the present invention.

[0048] [composition] The overall configuration of a rice cooker according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a rice cooker 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the rice cooker 100 of Fig. 1 with the lid 2 in an open state. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the rice cooker 100 of Fig. 1 with the lid 2 in an open state and with the water container 3 removed. The rice cooker 100 is a so-called fully automatic rice cooker that can automatically supply rice and water to an empty pot 5 for cooking.

[0049] 1, the rice cooker 100 includes a housing 1, a lid 2 that covers the upper part of the housing 1, a water container 3, and a rice container 4. The water container 3 and the rice container 4 have a rectangular parallelepiped or approximately rectangular parallelepiped shape, and are provided along one side surface 1a of the housing 1.

[0050] The housing 1 comprises a main body 11 having a rectangular or approximately rectangular parallelepiped shape with sides along the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis, and a rectangular or approximately rectangular base 12 on which the water container 3 and the rice container 4 are placed. The main body 11 and the base 12 have the same depth, which is the length in the front-to-rear direction (Y direction), and are connected so that one side of each is spatially connected. The housing 1, main body 11, and base 12 each have a rectangular or approximately rectangular shape in a plan view.

[0051] The base 12 is provided so as to extend laterally (in the -X direction, leftward in FIG. 2) from a lower portion of one side surface 11a of the main body 11. The height, which is the length in the Z direction, of the base 12 is set lower than the height of the main body 11. As a result, the one side surface 11a of the main body 11 is exposed to the outside. In this embodiment, the one side surface 11a of the main body 11 corresponds to the one side surface 1a of the housing 1.

[0052] As shown in Figures 2 to 4, main body 11 has a pot housing section 11b that houses pot 5. A rotation axis TA extending laterally is provided at the upper rear portion of main body 11. Lid 2 is attached to rotation axis TA so as to be able to rotate freely. Lid 2 is configured to cover opening 5a of pot 5 in an openable and closable manner by rotating about rotation axis TA. In this embodiment, lid 2 has a rectangular parallelepiped or approximately rectangular parallelepiped shape.

[0053] The cover 2 may be detachably attached to the housing 1. For example, the cover 2 may be detachably attached to the rotation axis TA and may be removable from the rotation axis TA. Alternatively, the rotation axis TA may be detachably attached to the main body 11, and the cover 2 attached to the rotation axis TA may be removable from the main body 11 when the rotation axis TA is removed.

[0054] 1, in a closed state in which the lid 2 covers the opening 5a of the pot 5, the depth of the lid 2 matches the depth of the main body 11. In a closed state of the lid 2, the sum of the height of the main body 11 of the housing 1 and the height of the lid 2 matches the sum of the height of the base 12 of the housing 1 and the height of the water container 3 or rice container 4. In addition, in a closed state of the lid 2, the sum of the width of the main body 11 of the housing 1 and the width of the base 12 matches the sum of the width of the lid 2 and the width of the water container 3 or rice container 4. That is, in a closed state of the lid 2, the rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment has a rectangular parallelepiped or approximately rectangular parallelepiped shape.

[0055] The water container 3 is a container that contains water. The rice container 4 is a container that contains rice. The water container 3 and the rice container 4 are arranged in series from the front side to the rear side of the rice cooker 100. As shown in FIG. 3, at least one of the water container 3 and the rice container 4 is detachable. In this embodiment, the water container 3 is arranged closer to the front of the rice cooker 100 than the rice container 4. In this embodiment, the capacity of the water container 3 is 1.0 to 1.5 times the capacity of the rice container 4.

[0056] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the rice cooker 100 of FIG. 1 taken along the line A1-A1. The cross-sectional view of the line A1-A1 is a cross-sectional view of a section passing through the line A1-A1 and parallel to the YZ plane, viewed in the direction of the arrow of the line A1-A1. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the rice cooker 100 of FIG. 1, showing a state in which the lid body 2, the water container 3, and the upper wall of the rice container 4 are removed. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the rice cooker 100 of FIG. 1, showing a state in which the upper wall of the lid body 2 and the operation board are removed. FIG. 7 is a bottom view of the rice cooker 100 of FIG. 1, showing a state in which the bottom wall of the housing 1 is removed. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the rice cooker 100 of FIG. 1 taken along the line A2-A2. FIG. 9 is a partial enlarged view of the area surrounded by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 8.

[0057] As shown in Figs. 4 to 6, a rice washing device 6 is disposed in the lid 2. The rice washing device 6 uses the water in the water container 3 to wash the rice supplied from the rice container 4 into the rice washing device 6. The rice washing device 6 is provided so as to be located above the opening 5a of the pot 5 when the lid 2 is in a closed state. In this embodiment, the rice washing device 6 is provided with an on-off valve 64 (see Fig. 10) at a position corresponding to the opening 5a of the pot 5. The rice washed by the rice washing device 6 falls into the pot 5 when the on-off valve is opened. The water used for washing the rice in the rice washing device 6 is stored in a drain tank 7 housed below the main body 11 of the housing 1. A detailed configuration of the rice washing device 6 will be described later.

[0058] As shown in Figs. 5 to 7, the rice washing device 6 and the drain tank 7 are connected via a drain pipe 71. The drain pipe 71 extends through a rotating shaft housing portion TA1 that houses the rotating shaft TA. As shown in Fig. 7, the drain pipe 71 is provided with a drain pump 72. In this embodiment, the drain pump 72 is attached so as to connect the two drain pipes 71. When the drain pump 72 is driven, the water used for washing the rice in the rice washing device 6 is stored in the drain tank 7.

[0059] The drainage tank 7 is provided so that a portion of it is exposed from a side surface of the housing 1 that is different from the side surface 1a of the housing 1. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the drainage tank 7 is provided so that a portion of it is exposed from the front surface 11c of the main body 11. The drainage tank 7 is also provided so as to be detachable. In this embodiment, the drainage tank 7 is configured as a drawer type, and can be removed from the main body 11 by pulling it forward as shown in FIG. 3.

[0060] As shown in Figs. 4 to 6 and 8 to 9, the rice washing device 6 and the water container 3 are connected by a lid-side water pipe 81 and a container-side water pipe 82. The lid-side water pipe 81 is a pipe that passes through the inside of the lid 2 to communicate the outside of the lid 2 with the inside of the pot 5. In this embodiment, the lid-side water pipe 81 is in communication with the inside of the pot 5 via the rice washing device 6. The container-side water pipe 82 is a pipe that communicates the inside of the water container 3 with the outside of the water container 3. In this embodiment, the container-side water pipe 82 is detachably attached to the water container 3. In this embodiment, the rice washing device 6, the lid-side water pipe 81, and the container-side water pipe 82 form a water passage that supplies water from the water container 3 to the pot 5.

[0061] The lid-side water supply pipe 81 is provided with a water supply pump 83, which is an example of the water supply unit of the present disclosure, and a drain pump 84 for the water supply pipe. The water supply pump 83 is an example of a first pump that sends a fluid (including water and gas) in only one direction from the water container 3 side to the pot 5 side. The water supply pump 83 is, for example, a volumetric pump such as a diaphragm pump. In this embodiment, the water supply pump 83 is attached so as to connect the two lid-side water supply pipes 81. The drain pump 84 is an example of a second pump that is disposed closer to the water container 3 than the water supply pump 83 and sends gas (for example, air) into the lid-side water supply pipe 81. In this embodiment, the drain pump 84 is connected to a branch pipe branched off from the lid-side water supply pipe 81.

[0062] As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, one end 81a of the lid-side water supply pipe 81 is provided on a surface facing the step portion 31, which is a part of the water container 3. In this embodiment, one end 81a of the lid-side water supply pipe 81 is exposed at a position facing the step portion 31. The step portion 31 of the water container 3 is a portion that protrudes toward one side surface 11a of the main body 11 and has a shorter length in the Z direction than the upper surface of the water container 3, thereby generating a step. The lid 2 is provided so as to cover the step portion 31 of the water container 3 when the lid 2 is in the closed state. In other words, the width of the lid 2 is set to be longer than the width of the main body 11. In this embodiment, the one end 81a of the lid-side water supply pipe 81 is disposed on the side of the rotation tip portion 2a of the lid 2, which is away from the rotation axis TA.

[0063] One end 82a of the container-side water pipe 82 is provided at the step portion 31 of the water container 3. In this embodiment, like one end 81a of the lid-side water pipe 81, one end 82a of the container-side water pipe 82 is located on the side of the pivot tip 2a of the lid 2 away from the pivot axis TA. When the lid 2 is in a closed state covering the opening 5a of the pot 5, the lid-side water pipe 81 and the container-side water pipe 82 are connected to each other so as to be fluidly connected to each other. When the lid 2 rotates to open the opening 5a of the pot 5, the connection between the lid-side water pipe 81 and the container-side water pipe 82 is released.

[0064] In this embodiment, one end 81a of the lid-side water supply pipe 81 is attached around the cylindrical lid-side connection part 2b that protrudes inward in the thickness direction of the lid 2, as shown in Figures 8 and 9. One end 82a of the container-side water supply pipe 82 is provided so as to protrude toward the lid-side connection part 2b, and a cylindrical gasket 31a is attached around it. When the lid 2 rotates to cover the opening 5a of the pot 5, one end 82a of the container-side water supply pipe 82 and one end 81a of the lid-side water supply pipe 81 are connected so as to be fluidly connected to each other, as shown in Figures 8 and 9.

[0065] The rice washing device 6 and the rice container 4 are connected via a rice sending pipe 91, as shown in Figs. 4 to 8. In this embodiment, the rice sending pipe 91 extends through a rotating shaft housing portion TA1 that houses the rotating shaft TA. As shown in Figs. 4, 7 and 8, a rice sending fan 92 is provided at one end 91a of the rice sending pipe 91. When the rice sending fan 92 is driven, the rice in the rice sending pipe 91 is sent to the rice washing device 6. In this embodiment, the rice washing device 6 and the rice sending pipe 91 form a rice sending path that supplies the rice in the rice container 4 to the pot 5.

[0066] As shown in Figures 7 and 8, a rice sending device 93, which is an example of a rice sending section of the present disclosure, is attached to the rice container 4. The bottom of the rice container 4 is formed to have a tapered cross section that protrudes downward. The rice sending device 93 is connected to the bottom of the rice container 4 and is provided to extend laterally. The rice sending device 93 communicates with a rice sending pipe 91. The rice sending device 93 is configured to take in rice in the rice container 4 and send it out to the rice sending pipe 91.

[0067] 2 and 3, the rice container 4 has a step 41 at a position facing a part of the lid 2. The step 41 of the rice container 4 protrudes toward one side surface 11a of the main body 11 and is shorter in length in the Z direction than the top surface of the rice container 4, thereby creating a step. When the water container 3 and the rice container 4 are placed on the base 12, the step 41 of the rice container 4 is configured to be flush with the step 31 of the water container 3. The lid 2 is configured to cover the step 31 of the water container 3 and the step 41 of the rice container 4 when the lid 2 is in the closed state.

[0068] As shown in FIG. 1, the upper surface of the lid body 2 is provided with a display operation unit 21 that displays various types of rice cooking information such as the amount of rice cooked and the rice cooking course (white rice course, brown rice course, etc.) and allows the user to select specific rice cooking information from the various types of rice cooking information. The display operation unit 21 includes a display 21A that displays various types of rice cooking information, and a plurality of input buttons 21B for inputting operation instructions for selecting the amount of rice cooked and the rice cooking course as well as for executing various processes. The input buttons 21B are an example of the "operation unit" of the present disclosure. Such operation instructions include, for example, a rice cooking start instruction that instructs the start of a series of rice cooking operations, a rice cooking reservation instruction for starting or completing rice cooking at a set time, a stop instruction that instructs the user to stop cooking or keeping warm, and a setting change instruction. The setting change instruction is configured to be able to change settings related to the rice cooking operation or the keeping warm operation, such as the rice cooking course, the keeping warm temperature, the keeping warm time, and the cooking completion time when the rice cooking is reserved.

[0069] The display 21A includes, for example, a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display. The user can input operation instructions using a plurality of input buttons 21B while referring to various rice cooking information displayed on the display 21A.

[0070] As shown in Fig. 1, the rice container 4 is provided with a selection unit 42 for selecting whether or not to set the rice cooking operation to the no-rinse rice mode. For example, when the user places no-rinse rice in the rice container 4, the user operates the selection unit 42 to set the rice cooking mode to the no-rinse rice mode. In this embodiment, the selection unit 42 is a button provided on the top surface of the rice container 4. When the no-rinse rice mode is selected by the selection unit 42 or the terminal 200, the control unit 15 is configured not to execute the rice washing process, the draining process, and the water pouring process (see Fig. 13).

[0071] 1, a permission switch 22 that permits the rice cooker 100 to accept a remote operation instruction, which will be described later, is further provided on the top surface of the lid body 2. For example, when the permission switch 22 is in the on state, the rice cooker 100 accepts a remote operation instruction, and when the permission switch 22 is in the off state, the rice cooker 100 does not accept a remote operation instruction.

[0072] In the illustrated example, a plurality of input buttons 21B for instructing the execution of various processes and a permission switch 22 are illustrated as an example of an operation unit, but the present embodiment is not limited thereto. For example, the display operation unit 21 may be configured to include a touch panel integrally provided with the display 21A instead of the plurality of input buttons 21B, and to be able to instruct the execution of various processes by operating the touch panel. The permission switch 22 may also be configured to be able to switch between an on state and an off state by operating the touch panel. In addition, the plurality of input buttons 21B and the permission switch 22 do not need to be provided as hardware switches as in the illustrated example, and may be provided as software switches.

[0073] As shown in Fig. 4, heating unit 13 is provided on the outer circumferential surface of pot accommodating section 11b of housing 1 at a position facing pot 5. Heating unit 13 includes, for example, a coil that inductively heats pot 5 when electricity is applied. A through hole is provided in the central bottom of pot accommodating section 11b of housing 1, and temperature sensor 14 is provided so as to contact the central bottom of pot 5 through said through hole. Temperature sensor 14 detects the temperature of pot 5, particularly the bottom part of pot 5.

[0074] The rice cooker 100 further includes an opening / closing sensor 56 (see FIG. 11) that detects whether the lid 2 is open or closed. The opening / closing sensor 56 may detect whether the lid 2 is open or closed by detecting whether the lid 2 is closed or not. The opening / closing sensor 56 is, for example, a mechanical switch type sensor that is pressed down by the lid 2 when the lid 2 is closed and turns on.

[0075] Rice cooker 100 further includes a pot sensor 57 (see FIG. 11) that detects the presence or absence of a pot 5 in housing 1. Pot sensor 57 detects when pot 5 has been placed in pot accommodating section 11b of housing 1 and when pot 5 has been removed from pot accommodating section 11b of housing 1. Pot sensor 57 is, for example, a mechanical switch-type sensor that protrudes upward from the bottom of pot accommodating section 11b and is pressed down by pot 5 when pot 5 is placed therein, turning on. Pot sensor 57 is not limited to this and may be, for example, a capacitance sensor such as an electrostatic touch sensor, a weight sensor, an infrared sensor, or another sensor.

[0076] The rice cooker 100 further includes a water container sensor 32 (see FIG. 11) that detects whether the water container 3 is attached to a predetermined water container position. The water container position is, for example, a predetermined position on the base part 12 of the housing 1. The water container sensor 32 is, for example, a mechanical switch type sensor that is pressed down by the water container 3 when the water container 3 is placed at the water container position and turns on. The water container sensor 32 is not limited to this, and may be, for example, a capacitance sensor such as an electrostatic touch sensor, a weight sensor, an infrared sensor, or another sensor.

[0077] The rice cooker 100 may further include a water level sensor 33 (see FIG. 11) that detects the water level in the water container 3. The water level sensor 33 is, for example, a capacitance sensor such as an electrostatic touch sensor, and / or a pressure sensor attached in the water container 3. The water level sensor 33 may also be, for example, a weight sensor, an infrared sensor, or other sensor. Note that the water level sensor 33 is not an essential component of the rice cooker 100. Even if the rice cooker 100 does not include the water level sensor 33, the rice cooker 100 can achieve the object of the present disclosure. If the water level sensor 33 is not included, the cost and size of the rice cooker 100 can be reduced compared to when the water level sensor 33 is included.

[0078] The rice cooker 100 may further include a rice container sensor 44 (see FIG. 11) that detects whether the rice container 4 is attached at a predetermined rice container position. That is, when the rice container 4 is detachable, the rice container sensor 44 detects whether the rice container 4 is attached at the rice container position, which is a predetermined position of the housing 1. The rice container sensor 44 is, for example, a mechanical switch type sensor that is pressed down by the rice container 4 when the rice container 4 is placed at the rice container position and turns on. The rice container sensor 44 is not limited to this, and may be, for example, a capacitance sensor such as an electrostatic touch sensor, a weight sensor, an infrared sensor, or other sensor.

[0079] The rice cooker 100 may further include a rice storage amount sensor 45 (see FIG. 11) that detects the amount of rice stored in the rice container 4. For example, the rice storage amount sensor 45 detects whether or not there is rice in the rice container 4 up to a predetermined height. The rice storage amount sensor 45 is, for example, a capacitance sensor such as an electrostatic touch sensor attached to the outer surface of the rice container 4. The rice storage amount sensor 45 is not limited to a capacitance sensor, and may be, for example, a weight sensor, a mechanical switch type sensor provided in the rice container 4, an infrared sensor, or other sensor. Note that the rice storage amount sensor 45 is not an essential component of the rice cooker 100. Even if the rice storage amount sensor 45 is not provided, the rice cooker 100 can achieve the object of the present disclosure. If the rice storage amount sensor 45 is not provided, the cost and size of the rice cooker 100 can be reduced compared to when the rice storage amount sensor 45 is provided.

[0080] When the lid 2 is detachably attached to the housing 1, the rice cooker 100 may further include a lid sensor 58 (see FIG. 11) that detects whether the lid 2 is attached to the housing 1. The lid sensor 58 is, for example, a mechanical switch type sensor that is pressed down by the lid 2 when the lid 2 is placed in a predetermined position and turns on. The lid sensor 58 is not limited to this, and may be, for example, a weight sensor, an infrared sensor, an optical sensor, or another sensor.

[0081] Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration example of the rice washing device 6 in Fig. 4. The rice washing device 6 includes a rice washing motor 61, a rice washing blade 62, a rice washing tank 63, and an on-off valve 64.

[0082] The rice washing motor 61 is a drive source that generates power to rotate the rice washing blade 62. The rice washing blade 62 is attached to the output shaft 61a of the rice washing motor 61 and is configured to rotate around the output shaft 61a. The rice washing tank 63 is a portion that contains the rice and water sent to the rice washing device 6, and is formed in a tapered shape so that the diameter decreases toward the bottom. The rice washing blade 62 is configured to wash the rice and water in the rice washing tank 63 by rotating along the tapered inner wall surface of the rice washing tank 63. A drain pipe 71 is connected to the rice washing tank 63. The water used for washing the rice in the rice washing tank 63 is sent to the drain tank 7 through the drain pipe 71. The opening and closing valve 64 is configured to be able to open and close the bottom of the rice washing tank 63. When the opening and closing valve 64 is opened, the rice washed in the rice washing tank 63 falls into the pot 5.

[0083] 7, rice cooker 100 includes a control unit 15 inside main body 11 of housing 1. Control unit 15 controls the overall operation of rice cooker 100.

[0084] 11 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the control unit 15. The control unit 15 includes an arithmetic circuit 51, a storage device 52, an input interface (I / F) 53, an output interface 54, and a communication interface 55.

[0085] The arithmetic circuit 51 is configured with circuits such as a CPU, an MPU, an FPGA, etc., and performs information processing to realize the functions of the control unit 15. Such information processing is realized, for example, by the arithmetic circuit 51 executing a program stored in the storage device 52.

[0086] The storage device 52 is a recording medium for recording information such as a program, a stop flag, and an input completion flag required to realize the functions of the control unit 15. The storage device 52 is realized, for example, by a flash memory, a ROM, a RAM, or other recording medium, either alone or in combination. The storage device 52 may include a semiconductor storage device such as a solid state drive (SSD), or a magnetic storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD).

[0087] The input interface 53 is an interface circuit that connects the control unit 15 and the input device 16 to receive information from the input device 16. The input interface 53 may be a communication circuit that performs data communication with the input device 16 according to an existing wired communication standard or wireless communication standard. The input device 16 includes, for example, a temperature sensor 14, an input button 21B, a permission switch 22, a water container sensor 32, a water level sensor 33, a rice container sensor 44, a rice storage amount sensor 45, an open / close sensor 56, a pot sensor 57, and the like.

[0088] The output interface 54 is an interface circuit that connects the control unit 15 and the output device 17 in order to output information to the output device 17. The output interface 54 may be a communication circuit that performs data communication with the output device 17 in accordance with an existing wired communication standard or wireless communication standard. The output device 17 includes, for example, the heating unit 13, the display 21A, the rice washing motor 61, the opening / closing valve 64, the drain pump 72, the drain pump 84, the rice sending fan 92, and the like.

[0089] The communication interface 55 is a communication circuit that performs data communication according to an existing wired communication standard or wireless communication standard. The arithmetic circuit 51 is configured to be able to communicate with a terminal 200 and a server device 300 (see FIG. 12) described later via the communication interface 55 and the network 18.

[0090] 12 is a schematic diagram showing an example configuration of a remote control system 10 for a rice cooker 100 according to the present embodiment. The remote control system 10 includes the rice cooker 100, one or more terminals 200, and a server device 300. The terminals 200 include information processing devices such as smartphones, tablet terminals, desktop PCs, and notebook PCs. The rice cooker 100, the terminals 200, and the server device 300 are each connected to a network 18, for example.

[0091] The server device 300 is an information processing device including an arithmetic circuit 301 , a storage device 302 , and a communication interface 303 .

[0092] The arithmetic circuit 301 is configured with circuits such as a CPU, an MPU, an FPGA, etc., and performs information processing to realize the functions of the server device 300. Such information processing is realized, for example, by the arithmetic circuit 301 executing a program stored in the storage device 302.

[0093] The storage device 302 is a recording medium for recording various information including programs and data necessary for implementing the functions of the server device 300. The storage device 302 is implemented, for example, by a semiconductor storage device such as a solid state drive (SSD), a magnetic storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD), a flash memory, a ROM, a RAM, or other recording media, either alone or in combination.

[0094] The communication interface 303 is a communication circuit that performs data communication according to an existing wired communication standard or wireless communication standard. The arithmetic circuit 301 is configured to be able to communicate with the rice cooker 100 and the terminal 200 via the communication interface 303 and the network 18.

[0095] The server device 300 may be realized by one computer, or may be realized by a plurality of computers working together. The server device 300 may also be a cloud server.

[0096] The terminal 200 can, for example, download and install application software for remotely controlling the rice cooker 100 from the server device 300 or another computer. The user of the terminal 200 can start the application software and check the status of the rice cooker 100. The user of the terminal 200 can also operate the application software on the terminal 200 to remotely control the rice cooker 100. For example, the user of the terminal 200 operates the application software using the terminal 200 to transmit a remote operation input for the rice cooker 100 to the server device 300. The server device 300 transmits a remote operation instruction to the rice cooker 100 based on the remote operation input received from the terminal 200. The control unit 15 of the rice cooker 100 operates according to the received remote operation instruction.

[0097] Such remote control instructions are input by remote control, and include a start cooking instruction that instructs the start of a series of rice cooking operations, a rice cooking reservation instruction to start or complete rice cooking at a set time, a stop instruction that instructs the stop of rice cooking or keeping warm operations, a setting change instruction, etc.

[0098] Furthermore, information about the rice cooker 100 may be transmitted to the terminal 200 via the server device 300, and the transmitted information may be notified to the user of the terminal 200. For example, the remaining amount of water in the water container 3 calculated based on the detection result of the water level sensor 33, the amount of stored rice detected by the rice storage amount sensor 45, etc. are displayed on the display of the terminal 200. This allows the user to determine whether or not rice cooking is possible.

[0099] As described above, rice cooker 100 is configured to be remotely controlled by terminal 200.

[0100] [Rice cooking operation] The following describes the operation of the rice cooker 100. Fig. 13 is a flow chart illustrating an example of the overall flow of the rice cooking operation by the rice cooker 100. The processing in Fig. 13 is performed by the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15.

[0101] First, in step S1, the arithmetic circuit 51 determines whether or not it has received a rice cooking start instruction. The rice cooking start instruction includes an instruction by local operation and an instruction by remote operation. A rice cooking start instruction by local operation is input to the arithmetic circuit 51 via the input interface 53 by the user operating the input button 21B (see Figs. 1, 11, etc.). A rice cooking start instruction by remote operation is input to the arithmetic circuit 51 via the network 18 and the communication interface 55 by the user operating the terminal 200 (see Fig. 12). Furthermore, the rice cooking start instruction may include a spontaneous instruction issued by the arithmetic circuit 51 itself. For example, when the arithmetic circuit 51 is in a rice cooking reservation state, a spontaneous instruction is issued when it is time to start rice cooking according to the reservation setting.

[0102] If the arithmetic circuit 51 has received a rice cooking start instruction (Yes in S1), it proceeds to step S2, and if it has not received a rice cooking start instruction (No in S1), it returns to step S1.

[0103] In step S2, the arithmetic circuit 51 judges whether the abort flag (see step S23 in FIG. 14 described later) is on or not. The abort flag is initially off and is turned on when the rice cooking or warming operation is stopped based on an abort instruction. The abort flag is reset to the off state, for example, between steps S2 and S4 and between steps S3 and S4. If the arithmetic circuit 51 judges that the abort flag is on (Yes in S2), it proceeds to step S3. If the arithmetic circuit 51 judges that the abort flag is not on (No in S2), for example, if it judges that the abort flag is off, it proceeds to step S4.

[0104] Step S3 will be explained after explaining the flow of the rice cooking operation (S4 to S11).

[0105] In step S4, the arithmetic circuit 51 performs a rice sending process and a water sending process. The rice sending process is a process of sending rice in the rice container 4 to the rice washing device 6. In the rice sending process, the arithmetic circuit 51 drives the rice sending device 93 for a time predetermined according to the rice cooking information to move the rice in the rice container 4 into the rice sending pipe 91, and drives the rice sending fan 92 to send the rice in the rice sending pipe 91 into the rice washing device 6. The water sending process is a process of sending water in the water container 3 to the rice washing device 6. In the water sending process, the arithmetic circuit 51 drives the water sending pump 83 for a time predetermined according to the rice cooking information to send the water in the water container 3 into the rice washing device 6 through the container side water sending pipe 82 and the lid side water sending pipe 81. The rice sending process and the water sending process may be performed in order or simultaneously. The amount of rice sent to the rice washing device 6 in the rice sending process may be the total amount of rice corresponding to the amount of rice cooked selected by the user using the display operation unit 21 (hereinafter referred to as the "set amount of cooked rice"), or it may be an amount obtained by dividing the set amount of cooked rice.

[0106] In the next step S5, the arithmetic circuit 51 judges whether or not the no-rinse rice mode has been selected by the selection unit 42 or the terminal 200. If it is judged that the no-rinse rice mode has not been selected (No in S5), the arithmetic circuit 51 sequentially performs the rice washing step S6, the draining step S7, and the water pouring step S8, and then proceeds to step S9. If it is judged in step S5 that the no-rinse rice mode has been selected (Yes in S5), the arithmetic circuit 51 proceeds to step S9 without performing steps S6 to S8.

[0107] The rice washing step S6 is a process of washing the rice supplied to the rice washing device 6 using the water supplied to the rice washing device 6. The arithmetic circuit 51 drives the rice washing device 6 for a time period determined in advance according to the rice cooking information, and washes the rice using the rice and water in the rice washing device 6.

[0108] The drain step S7 is a process for draining the water after washing the rice outside the rice washing device 6. The arithmetic circuit 51 drives the drain pump 72 for a time period determined in advance according to the rice cooking information, and drains the water after washing the rice from the rice washing device 6 to the drain tank 7 through the drain pipe 71.

[0109] The water pouring step S8 is a process of sending water from the water container 3 to the rice washing device 6 to prevent washed rice from sticking to the inner wall of the rice washing device 6 and falling into the pot 5. In the water pouring step S8, the arithmetic circuit 51 drives the water supply pump 83 for a time period determined in advance according to the rice cooking information to send water from the water container 3 into the rice washing device 6 through the container side water supply pipe 82 and the lid side water supply pipe 81.

[0110] In step S9, the arithmetic circuit 51 opens the on-off valve 64 of the rice washing device 6, and pours the rice and water in the rice washing device 6 into the pot 5. In the next step S10, the arithmetic circuit 51 turns on a pouring completion flag indicating that the pouring of rice and water into the pot 5 has been completed. The pouring completion flag is a flag that is initially in the off state, and is reset to the off state after the keep-warm operation is completed, or after the rice cooking step S11 is completed if the keep-warm operation is not performed.

[0111] In the next step S11, the arithmetic circuit 51 performs the rice cooking process. For example, in the rice cooking process, a rice cooking sequence is executed. Here, the "rice cooking sequence" refers to a rice cooking procedure in which the power supply time, heating temperature, heating time, heating output, etc. are predetermined for each of the four main processes of preheating, heating, maintaining boiling, and steaming. A plurality of rice cooking sequences corresponding to a plurality of rice cooking courses may be prepared. The program for executing the rice cooking sequence is stored in, for example, the storage device 302. In this embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 51 controls the heating unit 13 based on the rice cooking information selected by the user using the display operation unit 21 or the terminal 200 and the detected temperature of the temperature sensor 14 to execute the rice cooking process.

[0112] After the rice cooking step S11 is completed, a keep-warm operation may be performed to keep the temperature of the pot 5 at a set keep-warm temperature.

[0113] In this way, the rice cooker according to this embodiment can automatically perform processes from washing rice to cooking rice. Step S3 will now be described.

[0114] In step S3, the arithmetic circuit 51 judges whether or not the predetermined rice cooking start condition is satisfied. If the answer is Yes, the process proceeds to step S4. If the answer is No, the process returns to step S1. In other words, if the rice cooking start condition is not satisfied, the arithmetic circuit 51 does not execute the rice cooking operation in steps S4 to S11. In this specification, the fact that the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15 does not execute the rice cooking operation even though a rice cooking start instruction is sent to the rice cooker 100 by remote operation based on the user operation of the terminal 200 is sometimes expressed as "the control unit 15 does not accept the rice cooking start instruction from the terminal 200". "The control unit 15 does not accept the rice cooking start instruction from the terminal 200" also includes the fact that the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15 does not execute the rice cooking operation even though a rice cooking start instruction is input to the control unit 15 by a local operation such as the operation of the input button 21B.

[0115] An example of the rice cooking start condition is that the opening / closing sensor 56 detects that the lid 2 has been opened and then closed (hereinafter referred to as "rice cooking start condition 1"). The opening / closing sensor 56 detects that the lid 2 has been opened and closed, and the arithmetic circuit 51 may detect the temporal relationship of opening and closing based on the detection result of the opening / closing sensor 56.

[0116] For example, if the lid 2 remains closed after the previously performed rice cooking or warming operation is stopped, rice may remain in the pot 5. In such a case, when step S9 of adding rice and water is performed in accordance with the user's instruction to start cooking by remote control, the rice may leak out of the pot 5 or the rice may not be cooked properly, and the rice may not be cooked as intended by the user. The rice cooked in this way may have a poor taste compared to rice cooked properly when rice and water are supplied to an empty rice cooking section. When the rice cooking start condition 1 is met and the lid 2 is opened and then closed, it can be assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot 5 have been removed by the person who opened the lid 2. In this way, by setting the rice cooking start condition 1, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice cooking is not performed as intended by the user, such as adding more rice and water on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0117] Another example of the rice cooking start condition is that the lid sensor 58 detects that the lid 2 has changed from a state where it is not attached to the housing 1 to a state where it is attached (hereinafter referred to as "rice cooking start condition 2"). The lid sensor 58 detects whether the lid 2 is not attached to the housing 1 or is attached, and the arithmetic circuit 51 may detect the temporal relationship between the two states based on the detection result of the lid sensor 58. When the rice cooking start condition 2 is satisfied and the lid 2 has changed from a state where it is not attached to the housing 1 to a state where it is attached, it can be assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot 5 have been removed by the person who removed the lid 2 from the housing 1 or attached it to the housing 1. In this way, by providing the rice cooking start condition 2, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as adding more rice and water on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0118] Another example of the rice cooking start condition is that the pot sensor 57 detects that the pot 5 has been removed from the housing 1 and then placed in the housing 1 (hereinafter referred to as "rice cooking start condition 3"). The pot sensor 57 detects the presence or absence of the pot 5 in the housing 1, and the arithmetic circuit 51 may detect that the pot 5 has been removed from the housing 1 and then placed in the housing 1 based on the detection result of the pot sensor 57. When the rice cooking start condition 3 is met and the pot 5 is placed in the housing 1 after being removed from the housing 1, it can be assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot 5 have been removed by the user. In this way, by providing the rice cooking start condition 3, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as adding more rice and water on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0119] Another example of a rice cooking start condition is when the permission switch 22 is in the on state (hereinafter referred to as "rice cooking start condition 4"). When the user presses the permission switch 22 to turn it on, it can be assumed that the user has removed the rice and water remaining in the pot 5. In this way, by setting rice cooking start condition 4, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0120] Another example of the rice cooking start condition is that the temperature sensor 14 detects that the temperature of the pot 5 is equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold value after the completion of the rice cooking step S11 (hereinafter referred to as "rice cooking start condition 5"). The threshold value is set to a relative value, for example, several degrees Celsius to 10 degrees Celsius lower than the warming temperature. Alternatively, the threshold value is set to an absolute value, such as room temperature, 25 degrees Celsius to 75 degrees Celsius, etc. When the rice cooking start condition 5 is satisfied, it can be assumed that the warming operation has been completed or interrupted, and the rice and water remaining in the pot 5 have been removed by the user. In this way, by setting the rice cooking start condition 5, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as adding more rice and water on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0121] Another example of a rice cooking start condition is that a predetermined time has elapsed since the time when the arithmetic circuit 51 received or accepted a rice cooking stop instruction, for example, the time when the stop flag was turned on (hereinafter referred to as "rice cooking start condition 6"). If a certain amount of time has elapsed since the time when the stop flag was turned on, that is, the time when the rice cooking or warming operation was stopped based on the stop instruction, it can be expected that the user has removed the rice and water remaining in the pot 5. In this way, by setting rice cooking start condition 6, it is possible to prevent a situation where rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as adding more rice and water on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0122] [Cancel action] The cancel operation will be described below. The cancel operation is an operation for canceling various operations of the rice cooker 100. One example of the cancel operation is an operation for canceling an ongoing operation based on a cancel instruction received after the arithmetic circuit 51 starts the rice cooking operation or the keep warm operation of FIG. 13. FIG. 14 is a flow chart illustrating the flow of the cancel operation. The cancel operation of FIG. 14 is performed by the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15. The cancel operation of FIG. 14 may be performed in parallel with the rice cooking operation of FIG. 13, or by interrupting the rice cooking operation of FIG. 13 midway.

[0123] First, in step S20 in Fig. 14, the arithmetic circuit 51 determines whether or not a stop instruction has been received. Stop instructions include those received by local operation and those received by remote operation, similar to the rice cooking start instruction in step S1 in Fig. 13.

[0124] If the arithmetic circuit 51 receives a stop instruction (Yes in S20), it proceeds to step S21, and if the arithmetic circuit 51 does not receive a stop instruction (No in S20), it returns to step S20. In other words, the arithmetic circuit 51 does not perform the processes after step S21 unless it receives a stop instruction.

[0125] In step S21, the arithmetic circuit 51 judges whether or not the input completion flag is in an on state. If the arithmetic circuit 51 judges that the input completion flag is in an on state (Yes in S21), the process proceeds to step S24, and if the arithmetic circuit 51 judges that the input completion flag is not in an on state (No in S21), for example, if the arithmetic circuit 51 judges that the input completion flag is in an off state, the process proceeds to step S22.

[0126] The arithmetic circuit 51 stops the rice cooking operation or the warming operation being performed in step S22, and sets the stop flag to the ON state in the next step S23.

[0127] In step S24, the arithmetic circuit 51 judges whether the stop instruction received in step S20 is a remote instruction or not. If the arithmetic circuit 51 judges that the received stop instruction is a remote instruction (Yes in S24), the process proceeds to step S25, and if the arithmetic circuit 51 judges that the received stop instruction is not a remote instruction (No in S24), for example, if the arithmetic circuit 51 judges that the received stop instruction is a local instruction, the process proceeds to step S22.

[0128] In step S25, the arithmetic circuit 51 judges whether or not a predetermined cancellation condition is satisfied. The cancellation condition is a condition for the arithmetic circuit 51 to accept a cancellation instruction by remote control. If it is judged that the cancellation condition is satisfied (Yes in S25), the arithmetic circuit 51 proceeds to cancellation step S22 and cancels the rice cooking operation or warming operation that is being performed. On the other hand, if it is judged that the cancellation condition is not satisfied (No in S25), the arithmetic circuit 51 does not execute the cancellation step S22.

[0129] In this specification, when a stop instruction is sent to the rice cooker 100 via remote control based on user operation of the terminal 200, but the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15 does not perform the rice cooking operation, this is sometimes expressed as "the control unit 15 does not accept the stop instruction from the terminal 200."

[0130] When it is determined that the abort condition is not satisfied (No in S25), the arithmetic circuit 51 may perform step S26. In step S26, the arithmetic circuit 51 transmits a signal to the server device 300, and the server device 300 that receives the signal performs a notification operation, such as displaying to the terminal 200 that transmitted the abort instruction that the abort instruction will not be accepted, using application software. This makes it possible to notify the user who transmitted the abort instruction using the terminal 200 that the abort instruction will not be accepted. The notification method may be a display on the display of the terminal 200 or an audio notification.

[0131] An example of the above-mentioned cancel condition is that the rice cooking step S11 has been completed. If one or more terminals 200 were allowed to freely cancel the rice cooking operation even after rice and water have been added to the pot 5 and the addition completion flag is in the on state, the rice cooking operation would not be performed as intended by the user of the terminal 200 that sent the rice cooking start instruction. Furthermore, if one or more terminals 200 were allowed to freely send a rice cooking start instruction to the rice cooker 100 via the server device 300 after the rice cooking operation was stopped, rice and water would be added again (S9), causing the rice to spill out of the pot 5 or the rice to be undercooked, resulting in failure of the rice cooking operation. The control unit 15 does not accept a cancel instruction from the terminal 200 that sent the rice cooking start instruction to the rice cooker 100 via the server device 300 or from another terminal 200 unless the rice cooking operation is completed, thereby preventing the rice cooking operation from being inadvertently stopped in the middle of the rice cooking operation. Furthermore, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice cooking is not performed as intended by the user, such as when an instruction to start cooking is given after cooking has been stopped, causing more rice and water to be added on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0132] [Rice cooking timer operation] The rice cooking reservation operation will be described below. The rice cooking reservation operation is an operation for starting or completing rice cooking at a time set by the user. Fig. 15 is a flow chart illustrating the flow of the rice cooking reservation operation. The rice cooking reservation operation in Fig. 15 is performed by the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15.

[0133] First, in step S30, the arithmetic circuit 51 determines whether or not a rice cooking reservation instruction has been received. Similar to the rice cooking start instruction and the rice cooking stop instruction, the rice cooking reservation instruction includes instructions issued by local operation and remote operation. The rice cooking reservation instruction includes, for example, the rice cooking completion time. For example, if the user wants rice cooking to be completed at 5 p.m., the user sets the rice cooking completion time to 5 p.m. The rice cooking reservation instruction may include the rice cooking start time instead of the rice cooking completion time.

[0134] If the arithmetic circuit 51 receives a rice cooking reservation command (Yes in S30), it proceeds to step S31, and if it does not receive a cancellation command (No in S30), it returns to step S30. In other words, the arithmetic circuit 51 does not perform the process after step S31 unless it receives a rice cooking reservation command.

[0135] In step S31, the arithmetic circuit 51 sets the operation mode of the rice cooker 100 to a rice cooking reservation state, and then proceeds to step S32.

[0136] In step S32, the arithmetic circuit 51 determines whether or not an abnormality has been detected in the rice cooker 100 in the rice cooking reservation state. If an abnormality exists in the rice cooker 100 in the rice cooking reservation state, rice cannot be cooked normally. If the arithmetic circuit 51 determines that an abnormality has not been detected (No in S32), it proceeds to step S33.

[0137] In step S33, the arithmetic circuit 51 waits for the rice cooking start time corresponding to the rice cooking completion time to arrive, and when it arrives, proceeds to step S34. For example, if the rice cooking completion time is 17:00 and the time required for the rice cooking operation (see FIG. 13) is one hour, the arithmetic circuit 51 proceeds to step S34 at 16:00.

[0138] In step S34, the arithmetic circuit 51 issues a rice cooking start instruction. The rice cooking start instruction in step S34 is an instruction to start the rice cooking operation in Fig. 13. When the arithmetic circuit 51 issues a rice cooking start instruction in step S34, it performs the same operation as when it receives a rice cooking start instruction in step S1 in Fig. 13. Alternatively, in step S34, the arithmetic circuit 51 may actually send a rice cooking start instruction to itself.

[0139] In step S32, if the arithmetic circuit 51 determines that an abnormality has been detected (Yes in S32), the process proceeds to step S35. Such an abnormality may be caused, for example, by an incorrect operation by a person in the home where the rice cooker 100 is located, or by a child playing with the rice cooker 100.

[0140] An example of an abnormality is when the lid 2 is open while the rice cooker 100 is in a rice cooking reservation state. If the lid 2 is open, rice cannot be cooked normally. For example, when the open / close sensor 56 detects that the lid 2 is open, the arithmetic circuit 51 determines that an abnormality has been detected.

[0141] Another example of an abnormality is when the lid 2 is removed from the housing 1 while the rice cooker 100 is in a rice cooking reservation state. If the lid 2 is removed from the housing 1, rice cannot be cooked normally. For example, when the lid sensor 58 detects that the lid 2 is not attached to the housing 1, the arithmetic circuit 51 determines that an abnormality has been detected.

[0142] Another example of an abnormality is when the water container 3 is not attached to the predetermined position on the base part 12 of the housing 1 when the rice cooker 100 is in a rice cooking reservation state, or when the rice container 4 is not attached to the predetermined position on the housing 1. If the rice container 4 or the water container 3 is not attached to the predetermined position, the rice cooker 100 cannot supply rice or water to the pot 5, and cannot cook rice normally. For example, when the water container sensor 32 detects that the water container 3 is not attached to the predetermined position on the base part 12 of the housing 1, the arithmetic circuit 51 determines that an abnormality has been detected. For example, when the rice container sensor 44 detects that the rice container 4 is not attached to the predetermined position on the housing 1, the arithmetic circuit 51 determines that an abnormality has been detected.

[0143] Another example of an abnormality is when the water level in the water container 3 does not reach the water level threshold corresponding to the amount of water required to cook rice when the rice cooker 100 is in a rice cooking reservation state, or when the amount of stored rice does not reach the amount required to cook rice. If such an abnormality occurs, there is not enough water or rice, and the rice cooker 100 cannot cook rice normally. For example, when the water level sensor 33 detects that the water level in the water container 3 does not reach the water level threshold, the calculation circuit 51 determines that an abnormality has been detected. For example, when the stored rice amount sensor 45 detects that the amount of stored rice does not reach the amount required to cook rice, the calculation circuit 51 determines that an abnormality has been detected.

[0144] If an abnormality is detected, in step S35, the arithmetic circuit 51 notifies the user that an abnormality has occurred. For example, the arithmetic circuit 51 notifies the user that an abnormality has occurred by displaying a message indicating that an abnormality has occurred on the display 21A and / or by outputting an alarm sound indicating that an abnormality has occurred from the speaker.

[0145] The notification in step S35 also includes remote notification. For example, the arithmetic circuit 51 transmits an abnormality detection signal to the server device 300, indicating that an abnormality has been detected. When the server device 300 receives the abnormality detection signal, it transmits information to the terminal 200 for confirming whether or not to continue the rice cooking reservation state of the rice cooker 100. The transmission of this information includes the transmission of information for the server device 300 to cause application software to display text on the display of the terminal 200 for confirming whether or not to continue the rice cooking reservation state.

[0146] In the next step S36, the arithmetic circuit 51 judges whether or not a reservation continuation instruction has been received by the rice cooking start time. A reservation continuation instruction includes an instruction by local operation and an instruction by remote operation, similar to the rice cooking start instruction, the instruction to cancel, and the rice cooking reservation instruction. For example, if the user of the terminal 200 operates the application software to select to continue the rice cooking reservation state, the server device 300 sends a reservation continuation instruction to the rice cooker 100. In this specification, the reception by the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15 of the reservation continuation instruction sent by the server device 300 to the rice cooker 100 based on the user's operation of the terminal 200 in this way is also expressed as "the control unit 15 receiving a reservation continuation instruction from the terminal 200."

[0147] If the instruction to continue the reservation is received by the time the rice cooking starts (Yes in S36), the arithmetic circuit 51 proceeds to step S33. If the instruction to continue the reservation is not received by the time the rice cooking starts (No in S36), the arithmetic circuit 51 ends the flow in Fig. 15 without executing step S34, and does not cook rice.

[0148] In this way, if an abnormality is detected in rice cooker 100 while rice cooking is scheduled, the user is asked whether or not to continue the rice cooking reservation, thereby preventing a situation in which rice is cooked while there is an abnormality and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0149] Figure 16 is a flow chart showing a variation of the rice cooking reservation operation of Figure 15. The variation of the rice cooking reservation operation of Figure 16 includes step S37 instead of step S36 of Figure 15.

[0150] In step S37, the arithmetic circuit 51 judges whether or not the abnormality detected in step S32 has been resolved by the time the rice cooking starts, and whether or not an instruction to continue the reservation has been received by the time the rice cooking starts. If the abnormality has been resolved by the time the rice cooking starts, or if an instruction to continue the reservation has been received by the time the rice cooking starts (Yes in S37), the arithmetic circuit 51 proceeds to step S33. In the modified example of the rice cooking reservation operation in Fig. 16, unlike Fig. 15, if the abnormality has been resolved, rice cooking can start even if an instruction to continue the reservation has not been received by the time the rice cooking starts.

[0151] [Exclusive control] The remote control system 10 may implement exclusive control so that the control unit 15 of the rice cooker 100 does not accept operation instructions from other terminals until rice cooking is completed after the control unit 15 of the rice cooker 100 has accepted an instruction to start cooking rice or an instruction to change settings from the terminal 200. Fig. 17 is a sequence diagram showing an example of such exclusive control.

[0152] 17, based on a user operation, the terminal 200a transmits a remote operation input including an instruction to start cooking rice to the server device 300 (S40), and in response, the server device 300 transmits an instruction to start cooking rice to the rice cooker 100 (S60). When receiving the instruction to start cooking rice, the arithmetic circuit 51 of the rice cooker 100 executes the rice cooking operations S4 to S11 (see FIG. 13) if predetermined conditions are met.

[0153] If another terminal 200b transmits a remote control input including an instruction to stop cooking rice to the server device 300 (S50) while the rice cooker 100 is cooking rice, the server device 300 does not transmit the instruction to stop cooking rice to the rice cooker 100. In this case, the server device 300 may transmit an acceptance refusal message such as "Another user is cooking rice, so your instruction will not be accepted" to the terminal 200b (S51). Such an acceptance refusal message may be transmitted as a notification operation by the server device 300, such as displaying the acceptance refusal message on the terminal 200b by application software.

[0154] The server device 300 uses, for example, the registration ID of the application software to identify from which of the terminals 200a and 200b the remote control input has been transmitted. The registration ID is linked to the rice cooker 100 to be operated. Since the rice cooker 100 may be remotely operated by multiple people, such as a family member, one rice cooker 100 may be linked to multiple registration IDs. Alternatively, the server device 300 may use device identification information unique to the terminals 200a and 200b, such as a MAC address, to identify from which of the terminals 200a and 200b the remote control input has been transmitted.

[0155] Although an example in which the instruction to stop cooking rice is sent by the terminal 200b has been described above, the same applies to other operational instructions such as an instruction to start cooking rice, an instruction to schedule cooking rice, an instruction to change settings, etc. In other words, even if another terminal 200b attempts to send an operational instruction to the rice cooker 100 while the rice cooker 100 is cooking rice, the server device 300 will not send the operational instruction to the rice cooker 100. After cooking rice is completed, the control unit 15 of the rice cooker 100 can accept an instruction to start cooking rice from the terminal 200b (S52, S62).

[0156] In the above, an example was described in which the instruction to start cooking rice was sent by the terminal 200a, but the same applies to instructions to change settings and to reserve cooking rice. For example, if the terminal 200a sends a remote control input including an instruction to change settings to the server device 300 based on a user operation, and the server device 300 sends an instruction to change settings to the rice cooker 100 in response, the control unit 15 of the rice cooker 100 will not accept an operation instruction from the terminal 200b until cooking is complete.

[0157] In this way, by providing exclusive control, it is possible to prevent rice and water from being added to the rice and water remaining in the pot 5 of the rice cooker 100 in response to a rice cooking start command from someone other than the user who started rice cooking. Also, by providing exclusive control, it is possible to prevent the rice cooking settings made by the user who started rice cooking from being changed by someone other than the same user.

[0158] In the above, an example was described in which when another terminal 200b transmits a remote operation input including an instruction to stop cooking to the server device 300 while the rice cooker 100 is cooking rice, the server device 300 does not transmit the instruction to stop cooking to the rice cooker 100, but exclusive control is not limited to this. For example, in the above case, the server device 300 transmits an instruction to stop cooking to the rice cooker 100 as usual, but does not have to accept an operation instruction from the terminal 200b in the sense that the control unit 15 of the rice cooker 100 does not follow the instruction to stop cooking received.

[0159] [Effects, etc.] As described above, the rice cooker 100 according to the present embodiment includes the housing 1, the pot 5, the rice container 4 for storing rice, the water container 3 for storing water, the rice sending device 93, the water sending pump 83, the heating unit 13 for heating the pot 5, the control unit 15, and the communication interface 55. The rice sending device 93 supplies rice from the rice container 4 to the pot 5. The water sending pump 83 supplies water from the water container 3 to the pot 5. The control unit 15 controls at least the rice sending device 93, the water sending pump 83, and the heating unit 13 to perform a rice cooking operation including supplying rice and water to the pot 5 and heating it, and a heat keeping operation to keep the pot 5 warm by controlling the heating unit 13. The communication interface 55 wirelessly receives from the terminal 200 an operation instruction signal including a rice cooking start instruction for instructing the start of the rice cooking operation and a stop instruction for instructing the stop of the rice cooking operation or the heat keeping operation. After the control unit 15 stops the rice cooking operation or the warming operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication interface 55, it will not accept a rice cooking start instruction from the terminal 200 via the communication interface 55 unless a predetermined rice cooking start condition is satisfied.

[0160] According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when the rice cooking or warming operation is stopped while rice remains in the pot 5 and then remote control is performed from the terminal 200, causing more rice and water to be added on top of the rice remaining in the pot 5.

[0161] The rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment may further include an input button 21B for inputting a rice cooking start instruction to the control unit 15. In this case, after the control unit 15 stops the rice cooking operation or the warming operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication interface 55, it will not accept a rice cooking start instruction from the input button 21B unless the rice cooking start condition is satisfied.

[0162] According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, it is possible to prevent a person other than the operator of the terminal 200, such as a child, from mischievously operating the input button 21B to give an instruction to start cooking rice after the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation has been stopped by remote control from the terminal 200. This makes it possible to prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice remaining in the pot 5.

[0163] The rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment may further include a lid 2 that opens and closes to cover the opening 5a of the pot 5, and an opening / closing sensor 56 that detects the opening and closing of the lid 2. In this case, when the control unit 15 stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication interface 55, and the opening / closing sensor 56 detects that the lid 2 has been opened and then closed, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied, and the control unit 15 becomes able to accept a rice cooking start instruction.

[0164] If the lid 2 is opened and then closed, it is assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot 5 have been removed by the person who opened the lid 2. Therefore, the rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment can prevent situations in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice remaining in the pot.

[0165] The rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment may further include a lid 2 that is detachably attached to the housing 1 and that, when attached to the housing 1, freely opens and closes to cover the opening 5a of the pot 5, and a lid sensor 58 that detects whether the lid 2 is attached to the housing 1. In this case, when the control unit 15 stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication interface 55, and the lid sensor 58 detects that the lid 2 has changed from a state where it was not attached to the housing 1 to a state where it is attached, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied and the control unit 15 becomes able to accept a rice cooking start instruction.

[0166] When the lid body 2 goes from being attached to the housing 1 to being attached to it, it can be assumed that the rice and water remaining in the pot 5 have been removed by the person who removed the lid body 2 from the housing 1 or attached it to the housing 1. Therefore, this configuration can prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice remaining in the pot 5.

[0167] The pot 5 may be removably housed in the housing 1. The rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment may further include a pot sensor 57 that detects that the pot 5 is housed in the housing 1 and that the pot 5 has been removed from the housing 1. In this case, the rice cooking start condition is met when the control unit 15 stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication interface 55, and the pot sensor 57 detects that the pot 5 has been removed from the housing 1 and then placed back in the housing 1. When the rice cooking start condition is met, the control unit 15 becomes able to accept a rice cooking start instruction.

[0168] When the pot 5 is removed from the housing 1 and then placed back into the housing 1, it is assumed that the user has removed the rice and water remaining in the pot 5. Therefore, the rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment can prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0169] The rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment may further include a permission switch 22 that, when turned on, permits the control unit 15 to accept a rice cooking start instruction from the terminal 200. In this case, when the permission switch 22 is in the on state after the control unit 15 stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication interface 55, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied and the control unit 15 becomes able to accept the rice cooking start instruction.

[0170] When the user presses the permission switch 22 to turn it on, it is assumed that the user has removed the rice and water remaining in the pot 5. Therefore, the rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment can prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as when more rice and water are added on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0171] The rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment may further include a temperature sensor 14 that detects the temperature of the pot 5. In this case, the rice cooking start condition is met when the control unit 15 stops the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication interface 55, and then the temperature sensor 14 detects that the temperature of the pot 5 is equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold after the rice cooking operation is completed. When the rice cooking start condition is met, the control unit 15 becomes able to accept a rice cooking start instruction.

[0172] When the temperature of the pot 5 is equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold, it can be assumed that the keep-warm operation is completed or interrupted, and the rice and water remaining in the pot 5 are removed by the user. Therefore, the rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment can prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as adding more rice and water on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0173] The rice cooking start condition may be satisfied when a predetermined time has elapsed since the control unit 15 received the stop instruction after the control unit 15 stopped the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation in accordance with the stop instruction received by the communication interface 55. When the rice cooking start condition is satisfied, the control unit 15 becomes able to accept a rice cooking start instruction.

[0174] If a certain amount of time has passed since the cancellation instruction was received, it is expected that the user has removed the rice and water remaining in the pot 5. Therefore, the rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment can prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user, such as adding more rice and water on top of the rice and water remaining in the pot 5.

[0175] After starting the rice cooking operation, the control unit 15 may not accept a stop instruction from the terminal 200 via the communication interface 55 unless a predetermined stop condition is satisfied.

[0176] According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, by not accepting a remote stop instruction from the terminal 200 unless the stop condition is met, it is possible to prevent the rice cooking operation from being inadvertently stopped in the middle of the rice cooking operation. Furthermore, by not accepting a remote stop instruction from the terminal 200 unless the stop condition is met, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice cooking is not performed as intended by the user, such as when an instruction to start cooking is given after the operation is stopped and more rice and water are supplied on top of the rice remaining in the pot 5.

[0177] The stop condition may be satisfied when the rice cooking operation is completed after the control unit 15 starts the rice cooking operation. When the stop condition is satisfied, the control unit 15 becomes capable of receiving a stop instruction from the terminal 200 via the communication interface 55.

[0178] According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, the control unit 15 does not accept a remote cancel instruction from the terminal 200 unless the rice cooking operation is completed, thereby preventing the rice cooking operation from being inadvertently canceled in the middle of the operation.

[0179] The control unit 15 may notify the terminal 200 when an abnormality is detected in a rice cooking reservation state in which the rice cooking operation is to start at the rice cooking start time according to the set time.

[0180] According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, the user can be informed of the abnormality through a notification and can have an opportunity to resolve the abnormality. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked in an abnormal state and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0181] When the control unit 15 has performed the notification, the control unit 15 may start the rice cooking operation at the rice cooking start time only when it receives a reservation continuation instruction to continue the rice cooking reservation state from the terminal 200 before the rice cooking start time.

[0182] According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked in an abnormal state and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0183] The rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment may further include a lid 2 that freely opens and closes the opening 5a of the pot 5, and an opening / closing sensor 56 that detects the opening and closing of the lid 2. In this case, when the opening / closing sensor 56 detects that the lid 2 is open, the control unit 15 detects an abnormality and notifies the terminal 200.

[0184] If the lid 2 is open, rice cannot be cooked normally; however, according to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, a notification is given when the lid 2 is open, thereby preventing a situation in which rice is cooked with the lid 2 open and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0185] The water container 3 is detachably attached to a predetermined water container position of the rice cooker 100, and the rice cooker 100 may further include a water container sensor that detects whether the water container 3 is attached to the water container position. In this case, when the water container sensor detects that the water container 3 is not attached to the water container position during rice cooking reservation, the control unit 15 detects an abnormality and notifies the terminal 200.

[0186] If the water container 3 is not attached to the water container position, the rice cooker cannot supply water to the pot 5 and cannot cook rice normally. According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, a notification is given when the water container 3 is not attached to the water container position, so it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user when the water container 3 is not attached to the water container position.

[0187] The rice container 4 is detachably attached to a predetermined rice container position of the rice cooker 100, and the rice cooker 100 may further include a rice container sensor that detects whether the rice container 4 is attached to the rice container position. In this case, when the rice container sensor detects that the rice container 4 is not attached to the rice container position during rice cooking reservation, the control unit 15 detects an abnormality and notifies the terminal 200.

[0188] If the rice container 4 is not attached to the rice container position, the rice cooker cannot supply rice into the pot 5 and cannot cook rice normally. According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, a notification is given when the rice container 4 is not attached to the rice container position, so it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is not cooked as intended by the user when the rice container 4 is not attached to the rice container position.

[0189] The rice cooker 100 according to this embodiment may further include a lid 2 that is detachably attached to the housing 1 and that, when attached to the housing 1, covers the opening 5a of the pot 5 in an openable and closable manner, and a lid sensor 58 that detects whether the lid 2 is attached to the housing 1. In this case, when the lid sensor 58 detects that the lid 2 is not attached to the housing 1 during rice cooking reservation, the control unit 15 detects an abnormality and notifies the terminal 200.

[0190] If the lid body 2 is not attached to the housing 1, rice cannot be cooked properly. However, with this configuration, it is possible to prevent a situation in which rice is cooked without the lid body 2 being attached to the housing 1, and the rice is not cooked as intended by the user.

[0191] The number of terminals 200 may be more than one. For example, the terminals 200 may include a first terminal 200a and a second terminal 200b. In this case, after receiving a rice cooking start instruction from the first terminal 200a via the communication interface 55, the control unit 15 may not receive an operation instruction signal from the second terminal 200b via the communication interface 55 until the rice cooking operation is completed.

[0192] According to the rice cooker 100 of this embodiment, it is possible to prevent the rice cooking settings made by the user of the first terminal 200a who started cooking rice from being changed by a person using the second terminal 200b.

[0193] After receiving a setting change instruction to change the settings related to the rice cooking operation or the keep-warm operation from the first terminal 200a via the communication interface 55, the control unit 15 does not need to receive a rice cooking start instruction or a setting change instruction from the second terminal 200b via the communication interface 55 until the rice cooking operation is completed.

[0194] The rice cooker 100 of this embodiment can prevent a situation in which, even though the user of the first terminal 200a has already started cooking rice, a user of the second terminal 200b gives an instruction to start cooking rice, causing more rice and water to be poured on top of the rice remaining in the pot 5.

[0195] (Modification) As described above, the embodiments have been described as examples of the technology disclosed in this application. However, the technology in this disclosure is not limited to this, and can be applied to embodiments in which modifications, substitutions, additions, omissions, etc. have been made. In addition, it is also possible to combine the components described in the above embodiments to create new embodiments. Therefore, examples of modified embodiments are given below.

[0196] (First Modification) In the above embodiment, it has been described that even if a rice cooking start instruction is sent to the rice cooker 100 by remote operation based on the user operation of the terminal 200, the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15 does not execute the rice cooking operation if the rice cooking start condition is not satisfied. In the above embodiment, this has been described as an example of "the control unit 15 does not accept a rice cooking start instruction from the terminal 200". However, the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, if the rice cooking start condition is not satisfied, the application software on the terminal 200 may be configured so that the user cannot input an operation to start rice cooking. Such an operation lock on the application software is also included in "the control unit 15 does not accept a rice cooking start instruction from the terminal 200" of the present disclosure.

[0197] (Second Modification) In the above embodiment, it has been described that even if a stop instruction is remotely transmitted to the rice cooker 100 based on a user operation of the terminal 200, the arithmetic circuit 51 of the control unit 15 does not execute the rice cooking operation if the stop condition is not satisfied. In the above embodiment, this has been described as an example of "the control unit 15 does not accept a stop instruction from the terminal 200". However, the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, if the stop condition is not satisfied, the application software on the terminal 200 may be configured so that the user cannot input an operation to stop. Such an operation lock on the application software is also included in "the control unit 15 does not accept a stop instruction from the terminal 200" of the present disclosure.

[0198] (Third Modification) In the above embodiment, the remote control system 10 in which the terminal 200 remotely controls the rice cooker 100 via the server device 300 has been described, but the remote control of the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the remote control system of the present disclosure may be configured so that the terminal 200 can remotely control the rice cooker 100 by directly communicating with the rice cooker 100. [Industrial Applicability]

[0199] The present disclosure is applicable to rice cookers. [Explanation of symbols]

[0200] 1 Case 1a one side 2 Lid 2a Rotating tip 2b Lid side connection part 3 water container 4 rice container 5. Pot 5a opening 6 Rice washing device 7. Drainage tank 10 Remote Control System 11 Main body 11a One side 11b Pot storage section 11c front 12 base 13 Heating section 14 Temperature Sensor 15 Control section 16 Input Devices 17 Output Devices 18 Network 21 Display operation section 21A Display 21B Input button 22 Permission Switch 31 Step 31a Gasket 32 Water container sensor 33 Water level sensor 41 Step 42 Selection section 44 Rice container sensor 45 Rice storage sensor 51 Arithmetic circuit 52 Storage device 53 Input Interface 54 Output Interface 55 Communication Interface 56 Open / Close Sensor 57 Pot Sensor 58 Lid sensor 61 Rice washing motor 61a Output shaft 62 Rice washing blade 63 Rice washing tank 64 On-off valve 71 Drain pipe 72 Drainage pump 81 Lid side water pipe 81a One end 82 Container side water pipe 82a One end 83 Water Pump 84 Drainage Pump 91 Rice feeding tube 91a One end 92 Sending rice fans 93 Rice feeding device 100 Rice Cooker 200 terminals 300 Server device 301 Arithmetic circuit 302 Storage device 303 Communication Interface

Claims

1. A housing, a pot, a rice container for storing rice, a water container for storing water, a rice feeding unit for feeding the rice in the rice container into the pot, a water feeding unit for feeding the water in the water container into the pot, a heating unit for heating the pot, a control unit for controlling the rice feeding unit, the water feeding unit, and the heating unit, and performing a rice cooking operation including supplying rice and water into the pot and heating them, a communication unit for wirelessly receiving an operation instruction signal including a rice cooking start instruction for instructing the start of the rice cooking operation from a terminal, wherein the water container is detachably attached to a predetermined water container position of the rice cooker, the rice cooker further includes a water container sensor for detecting whether the water container is attached to the water container position, and when the water container sensor detects that the water container is not attached to the water container position in a rice cooking reservation state where the control unit starts the rice cooking operation at a rice cooking start time according to a set time, the control unit notifies the terminal. A rice cooker.

2. The operation instruction signal includes a stop instruction for instructing the stop of the rice cooking operation, and after the control unit stops the rice cooking operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, the control unit does not receive the rice cooking start instruction from the terminal via the communication unit unless a predetermined rice cooking start condition is satisfied. The rice cooker according to Claim 1.

3. The rice cooker further includes an operation unit for inputting the rice cooking start instruction to the control unit, and after the control unit stops the rice cooking operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, the control unit does not receive the rice cooking start instruction from the operation unit unless the rice cooking start condition is satisfied. The rice cooker according to Claim 2.

4. The rice cooker further includes a lid for covering the opening of the pot in an openable and closable manner, and an opening / closing sensor for detecting the opening and closing of the lid, and after the control unit stops the rice cooking operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, when the opening / closing sensor detects that the lid has been closed after being opened, the rice cooking start condition is satisfied, and the control unit can receive the rice cooking start instruction. The rice cooker according to Claim 2 or 3.

5. The rice cooker further includes a lid that is detachably attached to the housing and covers the opening of the pot in an openable and closable manner when attached to the housing, and a lid sensor for detecting whether the lid is attached to the housing. After the control unit stops the rice cooking operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, when the lid sensor detects that the lid has changed from a state of not being attached to the housing to a state of being attached, if the rice cooking start condition is satisfied, the control unit becomes capable of receiving the rice cooking start instruction. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 2 to 4.

6. The pot is removably accommodated in the housing. The rice cooker further includes a pot sensor that detects whether the pot is accommodated in the housing and whether the pot has been removed from the housing. After the control unit stops the rice cooking operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, when the pot sensor detects that the pot has been accommodated in the housing after being removed from the housing, if the rice cooking start condition is satisfied, the control unit becomes capable of receiving the rice cooking start instruction. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 2 to 5.

7. The rice cooker further includes a permission switch that, when turned on, permits the control unit to receive a rice cooking start instruction from the terminal. After the control unit stops the rice cooking operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, when the permission switch is in the on state, if the rice cooking start condition is satisfied, the control unit becomes capable of receiving the rice cooking start instruction. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 2 to 6.

8. The rice cooker further includes a temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the pot. After the control unit stops the rice cooking operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, after the completion of the rice cooking operation, when the temperature sensor detects that the temperature of the pot is equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold value, if the rice cooking start condition is satisfied, the control unit becomes capable of receiving the rice cooking start instruction. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 2 to 7.

9. After the control unit stops the rice cooking operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, when a predetermined time has elapsed since the time when the control unit received the stop instruction, if the rice cooking start condition is satisfied, the control unit becomes capable of receiving the rice cooking start instruction. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 2 to 8.

10. After starting the rice cooking operation, the control unit does not accept the cancellation instruction from the terminal via the communication unit unless a predetermined cancellation condition is satisfied, for the rice cooker according to any one of claims 2 to 9.

11. After the control unit starts the rice cooking operation, when the rice cooking operation is completed, if the cancellation condition is satisfied, the control unit can accept the cancellation instruction from the terminal via the communication unit, for the rice cooker according to claim 10.

12. When the control unit detects an abnormality in the rice cooking reservation state, it notifies the terminal, for the rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

13. When the control unit gives the notification, it starts the rice cooking operation at the rice cooking start time only when it receives a reservation continuation instruction from the terminal to continue the rice cooking reservation state before the rice cooking start time, for the rice cooker according to claim 12.

14. The rice cooker further includes a lid that covers the opening of the pot in an openable and closable manner, and an opening / closing sensor that detects the opening and closing of the lid. When the opening / closing sensor detects that the lid is open, the control unit detects the abnormality and notifies the terminal. The rice cooker according to claim 12 or 13.

15. The rice container is detachably attached to a predetermined rice container position of the rice cooker. The rice cooker further includes a rice container sensor that detects whether the rice container is attached to the rice container position. When the rice container sensor detects in the rice cooking reservation state that the rice container is not attached to the rice container position, the control unit detects the abnormality and notifies the terminal, for the rice cooker according to any one of claims 12 to 14. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 12 to 14.

16. The rice cooker includes a lid that is detachably attached to the housing and covers the opening of the pot in an openable and closable manner when attached to the housing. The rice cooker further includes a lid sensor that detects whether the lid is attached to the housing. When the lid sensor detects in the rice cooking reservation state that the lid is not attached to the housing, the control unit detects the abnormality and notifies the terminal, for the rice cooker according to any one of claims 12 to 15. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 12 to 15.

17. The terminal includes a first terminal and a second terminal. After receiving the rice cooking start instruction from the first terminal via the communication unit, the control unit does not receive the operation instruction signal from the second terminal via the communication unit until the rice cooking operation is completed. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 16.

18. The terminal includes a first terminal and a second terminal. After receiving a setting change instruction for changing a setting related to the rice cooking operation from the first terminal via the communication unit, the control unit does not receive the rice cooking start instruction and the setting change instruction from the second terminal via the communication unit until the rice cooking operation is completed. The rice cooker according to any one of claims 1 to 17.

19. The control unit is configured to be able to execute a heat preservation operation for keeping the pot warm by controlling the heating unit. The communication unit is configured to be able to wirelessly receive an operation instruction signal including a stop instruction for instructing the stop of the heat preservation operation. After stopping the heat preservation operation according to the stop instruction received by the communication unit, the control unit does not receive the rice cooking start instruction from the terminal via the communication unit unless a predetermined rice cooking start condition is satisfied. The rice cooker according to claim 18.

Images