Heating cooker control method and heating cooker

Abstract

To improve convenience for a user of a cooker.SOLUTION: A heating cooker includes a heating chamber, an imaging device for imaging the inside of the heating chamber, and a control device 300 for controlling heating of a material to be heated disposed in the heating chamber. The control device 300 includes: a captured image acquisition unit 302 for acquiring an image captured by the imaging device; a heating information acquisition unit 303 for referring to the acquired image of the material to be heated and acquiring heating information used for controlling heating of the material to be heated; a heating control unit 307 for controlling heating of the material to be heated according to the acquired heating information; and a state detection unit 304 for referring to the image captured by the imaging device and detecting presence or absence of the material to be heated in the heating chamber. The state detection unit 304 detects that the material to be heated is present in the heating chamber in the case where the heating information acquisition unit 303 is successful in acquiring the heating information within a prescribed time from the opening of a door for opening / closing an opening of the heating chamber.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to Cooking device control method and Regarding cooking appliances. [Background technology]

[0002] A cooking device has been proposed that uses a reader to read information codes attached to food containers and the like, and heats the food according to the read heating information (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The cooking device described in Patent Document 1 reads information codes attached to food containers and the like with a reader provided above the door that opens and closes the heating chamber.

[0003] The cooking device described in Patent Document 1 does not read the information code for a first period of time when it detects that the front door is open for the first time after heating has started. This makes it possible to avoid unnecessary operations such as reading the information code when removing heated food from the heating chamber and then having to set the heating information again. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2019 / 198274 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a cooking device capable of preventing so-called empty cooking, in which heating occurs when there is no object to be heated in the heating chamber. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, the control method for a heating cooker disclosed herein includes a heating information acquisition step of acquiring heating information used to control the heating of a heated object placed in the heating chamber by referring to an image captured, a presence / absence determination step of detecting and determining the presence or absence of a heated object placed in the heating chamber, and a heating step of heating the heated object placed in the heating chamber, and is characterized in that after the heating information is acquired in the heating information acquisition step, the heating step is started, and the presence / absence determination step is executed during the execution of the heating step, and if it is determined in the presence / absence determination step that a heated object is not placed in the heating chamber, the heating step is stopped.

[0007] In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, the control method of a heating cooker disclosed herein includes a heating information acquisition step of acquiring heating information used to control the heating of a heated object placed in the heating chamber by referring to an image captured, a presence / absence determination step of detecting and determining the presence or absence of a heated object placed in the heating chamber, an open / close detection step of detecting the opening and closing of the door, and a heating step of heating the heated object placed in the heating chamber, and is characterized in that after heating information is acquired in the heating information acquisition step, a closed state of the door is detected in the open / close detection step, and after the closed state of the door is detected in the open / close detection step, the heating step is started, the presence / absence determination step is executed during the execution of the heating step, and if it is determined in the presence / absence determination step that a heated object is placed in the heating chamber, the heating step is continued.

[0008] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the conventional heating cooker, the heating cooker of the present disclosure comprises a heating chamber, a heating unit that heats a heated object placed in the heating chamber, a control device that controls the heating operation of the heating unit, a start button that instructs the heating unit to start heating the heated object, a status detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a heated object placed in the heating chamber, a status determination unit that determines whether a heated object is placed in the heating chamber based on the detection result of the status detection unit, an image acquisition unit that acquires an image, and a heating information acquisition unit that acquires heating information used to control heating of the heated object by referring to the image acquired by the image acquisition unit, and is characterized in that after heating information is acquired by the image acquisition unit and the heating information acquisition unit, the start button instructs the heating unit to start heating, and if the status determination unit determines that a heated object is not placed in the heating chamber while heating is being performed by the heating unit in response to the instruction of the start button, the control device stops heating of the heated object.

[0009] In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, the heating cooker of the present disclosure comprises a heating chamber, a heating unit that heats a heated object placed in the heating chamber, a door, an opening / closing detection unit that detects the opening and closing of the door, a control device that controls the heating operation of the heating unit, a start button that instructs the heating unit to start heating the heated object, a status detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a heated object placed in the heating chamber, a status determination unit that determines whether a heated object is placed in the heating chamber based on the detection result of the status detection unit, an image acquisition unit that acquires an image, and a heating information acquisition unit that acquires heating information used to control the heating of the heated object by referring to the image acquired by the image acquisition unit, and is characterized in that after the heating information is acquired by the image acquisition unit and the heating information acquisition unit, the opening / closing detection unit detects that the door is closed, and after the opening / closing detection unit detects that the door is closed, the start button instructs the heating unit to start heating, and when the status determination unit determines that a heated object is placed in the heating chamber while heating is being performed by the heating unit based on the instruction of the start button, the control device continues heating the heated object. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the technology of the present disclosure, Prevents heating without anything being heated inside the heating chamber, i.e., empty heating. It is possible. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing the appearance of a cooking device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic cross section of the cooking device. [Diagram 3] 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a control device for a cooking device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a control method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 5] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a control method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a control method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] 1A and 1B are diagrams showing examples of an image of the inside of a heating chamber captured by an imaging device and a difference image. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the analysis results of the difference image shown in FIG. 7. [Figure 9] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a control method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 10] 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a control method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] 1A and 1B are diagrams showing examples of an image of the inside of a heating chamber captured by an imaging device and a difference image. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] A heating cooker according to an embodiment of the present disclosure automatically reads heating information representing control information such as the type of heating means, the output of the heating means, the heating time, and the heating temperature, which is stored in a barcode or the like attached to the heated object when the heated object such as food is placed in the heating chamber, and automatically heats the heated object according to the read heating information.

[0013] In the heating cooker of this embodiment, after heating the object to be heated, the reading of the heating information is stopped until the heated object is removed from the heating chamber, and when it detects that the object to be heated has been removed from the heating chamber, the reading of the heating information is started. This allows the user to place the next object to be heated in the heating chamber immediately after removing the heated object to be heated, and have it automatically heated according to the heating information.

[0014] The cooking device of the present embodiment is provided in the heating chamber, and an imaging device for imaging the inside of the heating chamber reads the heating information. Therefore, since there is no need to have the reading device scan a barcode or the like attached to the object to be heated in order to have the reading device read the heating information, even an inexperienced user can heat the object quickly. In addition, the efficiency of the user's work can be improved.

[0015] The technology disclosed herein is applicable to cooking appliances such as microwave ovens, ovens, toasters, roasters, gas stoves, stoves, rice cookers, bread makers, cooking heaters, hot plates, and pressure cookers for cooking objects to be heated, such as food.

[0016] 1 shows the appearance of a cooking device 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Cooking device 100 includes a housing 101, a door 102 that opens and closes a front opening provided in a front frame that forms the front surface of housing 101, and an operation unit 105 provided on the right side of door 102.

[0017] In the description of the present disclosure, the front opening side of the cooking device 100 is the front side, and the opposite rear side is the rear side. When viewed from the front side, i.e., from the front, the top side of the cooking device 100 is the upper side, and the bottom side is the lower side.

[0018] The door 102 is attached to the housing 101 on the left side of the front opening so as to be openable and closable about a horizontal rotation center axis. The door 102 is provided with a glass window 103 so that a user can check the situation inside the heating chamber. The door 102 has a handle 104 at the upper end of the front side. When the user pulls the handle 104, the door 102 is rotated to open the front opening. When the user pushes the handle 104, the front opening is closed. An opening / closing sensor for detecting the opening and closing of the door 102 is provided on the door 102 or the housing 101. The detection result by the opening / closing sensor is transmitted to the control device 300.

[0019] An operation unit 105 having a vertically long shape in a front view is provided on the right side of the front surface of the housing 101. The operation unit 105 has a plurality of operation switches for the user to set cooking contents, and a display unit 106 for displaying the operation status to the user. Each operation switch is a button 107, 109, 110 for selecting various information, a start button 108 for starting cooking, etc. The display unit 106 displays the operating state of the cooking device 100, the operation status by the operation switch, etc. Each operation switch and the display unit are controlled by a control device 300. The control device 300 may be configured by, for example, a CPU, a microcomputer, or hardware logic.

[0020] 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of cooking device 100. Heating chamber 201 is provided inside housing 101 of cooking device 100. Two magnetrons 202a, 202b are provided above and below at the rear of heating chamber 201. Microwaves generated from magnetrons 202a, 202b under the control of control device 300 are radiated into heating chamber 201 from above and below. This allows object to be heated 203 placed on the bottom inside heating chamber 201 to be heated uniformly. Note that the number of magnetrons may be one.

[0021] The cooking device 100 may supply radiant heat, hot air, steam, or the like to heat the object 203. For this purpose, the cooking device 100 may have, as heating means, a heater unit that heats the object with radiant heat, a convection heater unit that circulates hot air in the heating chamber 201, a steam generating unit that generates steam in the heating chamber 201, or the like.

[0022] An imaging device 204 for capturing images of the interior of the heating chamber 201 is provided above the heating chamber 201. The installation position, orientation, angle of view, etc. of the imaging device 204 are adjusted so that the imaging device 204 can capture images of almost the entire area in which an object to be heated can be placed in the heating chamber 201. The imaging by the imaging device 204 is controlled by the control device 300.

[0023] 3 shows the configuration of the control device of the cooking device according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. The control device 300 includes an image capture control unit 301, an image capture image acquisition unit 302, a heating information acquisition unit 303, a state detection unit 304, a removal determination unit 305, a comparison determination unit 306, a heating control unit 307, and a storage unit 308. These configurations can be realized in hardware by the CPU, memory, and other LSIs of any computer, and in software by a program loaded into the memory, but here, functional blocks realized by their cooperation are depicted. Therefore, it is understood by those skilled in the art that these functional blocks can be realized in various forms by hardware alone or a combination of hardware and software.

[0024] The imaging control unit 301 controls the imaging of the inside of the heating chamber 201 by the imaging device 204. When the imaging control unit 301 is instructed by another component to image the inside of the heating chamber 201, it instructs the imaging device 204 to image. The imaging control unit 301 may control the imaging range, resolution, zoom magnification, etc. of the imaging device 204.

[0025] The captured image acquisition unit 302 acquires an image captured by the imaging device 204 from the imaging device 204. The captured image acquisition unit 302 stores in the storage unit 308 data of the acquired image.

[0026] The heating information acquisition unit 303 acquires heating information attached to the object to be heated 203 from the image of the object to be heated 203 captured by the imaging device 204. The heating information acquisition unit 303 reads out the image of the object to be heated 203 captured by the captured image acquisition unit 302 from the storage unit 308, and reads the heating information.

[0027] The state detection unit 304 detects the presence or absence of an object to be heated in the heating chamber 201, or the removal of the object to be heated from the heating chamber 201, by referring to the image captured by the imaging device 204. When the door 102 is opened, the heating information acquisition unit 303 does not acquire heating information until the state detection unit 304 detects that there is no object to be heated in the heating chamber 201, or that the object to be heated that was in the heating chamber 201 has been removed from the heating chamber 201. When the state detection unit 304 detects that there is no object to be heated in the heating chamber 201, or that the object to be heated that was in the heating chamber 201 has been removed from the heating chamber 201, the acquisition of heating information is enabled, and the heating information acquisition unit 303 starts processing to acquire heating information. This makes it possible to suppress the unnecessary execution of processing to acquire heating information even when it is not the timing to acquire heating information, thereby reducing power consumption. In addition, it is possible to suppress the setting of heating information of an object to be heated that was already in the heating chamber 201, thereby reducing malfunctions.

[0028] The removal determination unit 305 determines whether the object to be heated has been removed from the heating chamber 201 by referring to the image captured by the imaging device 204. The details of the determination will be described later.

[0029] The comparison and determination unit 306 refers to the image captured by the imaging device 204 and determines whether or not an object to be heated is present in the heating chamber 201. Details of the determination will be described later.

[0030] The heating control unit 307 controls the heating means such as the magnetrons 202a and 202b to automatically heat the object to be heated according to the heating information acquired by the heating information acquisition unit 303. If the heating information is not set, the heating control unit 307 heats the object to be heated according to the heating conditions received from the operation unit 105.

[0031] Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing the steps of the control method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 4 shows the steps of the control method after an object to be heated, such as food, has been cooked, that is, when the object to be heated is present in heating chamber 201.

[0032] When the state detection unit 304 detects that the door 102 has been opened (S10), it starts a process of detecting the removal of an object to be heated, such as food, (S31). The heating information acquisition unit 303 does not read the heating information until it detects that the cooked object to be heated has been removed. The removal detection process will be described in detail later.

[0033] When the state detection unit 304 detects that the food has been removed (S45), the heating information acquisition unit 303 starts reading the heating information (S50). If the door 102 is closed without successfully reading the heating information, it is considered that a new object to be heated has not been placed in the heating chamber 201, or an object to be heated without heating information attached has been placed in the heating chamber 201, so reading of the heating information may be stopped.

[0034] When a new object to be heated with heating information attached is placed in the heating chamber 201 and the heating information acquisition unit 303 successfully reads the heating information (S54), the heating control unit 307 sets the read heating information (S60). When the door 102 is closed (S61) and the start button 108 is pressed (S62), the heating control unit 307 performs cooking according to the set heating information (S63).

[0035] Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the control method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, in which it is unknown whether or not an object to be heated is present in heating chamber 201.

[0036] When the state detection unit 304 detects that the door 102 has been opened (S10), it executes a process of determining whether or not there is an object to be heated, such as food, in the heating chamber 201 (S20). If there is no object to be heated, such as food, in the heating chamber 201 (N in S30), there is a possibility that a new object to be heated will be placed in the heating chamber 201, so the heating information acquisition unit 303 starts reading the heating information (S50).

[0037] If an object to be heated such as food is present in the heating chamber 201 (Y in S30), the object to be heated is likely to have already been cooked, so the heating information acquisition unit 303 does not read the heating information until it is detected that the object to be heated has been removed. The state detection unit 304 starts a process of detecting the removal of an object to be heated such as food (S31). The process of detecting the removal of an object to be heated that has been cooked will be described in detail later.

[0038] When the state detection unit 304 detects that the food has been removed (S45), the heating information acquisition unit 303 starts reading the heating information (S50). If the door 102 is closed without successfully reading the heating information, it is considered that a new object to be heated has not been placed in the heating chamber 201, or an object to be heated without heating information attached has been placed in the heating chamber 201, so reading of the heating information may be stopped.

[0039] When a new object to be heated with heating information attached is placed in the heating chamber 201 and the heating information acquisition unit 303 successfully reads the heating information (S54), the heating control unit 307 sets the read heating information (S60). When the door 102 is closed (S61) and the start button 108 is pressed (S62), the heating control unit 307 performs cooking according to the set heating information (S63).

[0040] Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the steps of the control method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 6 shows in more detail the steps of detecting the removal of an object to be heated, such as food, and the steps of reading heating information in the steps shown in Fig. 4.

[0041] When the state detection unit 304 detects that the door 102 has been opened (S10), it starts a process of detecting the removal of an object to be heated, such as food.

[0042] FIG. 7 shows an example of an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the imaging device 204 and a difference image. FIG. 7(a) shows an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the imaging device 204, and FIG. 7(b) shows an image of the next frame. When a user removes an object to be heated from the heating chamber 201, the captured image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 shows the user's hand and the object to be heated. FIG. 7(c) shows a difference image between the image shown in FIG. 7(a) and the image shown in FIG. 7(b). When a user puts an object to be heated in or takes it out of the heating chamber 201, the user's hand and the object to be heated move in the depth direction of the heating chamber 201 (the y direction of the captured image), so that as shown in FIG. 7(c), the peak value in the y direction of the difference image corresponds to the tip of the user's hand or the object to be heated.

[0043] FIG. 8 shows the analysis result of the difference image shown in FIG. 7. FIG. 8(a) shows the time change of the number of pixels whose difference is not 0 included in the difference image shown in FIG. 7(c). The number of pixels whose difference is not 0 reflects the movement of the user's hand. FIG. 8(b) shows the time change of the peak value of the y coordinate of the difference image shown in FIG. 7(c). The peak value of the y coordinate of the difference image increases as the user's hand is inserted into the heating chamber 201, and then decreases as the user removes the object to be heated from the heating chamber 201. Therefore, the removal determination unit 305 determines that the user has removed the object to be heated from the heating chamber 201 when the peak value of the y direction of the difference image exceeds the first threshold and then falls below the second threshold. The first threshold may be the minimum depth that the user needs to insert his / her hand to remove the object to be heated placed in the heating chamber 201. The second threshold may be the frontmost position of the imaging range of the imaging device 204. The first threshold value and the second threshold value may be determined in advance through experiments or the like, may be changed by the user, or may be updated from the outside through communication or the like.

[0044] The state detection unit 304 instructs the image capture control unit 301 to capture an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 (S32). The captured image acquisition unit 302 acquires an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the image capture device 204 from the image capture device 204 and stores it in the storage unit 308. The removal determination unit 305 compares the image captured by the image capture unit 302 with the image of the previous frame stored in the storage unit 308 to calculate a difference image (S33) and checks the peak value of the y coordinate of the difference image (S34). In S34, until the peak value of the y coordinate of the difference image exceeds a first threshold value (20 in the example of FIG. 6) (N in S35), the process returns to S32 and continues to check the operation of the user inserting his / her hand into the heating chamber 201 to remove the object to be heated. When the peak value of the y coordinate of the difference image exceeds the first threshold value (Y in S35), the process next checks the operation of the user gripping the object to be heated and removing it from the heating chamber 201.

[0045] The state detection unit 304 instructs the image capture control unit 301 to capture an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 (S41). The captured image acquisition unit 302 acquires an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the image capture device 204 from the image capture device 204 and stores it in the storage unit 308. The removal determination unit 305 compares the image captured by the captured image acquisition unit 302 with the image of the previous frame stored in the storage unit 308 to calculate a difference image (S42) and checks the peak value of the y coordinate of the difference image (S43). In S43, the process returns to S41 and continues to check the user's action of removing the heated object until the peak value of the y coordinate of the difference image falls below the second threshold (20 in the example of FIG. 6) (N in S44). When the peak value of the y coordinate of the difference image falls below the second threshold (Y in S44), the heating information acquisition unit 303 starts reading the heating information.

[0046] The heating information acquisition unit 303 instructs the image capture control unit 301 to capture an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 (S51). The captured image acquisition unit 302 acquires an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the image capture device 204 from the image capture device 204 and stores it in the storage unit 308. The heating information acquisition unit 303 recognizes the heating information of the object to be heated that is captured in the acquired image (S52). If the heating information acquisition unit 303 fails to recognize or the recognized heating information is invalid (N in S53), the process returns to S51 and continues to recognize the heating information. If the heating information acquisition unit 303 succeeds in recognizing valid heating information (Y in S53), the heating control unit 307 sets the read heating information (S60). When the door 102 is closed (S61) and the start button 108 is pressed (S62), the heating control unit 307 performs heating cooking according to the set heating information (S63).

[0047] Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the control method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, which shows in more detail the procedure of determining whether or not an object to be heated is present in heating chamber 201 in the procedure shown in Fig. 5.

[0048] When the state detection unit 304 detects that the door 102 is opened (S10), it executes a process to determine whether or not there is an object to be heated, such as food, in the heating chamber 201. The heating information acquisition unit 303 instructs the imaging control unit 301 to capture an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 (S21). The captured image acquisition unit 302 acquires an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the imaging device 204 from the imaging device 204 and stores it in the storage unit 308. The heating information acquisition unit 303 recognizes the heating information of the object to be heated that is captured in the acquired image (S22). If the heating information acquisition unit 303 fails to recognize or the recognized heating information is invalid (N in S23), the process returns to S21 and continues recognizing the heating information. If the heating information acquisition unit 303 succeeds in recognizing valid heating information (Y in S23), it may be that the heating information of a heated object that was in the heating chamber 201 before the door 102 was opened is read, or that the heating information of a heated object that was placed in the heating chamber 201 after the door 102 was opened is read.

[0049] If the heating information is successfully read within a predetermined number of times (three times in the example of FIG. 9) after the door 102 is opened (Y in S24), it is highly likely that the heating information of the object to be heated that was in the heating chamber 201 before the door 102 was opened has been read, and it is considered that the object to be heated has already been heated. Therefore, when the state detection unit 304 detects that the object to be heated has been removed (S32 to S44), and the heating information acquisition unit 303 reads the heating information of the object to be heated that has been newly placed in the heating chamber 201 (S51 to S53), the heating control unit 307 sets the read heating information (S60). The details of the procedures of S32 to S44 and S51 to S53 are the same as those in FIG. 6.

[0050] If the heating information is successfully read after the heating information recognition process has been performed a predetermined number of times or more since the door 102 was opened (N in S24), it is assumed that the heating information of the heated object placed in the heating chamber 201 after the door 102 was opened has been read, and the heating control unit 307 sets the read heating information (S60).

[0051] When door 102 is closed (S61) and start button 108 is pressed (S62), heating control section 307 carries out cooking according to the set heating information (S63).

[0052] Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the control method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, which shows in more detail the procedure of determining whether or not an object to be heated is present in heating chamber 201 in the procedure shown in Fig. 5.

[0053] When it is detected that the door 102 is opened (S10), the state detection unit 304 executes a process of determining whether or not there is an object to be heated, such as food, in the heating chamber 201.

[0054] FIG. 11 shows an example of an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the imaging device 204 and a difference image. FIG. 11(a) shows an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the imaging device 204 when no object to be heated is placed in the heating chamber 201 (empty image inside the chamber). FIG. 11(b) shows an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the captured image acquisition unit 302 when an object to be heated is placed in the heating chamber 201. FIG. 11(c) shows an image obtained by binarizing the difference between the image shown in FIG. 11(a) and the image shown in FIG. 11(b). It is possible to determine whether or not an object to be heated is present in the heating chamber 201 based on the shape or size of the object shown in the difference image, the number of pixels with a difference in the difference image (difference value), etc.

[0055] The status detection unit 304 instructs the image capture control unit 301 to capture an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 (S21). The captured image acquisition unit 302 acquires an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the image capture device 204 from the image capture device 204 and stores it in the memory unit 308. The comparison and determination unit 306 calculates a difference image between the acquired image of the inside of the chamber and the empty image of the inside of the chamber stored in the memory unit 308 (S25) and checks the difference value. If the difference value is less than a predetermined value (500 in the example of FIG. 10) (N in S26), the comparison and determination unit 306 determines that there is no object to be heated in the heating chamber 201, and the heating information acquisition unit 303 starts reading the heating information (S51 to S53). The details of the procedure for reading the heating information are the same as those in FIG. 5.

[0056] If the difference value is equal to or greater than the predetermined value (Y in S26), the comparison and judgment unit 306 judges that there is an object to be heated in the heating chamber 201. This object to be heated was in the heating chamber 201 before the door 102 was opened, and is considered to have already been heated. Therefore, reading of the heating information is stopped until the object to be heated is removed from the heating chamber 201.

[0057] The state detection unit 304 instructs the image capture control unit 301 to capture an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 (S27). The captured image acquisition unit 302 acquires the image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the image capture device 204 from the image capture device 204 and stores it in the storage unit 308. The comparison and determination unit 306 calculates a difference image between the acquired image of the inside of the chamber and the empty image of the inside of the chamber stored in the storage unit 308 (S28) and checks the number of pixels with a difference (difference value). If the difference value is equal to or greater than a predetermined value (500 in the example of FIG. 10) (N in S29), the comparison and determination unit 306 determines that the object to be heated has not been removed from the heating chamber 201, and returns to S27 to continue the procedure of detecting the removal of the object to be heated. If the difference value is less than the predetermined value (Y in S29), it is considered that the object to be heated has been removed from the heating chamber 201 and is now empty, so the heating information acquisition unit 303 starts reading the heating information (S51 to S53). The details of the procedure for reading the heating information are the same as those in FIG.

[0058] The heating control unit 307 sets the read heating information (S60). When the door 102 is closed (S61) and the start button 108 is pressed (S62), the heating control unit 307 performs cooking according to the set heating information (S63).

[0059] Since there is a possibility that after the object to be heated is placed in the heating chamber 201 and the heating information is read, the object to be heated may be removed before the door 102 is closed, it may be possible to check again whether or not there is an object to be heated in the heating chamber 201 after the start button 108 is pressed, and the heating control unit 307 executes heating and cooking after it is confirmed that there is an object to be heated. This makes it possible to prevent empty baking when there is no object to be heated in the heating chamber 201.

[0060] The present disclosure has been described above based on examples. These examples are merely illustrative, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications are possible in the combination of each component or each treatment process, and that such modifications are also within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0061] In the embodiment, the presence or absence of an object to be heated in the heating chamber 201 is determined by referring to an image of the inside of the heating chamber 201 captured by the imaging device 204. However, in another example, the presence or absence of an object to be heated may be detected by a weight sensor provided at the bottom of the heating chamber 201, or the presence or absence of an object to be heated may be detected by a photosensor, a photoelectric sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a laser sensor, or the like.

[0062] In the embodiment, the imaging device 204 is provided inside the heating chamber 201, but in another example, the imaging device 204 may be provided near the door 102 or the opening of the heating chamber 201, or the like.

[0063] An aspect of the present disclosure is a cooking device. The cooking device includes a heating chamber, an imaging device for imaging the inside of the heating chamber, and a control device for controlling the heating of the object placed in the heating chamber. The control device includes an image acquisition unit for acquiring an image captured by the imaging device, a heating information acquisition unit for acquiring heating information used to control the heating of the object by referring to the image of the object acquired by the image acquisition unit, a heating control unit for controlling the heating of the object according to the heating information acquired by the heating information acquisition unit, and a state detection unit for detecting the presence or absence of the object in the heating chamber or the removal of the object from the heating chamber by referring to the image captured by the imaging device. When the state detection unit detects that there is no object in the heating chamber or that the object has been removed from the heating chamber, the heating information acquisition unit enables the acquisition of heating information. According to this aspect, the work efficiency of the user can be improved, and the convenience of the user can be improved.

[0064] The heating information acquisition unit does not need to acquire heating information when it detects that the door for opening and closing the opening of the heating chamber is opened, until it detects that there is no object to be heated in the heating chamber, or until it detects that the object to be heated in the heating chamber has been removed from the heating chamber. According to this aspect, it is possible to reduce power consumption.

[0065] The state detection unit may detect the removal of the object from the heating chamber by detecting the movement of the user's hand or the object based on the captured images captured at different times. According to this aspect, the detection accuracy can be improved.

[0066] The state detection unit may calculate the difference between the images of the inside of the heating chamber captured at different times, and detect the change in the difference over time as the movement of the user's hand or the object to be heated. According to this aspect, the detection accuracy can be improved.

[0067] The state detection unit may detect whether the object to be heated is removed from the heating chamber when the user's hand or the object to be heated reaches a predetermined range within the heating chamber and then reaches the vicinity of the opening of the heating chamber. According to this aspect, it is possible to improve the detection accuracy.

[0068] The state detection unit may detect the presence or absence of the object to be heated in the heating chamber by comparing an image of the inside of the heating chamber when the object to be heated is not present with an image of the inside of the heating chamber acquired by the image acquisition unit. According to this aspect, it is possible to improve the detection accuracy.

[0069] The state detection unit may detect that an object to be heated is present in the heating chamber when the heating information acquisition unit succeeds in acquiring the heating information within a predetermined time after the door for opening and closing the opening of the heating chamber is opened. According to this aspect, it is possible to improve the detection accuracy.

[0070] The imaging device may be provided so as to be able to image an area in the heating chamber where the object to be heated can be placed. According to this aspect, it is possible to improve the detection accuracy and the working efficiency.

[0071] Another aspect of the present disclosure is a control device. The control device includes an image acquisition unit that acquires an image captured by an imaging device for imaging the inside of a heating chamber, a heating information acquisition unit that acquires heating information used to control the heating of the heated object by referring to the image of the heated object acquired by the image acquisition unit, a heating control unit that controls the heating of the heated object according to the heating information acquired by the heating information acquisition unit, and a state detection unit that detects the presence or absence of the heated object in the heating chamber or the removal of the heated object from the heating chamber by referring to the image captured by the imaging device. When the state detection unit detects that there is no heated object in the heating chamber or that the heated object has been removed from the heating chamber, the heating information acquisition unit enables the acquisition of heating information. According to this aspect, the work efficiency of the user can be improved, and the convenience of the user can be improved.

[0072] Yet another aspect of the present disclosure is a control method. This control method includes a step of acquiring an image captured by an imaging device for capturing an image of the inside of a heating chamber, a step of acquiring heating information used to control the heating of the heated object by referring to the acquired image of the heated object, a step of controlling the heating of the heated object according to the acquired heating information, and a step of detecting the presence or absence of the heated object in the heating chamber or the removal of the heated object from the heating chamber by referring to the image captured by the imaging device. When it is detected in the step of detecting that there is no heated object in the heating chamber or that the heated object has been removed from the heating chamber, the step of acquiring the heating information enables the acquisition of the heating information. According to this aspect, the work efficiency of the user can be improved, and the convenience of the user can be improved. [Explanation of symbols]

[0073] 100 cooking appliance, 101 housing, 102 door, 103 glass window, 104 handle, 105 operation unit, 106 display unit, 107 button, 108 start button, 201 heating chamber, 202 magnetron, 203 object to be heated, 204 imaging device, 300 control device, 301 photography control unit, 302 image acquisition unit, 303 heating information acquisition unit, 304 status detection unit, 305 removal determination unit, 306 comparison determination unit, 307 heating control unit, 308 memory unit.

Claims

[Claim 1] A heating chamber and An imaging device for imaging the inside of the heating chamber; A control device for controlling heating of the object to be heated placed in the heating chamber; Equipped with The control device includes: a captured image acquisition unit that acquires an image captured by the imaging device; a heating information acquisition unit that acquires heating information used to control heating of the heated object by referring to the image of the heated object acquired by the captured image acquisition unit; A heating control unit that controls heating of the object to be heated according to the heating information acquired by the heating information acquisition unit; A state detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a heated object in the heating chamber by referring to an image captured by the imaging device; Equipped with The status detection unit of the heating cooker detects that there is an object to be heated in the heating chamber if the heating information acquisition unit succeeds in acquiring heating information within a predetermined time after the door for opening and closing the opening of the heating chamber is opened.

Images