Heating cooker

Abstract

To provide a heating cooker which enables input of numeric values by familiar operation in a device such as a smartphone.SOLUTION: A heating cooker of the invention includes: display means 6; a touch panel 8 which is provided at a position overlapping with a display screen of the display means 6 as a touch operation part which receives touch operation from a user and receives the operation from the user; and display control means 62 which controls display of the display means 6 based on the operation input to the touch panel 8. The display control means 62 receives, as operations input to the touch panel 8, a touch operation in which a predetermined position on the touch panel 8 is touched and a slide operation in which the predetermined position is touched with a finger and the finger slides from the predetermined position. With the touch operation, an operation for setting a heating output of the heating cooker can be performed. In the slide operation, the touch panel 8 is operated on picker display parts B6, B7, B9 which are regions in which numerical values indicating a heating time at the set heating output of the heating cooker are displayed. With the slide operation, the set heating time is displayed between an upper limit value and a lower limit value, which may be set at the set heating output, in a looped manner.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cooking device having improved operability of a display screen for performing cooking settings and the like. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, in this type of heating cooker, a color LCD panel capable of displaying, for example, letters, numbers, photographs, etc. in color is provided as a display means for the display screen for setting up cooking, and the color LCD panel is configured as a touch panel so that, for example, a user can select an image to be displayed on the color LCD panel by touching the touch panel with their finger (for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-124459 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above-mentioned conventional technology, for example, in the cooking device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the operation means for the touch panel is touch operation, so when inputting numerical values ​​into the cooking device, it is desirable to have a configuration that allows the user to use a familiar UI, such as that of a smartphone, as is.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a cooking device that allows numerical values ​​to be input using familiar operations such as a smartphone. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The heating cooker of the present invention comprises a display means, a touch panel that is provided at an overlapping position on the display screen of the display means and accepts user operations, and a display control means that controls the display of the display means based on operations on the touch panel, and the display control means accepts, as the operations, a touch operation in which a predetermined position on the touch panel is touched, and a slide operation in which a predetermined position on the touch panel is touched and slid from there, and the touch operation enables an operation to set the heating output of the heating cooker, and the slide operation is an operation of the touch panel over an area in which a numerical value indicating the heating time at the set heating output of the heating cooker is displayed, and the slide operation causes the set heating time to be displayed in a loop between an upper limit value and a lower limit value that can be set at the set heating output. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a cooking device that allows a user to visually check the entire information on a display means and allows the user to use a UI that is familiar to users on smartphones and the like by simply operating the touch panel. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is an external perspective view of a cooking device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the inside of a hot air unit, an upper heater, and a lower heater in the cooking appliance of the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is an internal explanatory diagram of a steam unit in the cooking device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the internal structure of the cooking device according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the same. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means on which the first top screen is displayed. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means on which the second top screen is displayed. [Figure 8]FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means showing the main display parts related to the operation of setting the microwave heating time in the manual microwave menu displayed on the first top screen of the same device. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing the display operation of the picker display section for the tens and units digits that rotates like a drum roll. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means showing all display sections displayed while setting the microwave heating time in the manual microwave menu displayed on the first top screen of the embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means displayed when the microwave heating time is set to "00" minutes and "00" seconds on the first top screen, and an explanatory diagram showing the state of the main key display section and button display section. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means displayed when the microwave heating time is set to "00" minutes and "10" seconds on the first top screen, and an explanatory diagram showing the state of the main key display section and button display section. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means displayed when the microwave heating time is set to "00" minutes and "50" seconds on the first top screen, and an explanatory diagram showing the state of the main key display section and button display section. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means displayed when the microwave heating time is set to "01" minutes and "00" seconds on the first top screen, and an explanatory diagram showing the state of the main key display section and button display section. [Figure 15] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means displayed when the microwave heating time is set to "09" minutes and "00" seconds on the first top screen, and an explanatory diagram showing the state of the main key display section and button display section. [Figure 16] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means displayed when the microwave heating time is set to "10" minutes and "00" seconds on the first top screen, and an explanatory diagram showing the state of the main key display section and button display section. [Figure 17] FIG. 11 is a front view of the display means displayed when the microwave heating time is set to "90" minutes and "00" seconds on the first top screen, and an explanatory diagram showing the state of the main key display section and button display section. [Figure 18]FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram for displaying hamburger recipe information on a display means by a swipe operation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, common parts are designated by common reference numerals throughout these drawings.

[0010] Figures 1 to 18 show an embodiment in which the cooking device of the present invention is applied to an oven range. First, the overall structure of the oven range will be described with reference to Figure 1. Reference numeral 1 denotes a main body formed in a substantially rectangular box shape, which is provided with a metal cabinet 2 as a member that covers the outer shell of the oven range that will be the product. Reference numeral 3 denotes a door provided on the front of the main body 1 that can be opened and closed freely.

[0011] The top of the door 3 is provided with a handle 4 for opening and closing the door 3, which opens vertically, and the side of the door 3 is provided with an operation panel section 5 for display, notification and operation. The operation panel section 5 is provided with a display means 6 for displaying cooking settings and progress, as well as operation means 9, such as keys 7 provided on the operation panel section 5 and a touch panel 8 provided on the surface of the display means 6, for enabling various operation inputs related to cooking. Although not shown, an operation panel PC (printed circuit) board is provided inside the door 3 behind the operation panel section 5 for controlling the display means 6 and operation means 9.

[0012] A water supply cassette 11 and a water receiver 12 are disposed at the bottom of the main body 1 and can be attached and detached from the front of the main body 1. The water supply cassette 11 is a bottomed container that holds liquid water as a liquid supply source for steam heating food placed in a cooking chamber 14, which will be described later. The water receiver 12 is also a bottomed container that receives food debris, water droplets, steam, etc. from the main body 1.

[0013] The display means 6 is a backlit display that displays all information related to cooking, such as the type of heating, the name of the dish, the heating time, the temperature, and a photo of the cooking, in color using letters, numbers, symbols, photos, etc., and is configured here as a liquid crystal display using TFTs (thin film transistors) as switching elements, but other display devices such as organic electroluminescence (EL) may also be used, and it may be black and white as well as color. In either case, the flat display means 6 is disposed at a position higher than the keys 7, toward the top of one side of the door 3, so that it is easy to see when the user is positioned in front of the oven range.

[0014] The keys 7 are provided as a push operation section that accepts push operations from the user, at a position that does not overlap with the display means 6 of the operation panel section 5, and here comprise a start key 7A and a cancel key 7B. The start key 7A is a key that is pushed to start cooking, and the cancel key 7B is a key that is pushed to stop cooking midway or to cancel an operation or setting. In this embodiment, an illumination lamp such as an LED (not shown) is provided near the start key 7A to light or flash the start key 7A as necessary.

[0015] The touch panel 8 is provided at a position overlapping the display screen of the display means 6 as a touch operation unit that accepts touch operations from the user. For example, in the case of a capacitive touch panel 8 made of a transparent material, when a user touches the surface of the touch panel 8 with a finger, the surface charge changes and an operation signal is output. Note that, in addition to the capacitive type, a resistive film type, a surface acoustic wave type, an infrared type, or an electromagnetic induction type touch panel 8 may also be used. Furthermore, the touch panel 8 may be operated not only with a finger but also with a pen-shaped object such as a touch pen.

[0016] 2 to 4 show the internal structure of the oven range in this embodiment. In each of these figures, the peripheral walls that form the cooking chamber 14 are made up of a ceiling wall 14a, a bottom wall 14b, a left side wall 14c, a right side wall 14d, and a back wall 14e. The ceiling wall 14a is dome-shaped with a convex shape facing upward, while the walls 14b to 14e other than the ceiling wall 14a are all formed flat.

[0017] The back wall 14e of the cooking chamber 14 has an intake port 16 in its center, and horizontally long hot air outlets 17, 18 are provided above and below the intake port 16. An upper heater 19 that heats the food to be cooked from above the cooking chamber 14 is embedded in the ceiling wall 14a of the cooking chamber 14, and a lower heater 20 that heats the food to be cooked from below the cooking chamber 14 is embedded in the bottom wall 14b of the cooking chamber 14.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 2, reference numeral 21 denotes a hot air unit provided inside main body 1 behind cooking chamber 14. This hot air unit 21 is composed of a hot air heater 22 as a heating means for heating air, a hot air fan 23 as a centrifugal fan for sending heated air into cooking chamber 14 and circulating it, and a hot air motor 24 for rotating hot air fan 23 in the forward or reverse direction.

[0019] A hot air fan 23 is provided in the approximate center of the hot air unit 21 facing the suction port 16, and a hot air heater 22 is arranged around it, and when the hot air fan 23 rotates as a result of the hot air motor 24 being energized, air sucked in from inside the cooking chamber 14 through the suction port 16 is blown out in the radial direction of the hot air fan 23, heated by the hot air heater 22, and supplied into the cooking chamber 14 through the hot air outlets 17, 18. This forms a path for circulating hot air inside and outside the cooking chamber 14, and the food to be cooked in the cooking chamber 14 is heated and cooked in the oven. The hot air unit 21 is stored in a case 25 attached to the rear of the cooking chamber 14.

[0020] As mentioned above, an upper heater 19 and a lower heater 20 are provided in the cooking chamber 14, and when electricity is applied to the upper heater 19 and the lower heater 20, infrared heat radiation from the upper heater 19 and the lower heater 20 is generated in the sealed space within the cooking chamber 14, thereby heating the food to be cooked in the cooking chamber 14 and grilling it.

[0021] As shown in Fig. 3, reference numeral 26 denotes a steam unit serving as a steam generating device provided inside main body 1 on the side of cooking chamber 14. This steam unit 26 is connected in communication with a steam generator 29 via a pump 27 that delivers water from inside water supply cassette 11 and a water supply pipe 28 in order to supply saturated steam or superheated steam into cooking chamber 14.

[0022] The steam generator 29 has a sheathed heater 31 embedded in a hollow evaporation chamber 32 made of die-cast aluminum, and the water supply pipe 28 is connected to the evaporation chamber 32. The water supplied into the evaporation chamber 32 is heated by passing electricity through the sheathed heater 31 to generate steam, which can be supplied into the cooking chamber 14 from a plurality of steam outlets 33 formed in the left side wall 14c of the cooking chamber 14. This generates a flow of steam in the cooking chamber 14 as shown by the dashed lines in Figure 3, and heats the food to be cooked in the cooking chamber 14, thereby performing steam cooking.

[0023] 4, 34 is a microwave generator that is provided below bottom wall 14b of cooking chamber 14 and irradiates microwaves to food to be cooked from below cooking chamber 14 to perform range heating. Microwave generator 34 is composed of magnetron 35, which is a source that generates microwaves, waveguide 36 that guides microwaves from magnetron 35 into cooking chamber 14, antenna 37 that radiates microwaves from waveguide 36 to cooking chamber 14, antenna motor 39, such as an AC motor, that horizontally rotates antenna 37 around upright shaft 38, and microswitch 40 attached near antenna 37.

[0024] In addition, a control means 41, which will be described later, is installed below the bottom wall 14b of the cooking chamber 14, and an internal temperature distribution detection means 42 is installed above the right side wall 14d of the cooking chamber 14. The internal temperature distribution detection means 42 is configured by equipping an infrared sensor (not shown) with a swing mechanism, and detects the temperature distribution inside the cooking chamber 14, thereby making it possible to detect the temperature of the food to be cooked placed therein.

[0025] The main electrical configuration of the oven range is shown in Figure 5. In the figure, reference numeral 41 denotes control means constituted by a microcomputer, which, as is well known, includes a CPU as a calculation processing means, a memory as a storage means, a timer as a timekeeping means, an input / output device, etc.

[0026] In addition to the operation means 9 using the keys 7 and touch panel 8 mentioned above, the internal temperature detection means 15, and the internal temperature distribution detection means 42, the input port of the control means 41 is electrically connected to a hot air motor rotation detection means 43 which detects the rotation of the hot air motor 24 built into the hot air unit 21, a door opening / closing detection means 44 which detects the open / closed state of the door 3, an antenna position detection means 45 equipped with a microswitch 40 which detects the origin position of the antenna 37 which constitutes the microwave generator 34, and an evaporation chamber temperature detection means 46 such as a thermistor which detects the temperature of the evaporation chamber 32 which constitutes the steam unit 26.

[0027] In addition to the display means 6 consisting of an LCD display, the output port of the control means 41 is electrically connected to microwave heating means 48 including the magnetron 35 of the microwave generator 34 and its driving means, heater driving means 49 such as a relay that turns on and off the upper heater 19 and lower heater 20 for grill heating, the hot air heater 22 for oven heating, and the sheathed heater 31 for steam heating, antenna driving means 50 for driving the antenna motor 39 that serves as the driving source for the antenna 37, hot air motor driving means 51 for driving the hot air motor 24 that serves as the driving source for the hot air fan 23, and pump driving means 52 for operating the pump 27 of the steam unit 26.

[0028] The control means 41 has a function of receiving operation signals from the operation means 9 and detection signals from the inside temperature detection means 15, the inside temperature distribution detection means 42, the hot air motor rotation detection means 43, the door opening / closing detection means 44, the antenna position detection means 45, and the vaporization chamber temperature detection means 46, and outputting drive control signals to the microwave heating means 48, the heater driving means 49, the antenna driving means 50, the hot air motor driving means 51, and the pump driving means 52, all of which are heating means, at a predetermined timing based on the timing from the timing means, and outputting a display control signal to the display means 6. These functions are realized by the control means 41 reading a program recorded in the memory as a storage medium, but in this embodiment in particular, the control means 41 is provided with a program that causes the control means 41 to mainly function as a heating control unit 61 and a display control unit 62.

[0029] The heating control unit 61 mainly controls the operation of each unit related to the cooking of the food placed in the cooking chamber 14. When the heating control unit 61 receives an operation signal from the operation means 9, and if it determines that the door 3 is closed based on a detection signal from the door opening / closing detection means 44, it sends control signals to the microwave heating means 48, heater driving means 49, antenna driving means 50, hot air motor driving means 51, and pump driving means 52 in response to the operation signal to control the cooking of the food in the cooking chamber 14. In this embodiment, cooking information for all menus that can be cooked in the oven range is stored and held in the all-menu storage unit 63 that constitutes a part of the memory, and when an operation is performed from the operation means 9 to instruct the start of cooking for one menu selected from the all-menu storage unit 63, the heating control unit 61 heats and cooks the food in a predetermined procedure according to the cooking information for the selected menu.

[0030] The menus stored in the all-menu storage unit 63 can be broadly divided into manual cooking menus and automatic cooking menus. A manual cooking menu is a menu that is used by setting the time, power, and temperature for a menu selected from the all-menu storage unit 63 by touching the touch panel 8 before operating the start key 7A, and corresponds to a manual microwave menu described later. An automatic cooking menu is a menu that is used by selecting a menu from the all-menu storage unit 63 without setting the time, power, and temperature, and corresponds to a hamburger steak menu described later.

[0031] The display control unit 62 mainly controls the operation related to the display of the display means 6, and in this embodiment in particular, in order to switch and display various screens on the display means 6 which is a liquid crystal display, it includes a top screen display control unit 62A that selectively displays a "warm" screen or a "cook" screen as a top screen on the display means 6 immediately after power is turned on, and a transition screen display control unit 62B that receives an operation signal from the operation means 9 and displays a series of transition screens from the top screen displayed on the display means 6 to the final screen where heating and cooking can be started with the selected menu. How these top screen display control unit 62A and transition screen display control unit 62B display various screens on the display means 6 will be explained in detail later.

[0032] Next, the operation of the oven range configured as described above will be explained. With the food to be cooked placed in the cooking chamber 14, the door 3 is closed while holding the handle 4 with the hand, one menu is selected from the full menu memory section 63 using the operation means 9, and then key 7 on the operation means 9 is pressed to start cooking. In accordance with the control program built into the memory of the control means 41, a control signal generated in response to the cooking information for the selected menu is output at the specified timing, and the food to be cooked.

[0033] Here, for example, when a menu for oven heating is selected, the heating control unit 61 receives a detection signal from the inside temperature detection means 15 and sends control signals to the heater driving means 49 and the hot air motor driving means 51, respectively, so that the inside of the cooking chamber 14 is heated to the set temperature, thereby controlling the energization and deenergization of the hot air heater 22 and the hot air motor 24. As a result, the rotational force generated in the hot air motor 24 is transmitted to the hot air fan 23, which rotates in one direction inside the hot air unit 21, and the speed is taken in by the hot air motor rotation detection means 43 to the heating control unit 61, and air sucked into the inside of the hot air unit 21 through the suction port 16 from the cooking chamber 14 is sent to the energized hot air heater 22 side, and the air heated here is supplied as hot air to the cooking chamber 14 through the hot air outlets 17, 18, so that the food to be cooked in the cooking chamber 14 is heated by hot air convection.

[0034] Furthermore, when a menu for steam cooking using steam (steam cooking) is selected, heating control section 61 receives a detection signal from vaporization chamber temperature detection means 46 and sends control signals to at least heater drive means 49 and pump drive means 52 so that vaporization chamber 32 reaches a predetermined temperature, thereby controlling the operation of pump 27 incorporated in steam unit 26 and the on / off of sheathed heater 31. As a result, saturated steam or superheated steam is sprayed from steam outlet 33 into cooking chamber 14, steaming the food to be cooked in cooking chamber 14.

[0035] Furthermore, when a menu for microwave cooking is selected, the heating control unit 61 receives a detection signal from the in-chamber temperature distribution detection means 42, and sends appropriate control signals to the microwave heating means 48 and the antenna driving means 50 while checking the origin position of the antenna 37 with a detection signal from the antenna position detection means 45 so that the food to be cooked is heated to the set temperature. This causes the magnetron 35 and antenna 37 of the microwave generator 34 to operate, and microwaves generated from the surface of the rotating antenna 37 are supplied into the cooking chamber 14, and the food to be heated in the cooking chamber 14 is heated by high frequency waves.

[0036] Furthermore, when a menu requiring grill cooking is selected, the heating control unit 61 receives a detection signal from the internal temperature detection means 42 and controls the on / off of the upper heater 19 and the lower heater 20 so that the inside of the cooking chamber 14 is heated to the set temperature, and the food to be cooked in the cooking chamber 14 is grill-heated from above and below.

[0037] Next, the display and operation of the operation panel unit 5 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. In the following description, a "tab display section" refers to a display section where, when the touch panel 8 is tapped on, detailed information about that tab display section is displayed on the display means 6, and the other tab display sections continue to be displayed on the display means 6, but the detailed information about those sections is hidden; a "button display section" refers to a display section where, when the touch panel 8 is tapped on, the entire screen or a part of the screen of the display means 6 is switched to something else and displayed; a "list display section" refers to a display section where, when the touch panel 8 is tapped on, a list of items that can be selected in the list display section is displayed, and when the touch panel 8 is tapped on one of the items, the touched item is selected and set, and only that item is displayed in the list display section; a "picker display section" refers to a display section where, when the touch panel 8 is slid on the display section, a list of items that can be selected in the picker display section is scrolled and displayed, and when the scrolling stops, the selected and set item is displayed in the center; and a "key display section" refers to a display section where, each time the touch panel 8 is tapped on the display section, the list of items displayed in the picker display section mentioned above is switched one by one.

[0038] A "text display" is a display represented by a string of characters such as letters, numbers, and symbols, an "icon display" is a display that represents things symbolically with simple pictures, and an "image display" is a display that is a photograph taken with a camera or a painting.

[0039] In this embodiment, a mechanism for displaying various screens including such a display unit or display body by various operation inputs from the user to the touch panel 8 on the display means 6, that is, a UI (user interface), is incorporated in the display control unit 62. The display control unit 62 accepts tap operations and slide operations as necessary as touch operations on the screen displayed on the display means 6. The "tap operation" here means an operation of touching the touch panel 8 on the screen with a finger and immediately releasing the finger, and the "slide operation" means an operation of touching the touch panel 8 on the screen with a finger and sliding the finger from there. The "slide operation" accepted by the display control unit 62 includes a swipe in which the finger is kept touching the touch panel 8 on the screen and sliding the finger in one direction, and a flick in which the finger is touched on the touch panel 8 on the screen with a finger and sliding the finger from there as if flicking.

[0040] 6 shows the first top screen G1 for everyday use as an initial screen displayed on the display means 6 immediately after power-on. When the user inserts a power plug (not shown) previously provided on the main body 1 into a household outlet and then opens the closed door 3, the power (electricity) required for each section such as the display means 6 and the control means 41 is turned on. At this time, the top screen display control section 62A causes the first top screen G1 as shown in FIG. 6 to be displayed as a default on the display means 6. The "default display" here refers to a display that appears first on the display means 6, which is preset by the top screen display control section 62A, immediately after power is turned on to the display means 6 and before any operation is performed on the operating means 9.

[0041] The first top screen G1 is a so-called tab format screen, and at the top of it is formed a tab display area A1 which displays, side by side, a tab display section B1 containing a text display element D1 saying "warm up," a tab display section B2 containing a text display element D2 saying "cook," and a tab display section B3 containing an icon display element D3 reminiscent of various oven range settings. In addition, below the tab display area A1, a first menu display area M1 is formed next to the top and bottom, which initially displays by default a manual microwave menu selected as one menu assumed to be used most frequently from among the multiple heating function menus stored in the all menu memory unit 63 as detailed information contained in the tab display section B1 selected in the tab display area A1, and which displays by default the output of 600 W, which is assumed to be the most frequently used output from the multiple settable outputs of the microwave heating means 48 contained in the cooking information of that menu, and which is selected from the multiple menus stored in the all menu memory unit 63, so that the menus can be selected and operated.

[0042] In the first menu display area M1, a power setting display area that allows the power setting of microwave heating and a time setting display area that allows the time setting of microwave heating are formed side by side, one above the other. The power setting time area is composed of a text display D4 indicating the set power of microwave heating and a list display section B4 including an icon display D5 that evokes the display of a list of outputs that can be set in the text display D4. As shown in Fig. 6, when the first top screen G1 is displayed as the default on the display means 6, a text display D4 saying "Microwave 600W" is displayed in the list display section B4 to indicate that the power of microwave heating is set to 600W.

[0043] The time setting display area of ​​the first menu display area M1 includes a picker display section B6 including a text display section D6 showing the set number in the tens-minute digits, a picker display section B7 including a text display section D7 showing the set number in the units-minute digits, a text display section D8 indicating that the number displayed in the text displays D6 and D7 is the time in minutes, a picker display section B9 including a text display section D9 showing the set number in the tens-second digits, and a text display section B9 indicating that the number displayed in the text display section D9 is the time in seconds, as drum roll-like display sections that rotatably display the set time for microwave heating. The first top screen G1, in the default display state shown in FIG. 6, has an up key display section B11 including an icon display section D11 that evokes an increase in the tens digits displayed in the text display section D6 above the picker display section B6, an up key display section B12 including an icon display section D12 that evokes an increase in the units digits displayed in the text display section D7 above the picker display section B7, and an up key display section B13 including an icon display section D13 that evokes an increase in the seconds digits displayed in the text display section D9 above the picker display section B9. In addition, although not shown in FIG. 6, depending on the numbers displayed on the text displays D6, D7, and D9, as shown in FIG. 8 to FIG. 17, any or all of the above-mentioned up key display units B11 to B13 may be hidden, or in the time setting display area of ​​the first menu display area M1, below the picker display unit B6, a down key display unit B14 including an icon display unit D14 reminiscent of the decrease in the tens digits displayed on the text display unit D6 may be displayed, or below the picker display unit B7, a down key display unit B15 including an icon display unit D15 reminiscent of the decrease in the units digits displayed on the text display unit D7 may be displayed, or below the picker display unit B9, a down key display unit B16 including an icon display unit D16 reminiscent of the decrease in the tens digits displayed on the text display unit D9 may be displayed.

[0044] On the other hand, in the second menu display area M2, a button display unit B21 including a text display unit D21 saying "Rice" and an icon display unit D22 evoking an automatic cooking menu for rice, a button display unit B23 including a text display unit D23 saying "Side dishes" and an icon display unit D24 evoking an automatic cooking menu for side dishes, a button display unit B25 including a text display unit D25 saying "Bread, etc." and an icon display unit D26 evoking an automatic cooking menu for bread, a button display unit B27 including a text display unit D27 saying "Drinks" and an icon display unit D28 evoking an automatic cooking menu for drinks, a button display unit B29 including a text display unit D29 saying "Boiled vegetables" and an icon display unit D30 evoking an automatic cooking menu for boiled vegetables, and a button display unit B31 including a text display unit D31 saying "Defrosting" and an icon display unit D32 evoking an automatic cooking menu for defrosting are displayed arranged vertically and horizontally.

[0045] 7 shows a second top screen G2 which can be easily switched between the first top screen G1 and the second top screen G2 by sliding left and right. This second top screen G2 is displayed on the display means 6 by sliding a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the first menu display area M1 or the second menu display area M2 to the left while the first top screen G1 is displayed on the display means 6, or by tapping a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the tab display part B2 displaying "Cook" in the tab display area A1.

[0046] The second top screen G2 is a tab-format screen that shares the display of the first top screen G1 and the tab display area A1, and below the tab display area A1, a third menu display area M3 is formed next to the top and bottom of the tab display area A1, which displays detailed information contained in the tab display section B2 selected in the tab display area A1 to enable selection of a manual cooking menu that is expected to be used relatively frequently, other than the manual microwave menu displayed in the first menu display area M1 of the first top screen G1 and the other automatic cooking menus displayed in the second menu display area M2, from among the menus that are multiple heating functions stored in the full menu memory unit 63. A fourth menu display area M4 is formed next to the top and bottom of the tab display area A1, which displays detailed information contained in the tab display section B2 selected in the tab display area A1 to enable selection of an automatic cooking menu that is expected to be used relatively frequently, other than the manual microwave menu displayed in the first menu display area M1 of the first top screen G1 and the other automatic cooking menus displayed in the second menu display area M2.

[0047] In the third menu display area M3, a text display element D40 saying "Manual Cooking" is displayed in the upper left corner to indicate that this area relates to the manual cooking menu, and other elements are arranged vertically and horizontally: a button display element B41 including a text display element D41 saying "Oven" and an icon display element D42 evoking a manual cooking menu using oven heating; a button display element B43 including a text display element D43 saying "Grill" and an icon display element D44 evoking a manual cooking menu using grill heating; a button display element B45 including a text display element D45 saying "Steamed" and an icon display element D46 evoking a manual cooking menu using steam heating; and a button display element B47 including a text display element D47 saying "Other" and an icon display element D48 evoking other major manual cooking menus.

[0048] In the fourth menu display area M4, a text display element D50 saying "Automatic cooking" is displayed in the upper left corner to indicate that this area is related to the automatic cooking menu, and other elements are arranged vertically and horizontally: a text display element D51 saying "Stone oven automatic baking" and a button display element B51 including an icon display element D52 that evokes an automatic cooking menu using oven heating; a button display element B53 including a text display element D53 saying "recommended" and an icon display element D54 that evokes the calling up of a recommended automatic cooking menu; a button display element B55 including a text display element D55 saying "favorites" and an icon display element D56 that evokes the calling up of a favorite automatic cooking menu; and a button display element B57 including a text display element D57 saying "Recipe book search" and an icon display element D58 that evokes a search for an automatic cooking menu.

[0049] To switch the second top screen G2 displayed on the display means 6 to the first top screen G1, the user can slide the portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the third menu display area M3 or the fourth menu display area M4 to the right, or tap the portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the tab display portion B1 displaying "Warm" in the tab display area A1.

[0050] 6, immediately after the power is turned on to the display means 6, the top screen display control unit 62A causes the display means 6 to display the first top screen G1 in a state in which the tab display portion B1 of "Warm up", which is located at the leftmost position in the tab display area A1, is selected. In this first top screen G1 in which "Warm up" is selected, the tab display portion B1 of "Warm up" is displayed in a brighter color than the tab display portion B2 of "Cook", which is not selected. In addition, a first menu display area M1 is displayed by default in which the manual microwave menu has already been selected from all menus stored in the full menu memory unit 63 as the heating function assumed to be used most frequently by the user, and its output has been set to 600 W, which is assumed to be the most frequently used output in the manual microwave menu, and the user only needs to set the time.A second menu display area M2 is displayed by default in which the manual microwave menu has already been selected from all menus stored in the full menu memory unit 63 as the heating function assumed to be used most frequently by the user after the manual microwave menu, and shows that multiple automatic cooking menus, which mainly use the microwave heating means 48 to heat the food to be cooked, can be selected.

[0051] From here, if the user wishes to use the manual range menu displayed in the first menu display area M1 to heat and cook the food placed in the cooking chamber 14, they can change the microwave heating output to a value other than the initially set 600W as necessary, and then set the microwave heating time. Then, by simply operating the start key 7A, the food can be heated by the microwave heating means 48 at the set output and time.

[0052] Specifically, to change the microwave heating output to something other than the default "600W microwave" displayed in list display section B4, tap on a portion of touch panel 8 that overlaps icon display D5 displayed at the right end of list display section B4. In response to this, top screen display control section 62A widens the display area of ​​list display section B4 displayed on display means 6 (not shown), and displays a list of outputs selectable in the manual microwave menu there, such as "1000W", "600W", "500W", "200W", and "100W". When a portion of touch panel 8 that overlaps one of the outputs is tapped, top screen display control section 62A sets the output corresponding to the touched portion as the new output for the manual microwave menu, returns the display area of ​​list display section B4 to its original size, and displays only the newly set output there.

[0053] Next, the microwave heating time setting will be described. Fig. 8 shows the main display parts related to the operation of setting the microwave heating time in the manual microwave menu displayed in the first menu display area M1 of the first top screen G1. In this embodiment, a UI that allows the setting of numerical values ​​such as the microwave heating time on the first top screen G1 displayed on the display means 6 to be performed by both sliding and tapping on the touch panel 8 is built into the top screen display control part 62A of the display control part 62.

[0054] To increase the value of the microwave heating set time displayed in the picker display sections B6, B7, and B9, slide the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the picker display section B6, B7, or B9 displaying the value to be increased upward, or tap the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the corresponding up key display section B11, B12, or B13 above the picker display section B6, B7, or B9 displaying the value to be increased. Conversely, to decrease the value of the microwave heating set time, slide the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the picker display section B6, B7, or B9 displaying the value to be decreased downward, or tap the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the corresponding down key display section B14, B15, or B16 below the picker display section B6, B7, or B9 displaying the value to be decreased. When either of these is performed, depending on the amount of sliding, one or more numerical items displayed in the picker display sections B6, B7, and B9 will move in a rotating motion in succession and increase or decrease; when either of these is performed, with a single tap, the numerical items displayed in the picker display sections B6, B7, and B9 will move in a rotating motion one by one and increase or decrease.

[0055] This allows the user to freely choose between slide and tap operations, whichever is easier, when setting values ​​related to oven control, such as the time for microwave heating. This is not limited to setting values ​​such as time and temperature, but can also be applied to settings from multiple items. For example, a screen related to one menu may be provided with a first button display section displaying "Next" to transition to the next screen, and a second button display section displaying "Back" to transition to the previous screen, and each screen may be treated as multiple items, with the display control section accepting such tap or slide operations to change the display to another screen by tapping the part of the touch panel 8 that overlaps the button display section, or by sliding the part of the touch panel 8 that overlaps the displayed screen.

[0056] As shown in Fig. 1, the handle 4 extending horizontally above the door 3 is disposed so as not to be located above the display screen of the display means 6. In other words, the handle 4 for opening and closing the door 3 is not formed on the vertical (up-down) upper side of the display means 6, and no convex portion that protrudes above the flat surface of the display means 6 is provided on the vertical upper side of the display means 6. This provides the advantage that when a user looks at the oven range from diagonally above, the handle 4 does not get in the way and visibility is good, and in particular when a user performs a sliding operation from bottom to top on the surface of the display means 6, a finger or a pen-like object will not hit the handle 4.

[0057] Furthermore, convex handles 4 are not formed not only on the vertical upper side of the display means 6, but also in the horizontal (left and right) direction of the display means 6. This prevents a finger or a pen-like object from hitting the handles 4 when a user performs a left and right sliding operation on the surface of the display means 6.

[0058] 8 shows first to fourth virtual lines L1 to L4 along each side of the display means 6 having a rectangular outer shape in a front view, but preferably, by not locating the convex handle 4 between the extensions of the first and second virtual lines L1, L2 on the top and bottom, and the extensions of the third and fourth virtual lines L3, L4 on the left and right, a finger or a pen-like object will not hit the handle 4 no matter which direction the user slides on the surface of the display means 6 in, whether up, down, left or right. Furthermore, it is preferable that there are no convex parts that protrude beyond the display means 6 between the extensions.

[0059] 9 is a schematic diagram showing the display operation of the tens digit picker display section B6 and the units digit picker display section B7, both of which rotate like a drum roll. In this embodiment, the relationship between the microwave heating output and the maximum time is included in the cooking information for the manual microwave menu stored in the all-menu storage section 63, and for example, when the microwave heating output is set to 600 W, the top screen display control section 62A controls the display of the picker display sections B6 and B7 on the first top screen G1 based on the relationship between the output and time stored in the all-menu storage section 63 so that the maximum microwave heating time is not set to more than 20 minutes.

[0060] Specifically, when the numerical value displayed as text display D7 in units digit picker display B7 is "0", the numerical value displayed as text display D6 in tens digit picker display B6 will only ever be "0", "1", or "2", no matter how much you slide the part of touch panel 8 that overlaps picker display B6, or how much you tap the parts of touch panel 8 that are located above or below picker display B6 and overlap up key display B11 or down key display B14; no other numerical values ​​will be displayed.

[0061] Furthermore, when the number displayed in the units digit picker display section B7 is any number from "1" to "9" other than "0," the number displayed in the tens digit picker display section B6 will only ever be "0" or "1," and no other numbers will be displayed, no matter how much you slide the part of the touch panel 8 that overlaps the picker display section B6, or how much you tap the part of the touch panel 8 that overlaps the up key display section B11 or the down key display section B14.

[0062] In addition, when the number displayed in the tens digit picker display section B6 is "2", the number displayed in the units digit picker display section B7 will remain "0" and will not move, no matter how much you slide the part of the touch panel 8 that overlaps the picker display section B7, or how much you tap the parts of the touch panel 8 that are located above or below the picker display section B7 and overlap the up key display section B12 or the down key display section B15.

[0063] Furthermore, when the number displayed in the tens digit picker display section B6 is "1" or "0" other than "2," the number displayed in the units digit picker display section B7 will move between all of the digits "0" to "9" when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the picker display section B7 is slid and when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the up key display section B12 or the down key display section B15 is tapped.

[0064] Thus, in this embodiment, when the user sets numerical values ​​such as temperature and time related to the control of the oven range from the first top screen G1 displayed on the display means 6, upon operation input from the touch panel 8, if the set numerical value reaches the upper limit value for which the numerical value can be set (for example, 20 minutes), a setting of a numerical value higher than this will not be accepted, and if the set numerical value reaches the lower limit value for which the numerical value can be set (for example, 0 minutes), a setting of a numerical value lower than this will not be accepted, and the top screen display control unit 62A is configured to control the display operation of numerical values ​​on the picker display units B6, B7 which rotate in a drum roll shape so that the numerical values ​​displayed on the picker display units B6, B7 loop between the upper and lower limits.

[0065] Therefore, when the user sets various numerical values ​​by operating the touch panel 8, for example, if the microwave heating output is set to 600W, the settable time displayed on the picker display sections B6 and B7 will automatically be between 0 and 20 minutes, and if the microwave heating output is set to 200W, the settable time displayed on the picker display sections B6 and B7 will automatically be between 0 and 90 minutes. By having the top screen display control section 62A appropriately change the range of settable numerical values ​​displayed on the display means 6 in accordance with different microwave heating outputs, it is possible to eliminate unnecessary operations by the user.

[0066] Fig. 10 shows all display sections displayed during microwave heating time setting in the manual microwave menu displayed on the first top screen G1. When the user operates the touch panel 8 on the first top screen G1 displayed by default on the display means 6 shown in Fig. 6 to set the microwave heating time to a different time from the initial "00" minutes and "00" seconds displayed on the picker display sections B6, B7, and B9, the top screen display control section 62A expands the display of the first menu display area M1 on the first top screen G1 to the second display menu display area M2, as shown in Fig. 10, and prevents the second display menu display area M2 from being displayed. At this time, the first menu display area M1 additionally displays a button display section B61 including a text display section D61 saying "Clear", followed by a text display section D62 saying "You can start without accessories", indicating that cooking will begin without any accessories such as a plate, and when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the button display section B61 is tapped, the top screen display control section 62A resets the microwave heating time to the initial "00" minutes and "00" seconds, and causes the display means 6 to again display the first top screen G1, the initial screen as shown in FIG. 6.

[0067] Figures 11 to 17 show in a table how the top screen display control unit 62A displays the first top screen G1 on the display means 6 when the microwave heating time is set to another time from the initial "00" minutes and "00" seconds, and also show the respective states of the key display units B11, B12, B13, B14, B15, and B16, and the button display unit B61.

[0068] As shown in Fig. 11, in a state in which the top screen display control section 62A has caused the display means 6 to display the first top screen G1 as the default, the microwave heating time displayed in the picker display sections B6, B7, and B9 is set to the initial "00" minutes and "00" seconds. In this display state of the first top screen G1, i.e., in the "0 display" state, the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for increasing the number in the tens of seconds digit ("+10 seconds" in the figure), the up key display section B12 including the icon display D12 for increasing the number in the units of minutes digit ("+1 minute" in the figure), and the up key display section B11 including the icon display D11 for increasing the number in the tens of minutes digit ("+10 minutes" in the figure) are all lit up and displayed, while the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for increasing the number in the tens of seconds digit ("+10 minutes" in the figure) are all lit up and displayed, while the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for increasing the number in the units of minutes digit ("+10 minutes" in the figure) are all lit up and displayed, while the up key display section B11 including the icon display D11 for increasing the number in the tens of minutes digit ("+10 minutes" in the figure) is not lit up and displayed. The lower key display section B16 including the icon display unit D16 for decreasing the number in the units digit of the minutes ("-1 minute" in the figure), the lower key display section B15 including the icon display unit D15 for decreasing the number in the tens digit of the minutes ("-10 minutes" in the figure), the lower key display section B14 including the icon display unit D14 for decreasing the number in the tens digit of the minutes ("-10 minutes" in the figure), and the button display section B61 including the text display unit D61 for returning the screen displayed on the display means 6 to "0 display" ("Clear" in the figure) are all turned off and become invisible.

[0069] When a portion of touch panel 8 overlapping with the lit up key display unit B13 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input and increases the time by 10 seconds and displays the increased number of the time in the tens-second digits on text display unit D9 corresponding to picker display unit B9; when a portion of touch panel 8 overlapping with the lit up key display unit B12 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input and increases the time by 10 minutes and displays the increased number of the time in the tens-second digits on text display unit D7 corresponding to picker display unit B7; and when a portion of touch panel 8 overlapping with the lit up key display unit B11 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input and increases the time by 10 minutes and displays the increased number of the time in the tens-minute digits on text display unit D6 corresponding to picker display unit B6.

[0070] On the other hand, the top screen display control unit 62A does not accept operation input from the touch panel 8 for the turned-off down key display units B16, B15, B14 and button display unit B61 corresponding to these. Therefore, the user can understand that the time in the tens-minute digits displayed in the picker display unit B6 will not rotate to become less than "0", the time in the units-minute digits displayed in the picker display unit B7 will not rotate to become less than "0", and the time in the tens-second digits displayed in the picker display unit B9 will not rotate to become less than "00".

[0071] Figure 12 shows the state of the first top screen G1 that the top screen display control unit 62A causes to be displayed on the display means 6 when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the up key display unit B13 is tapped once from the "0 display" state shown in Figure 11 to set the microwave heating time displayed in the picker display units B6, B7, and B9 to "00" minutes and "10" seconds, i.e., the "10 second display" state with the tens second digit set to the minimum time. In this "10 second display" state, the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for setting to "+10 seconds", the up key display section B16 including the icon display D16 for setting to "-10 seconds", the up key display section B12 including the icon display D12 for setting to "+1 minute", the up key display section B11 including the icon display D11 for setting to "+10 minutes", and the button display section B61 including the text display D61 for setting to "clear" are all lit up and displayed, while the up key display section B15 including the icon display D15 for setting to "-1 minute" and the up key display section B14 including the icon display D14 for setting to "-10 minutes" are all turned off and not displayed.

[0072] When a portion of touch panel 8 overlapping with lit up key display portion B13 is tapped, top screen display control portion 62A accepts the operational input, increases the time by 10 seconds, and displays the increased tens-second digit of the time on text display D9 corresponding to picker display portion B9. When a portion of touch panel 8 overlapping with lit up key display portion B16 is tapped, top screen display control portion 62A accepts the operational input, decreases the time by 10 seconds, and displays the decreased tens-second digit of the time on text display D9 corresponding to picker display portion B9. When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display section B12 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the time is increased by one minute at a time, and the increased number of the hour in the units digit is displayed on the text display section D7 corresponding to the picker display section B7, and when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display section B11 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the time is increased by ten minutes at a time, and the increased number of the hour in the tens digit is displayed on the text display section D6 corresponding to the picker display section B6. Also, when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit button display section B61 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the display of the first top screen G1 is returned to "0 display."

[0073] On the other hand, the top screen display control unit 62A does not accept any operation input from the touch panel 8 for the turned-off down key display units B15, B14 corresponding to these. Therefore, it is possible to let the user understand that the time in the tens and units digits displayed on the picker display units B6, B7 will not rotate to become less than "00".

[0074] Figure 13 shows the state of the first top screen G1 that the top screen display control unit 62A causes to be displayed on the display means 6 when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the up key display unit B13 is tapped five times from the "0 display" state shown in Figure 11 to set the microwave heating time displayed in the picker display units B6, B7, and B9 to "00" minutes and "50" seconds, i.e., the "50 seconds display" state with the tens second digit set to the maximum time. In this "50 second display" state, the up key display section B16 including the icon display D16 for setting it to "-10 seconds", the up key display section B12 including the icon display D12 for setting it to "+1 minute", the up key display section B11 including the icon display D11 for setting it to "+10 minutes", and the button display section B61 including the text display D61 for setting it to "clear" are all lit up and displayed, while the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for setting it to "+10 seconds", the up key display section B15 including the icon display D15 for setting it to "-1 minute", and the up key display section B14 including the icon display D14 for setting it to "-10 minutes" are all turned off and not displayed.

[0075] When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display B16 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input, decreases the time by 10 seconds, and displays the decreased number of the tens-second digits of the time on the text display D9 corresponding to the picker display B9; when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display B12 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input, increases the time by 1 minute, and displays the increased number of the tens-second digits of the time on the text display D7 corresponding to the picker display B7; when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display B11 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input, increases the time by 10 minutes, and displays the increased number of the tens-minute digits of the time on the text display D6 corresponding to the picker display B6. When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit button display B61 is tapped, the operation input is accepted, and the display of the first top screen G1 is returned to "0 display".

[0076] On the other hand, the top screen display control unit 62A does not accept any operation input from the touch panel 8 for the turned-off up key display unit B13 and the down key display units B15 and B14. Therefore, the user can understand that the time in the tens of seconds digits displayed in the picker display unit B9 will not rotate to become more than "50" seconds, and that the time in the tens of minutes digits and units of minutes digits displayed in the picker display units B6 and B7 will not rotate to become less than "00".

[0077] Figure 14 shows the state of the first top screen G1 that the top screen display control unit 62A causes to be displayed on the display means 6 when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the up key display unit B12 is tapped once from the "0 display" state shown in Figure 11 to set the microwave heating time displayed in the picker display units B6, B7, and B9 to "01" minutes and "00" seconds, i.e., the "1 minute display" state with the minutes digit set to the minimum time. In this "1 minute display" state, the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for setting to "+10 seconds", the up key display section B12 including the icon display D12 for setting to "+1 minute", the up key display section B15 including the icon display D15 for setting to "-1 minute", the up key display section B11 including the icon display D11 for setting to "+10 minutes", and the button display section B61 including the text display D61 for setting to "clear" are all lit up and displayed, while the up key display section B16 including the icon display D16 for setting to "-10 seconds" and the up key display section B14 including the icon display D14 for setting to "-10 minutes" are all turned off and not displayed.

[0078] When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display portion B13 is tapped, the top screen display control portion 62A accepts the operational input, increments the time by 10 seconds, and displays the increased number of the tens-second digits of the time on the text display D9 corresponding to the picker display portion B9. When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display portion B12 is tapped, the top screen display control portion 62A accepts the operational input, increments the time by 1 minute, and displays the increased number of the minutes digits of the time on the text display D7 corresponding to the picker display portion B7. When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display unit B15 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the time is decreased by one minute, and the decreased number of the hour in the units digit is displayed on the text display unit D7 corresponding to the picker display unit B7, and when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display unit B11 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the time is increased by ten minutes, and the increased number of the hour in the tens digit is displayed on the text display unit D6 corresponding to the picker display unit B6. Also, when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit button display unit B61 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the display of the first top screen G1 is returned to "0 display."

[0079] On the other hand, the top screen display control unit 62A does not accept any operation input from the touch panel 8 for the turned-off down key display units B16, B14. Therefore, the user can understand that the time in the tens minute digits displayed in the picker display unit B6 will not rotate to become less than "0" one minute, and that the time in the tens second digits displayed in the picker display unit B9 will not rotate to become less than "00" seconds.

[0080] FIG. 15 shows the state of the first top screen G1 that the top screen display control unit 62A causes the display means 6 to display when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the up key display unit B12 is tapped nine times from the "0 display" state shown in FIG. 11 to set the microwave heating time displayed in the picker display units B6, B7, and B9 to "09" minutes and "00" seconds, i.e., the "9 minutes display" state in which the minutes digit is set to the maximum time. The maximum time for microwave heating increases or decreases depending on the set output of the microwave heating. The reason for this is that the higher the output of the microwave heating is set, the faster the temperature rise of the magnetron 35 of the microwave generator 34 and other heat generating components becomes, and the shorter the time until the temperature limit is reached becomes. For example, when the output of the microwave heating is set to 600 W, the maximum time is 9 minutes, but when the output of the microwave heating is set to 1000 W, the maximum time is shortened to 5 minutes, and when the microwave heating is set to 200 W or 100 W, the maximum time is lengthened to 90 minutes. Moreover, when an automatic cooking menu that involves microwave heating is selected, the output and the corresponding time according to the selected menu are automatically set.

[0081] In this "9 minute display" state, the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for setting to "+10 seconds", the up key display section B15 including the icon display D15 for setting to "-1 minute", the up key display section B11 including the icon display D11 for setting to "+10 minutes", and the button display section B61 including the text display D61 for setting to "clear" are all lit up and displayed, while the up key display section B16 including the icon display D16 for setting to "-10 seconds", the up key display section B12 including the icon display D12 for setting to "+1 minute", and the up key display section B14 including the icon display D14 for setting to "-10 minutes" are all turned off and not displayed.

[0082] When the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display B13 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input, increases the time by 10 seconds, and displays the increased number of the tens-second digits of the time on the text display D9 corresponding to the picker display B9; when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit down key display B15 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input, decreases the time by 1 minute, and displays the decreased number of the minutes digits of the time on the text display D7 corresponding to the picker display B7; when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display B11 is tapped, the top screen display control unit 62A accepts the operation input, increases the time by 10 minutes, and displays the increased number of the tens-minute digits of the time on the text display D6 corresponding to the picker display B6. When the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit button display B61 is tapped, the operation input is accepted, and the display of the first top screen G1 is returned to "0 display".

[0083] On the other hand, the top screen display control unit 62A does not accept operation input from the touch panel 8 for the turned-off up key display unit B12 and down key display units B16, B14. Therefore, the user can understand that the time in the tens-minute digits displayed in picker display unit B6 will not rotate to become less than "0" nine minutes, the time in the units-minute digits displayed in picker display unit B7 will not rotate to become more than "9" minutes, and the time in the tens-second digits displayed in picker display unit B9 will not rotate to become less than "00" seconds.

[0084] Figure 16 shows the state of the first top screen G1 that the top screen display control unit 62A causes to be displayed on the display means 6 when the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the up key display unit B11 is tapped once from the "0 display" state shown in Figure 11 to set the microwave heating time displayed in the picker display units B6, B7, and B9 to "10" minutes and "00" seconds, i.e., the "10 minute display" state with the tens minute digit set to the minimum time. In this "9 minute display" state, the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for setting to "+10 seconds", the up key display section B12 including the icon display D12 for setting to "+1 minute", the up key display section B11 including the icon display D11 for setting to "+10 minutes", the up key display section B14 including the icon display D14 for setting to "-10 minutes", and the button display section B61 including the text display D61 for setting to "clear" are all lit up and displayed, while the up key display section B16 including the icon display D16 for setting to "-10 seconds" and the up key display section B15 including the icon display D15 for setting to "-1 minute" are all turned off and not displayed.

[0085] When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display portion B13 is tapped, the top screen display control portion 62A accepts the operational input, increments the time by 10 seconds, and displays the increased number of the tens-second digits of the time on the text display portion D9 corresponding to the picker display portion B9. When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display portion B12 is tapped, the top screen display control portion 62A accepts the operational input, increments the time by 1 minute, and displays the increased number of the minutes digits of the time on the text display portion D7 corresponding to the picker display portion B7. D7, and when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit up key display section B11 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the time is increased by 10 minutes, and the increased number in the tens digits of the hour is displayed on the text display section D6 corresponding to the picker display section B6, and when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit down key display section B14 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the time is decreased by 10 minutes, and the decreased number in the tens digits of the hour is displayed on the text display section D6 corresponding to the picker display section B6. Also, when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit button display section B61 is tapped, the operation input is accepted and the display of the first top screen G1 is returned to "0 display."

[0086] On the other hand, the top screen display control unit 62A does not accept any operation input from the touch panel 8 for the turned-off down key display units B15, B14. Therefore, the user can understand that the time in the units digits displayed in the picker display unit B7 will not rotate to become less than "0" minutes, and the time in the tens of seconds digits displayed in the picker display unit B9 will not rotate to become less than "00" seconds.

[0087] Figure 17 shows the state of the first top screen G1 that the top screen display control unit 62A causes to be displayed on the display means 6 when, from the "0 display" state shown in Figure 11, the output is changed from 600W to 200W using the list display unit B4 so that the microwave heating time is set to a maximum of 90 minutes, and then the part of the touch panel 8 overlapping the up key display unit B11 is tapped nine times to set the microwave heating time displayed in the picker display units B6, B7, and B9 to "90" minutes and "00" seconds. This shows the "90 minute display" state, in which the tens of minutes digit is set to the maximum time. In this "90 minute display" state, the up key display section B14 including the icon display D14 for setting it to "-10 minutes" and the button display section B61 including the text display D61 for setting it to "clear" are each lit and displayed, while the up key display section B13 including the icon display D13 for setting it to "+10 seconds", the up key display section B16 including the icon display D16 for setting it to "-10 seconds", the up key display section B12 including the icon display D12 for setting it to "+1 minute", the up key display section B15 including the icon display D15 for setting it to "-1 minute", and the up key display section B11 including the icon display D11 for setting it to "+10 minutes" are each turned off and not displayed.

[0088] When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit down key display portion B14 is tapped, the top screen display control portion 62A accepts the operational input, decreases the time by 10 minutes, and displays the decreased tens-minute digit of the time in the text display body D6 corresponding to the picker display portion B6. When a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping the lit button display portion B61 is tapped, the operational input is accepted and the display of the first top screen G1 is returned to "0 display."

[0089] On the other hand, the top screen display control unit 62A does not accept operation input from the touch panel 8 for the turned-off up key display units B13, B12, B11 and down key display units B16, B15. Therefore, the user can understand that the time in the tens digits displayed in picker display unit B6 does not rotate to become more than "9" (zero minutes), the time in the units digits displayed in picker display unit B7 does not rotate to become more or less than "0" minutes, and the time in the tens second digits displayed in picker display unit B9 does not rotate to become more or less than "00" seconds.

[0090] In the examples shown in Figures 11 to 17, when the number of any digit displayed in the picker display sections B6, B7, B9 reaches the upper or lower limit, the up key display sections B11 to B13 and the down key display sections B14 to B16 which are the keys corresponding to that digit are not displayed at all on the display means 6, but the same effect can be obtained by changing the color (including the color tone) of these keys to a different color while keeping them displayed on the display means 6.

[0091] Next, with reference to the first top screen G1 shown in FIG. 6 and the second top screen G2 shown in FIG. 7, categorization of the heating functions by these operation screens will be described again.

[0092] First, in the first top screen G1 shown in FIG. 6, when "warm" is selected, a first menu display area M1 for the manual microwave menu and a second menu display area M2 for the automatic warm menu are partitioned and arranged. Here, the manual microwave menu that is assumed to be most frequently used by the user is already selected and displayed in the first menu display area M1 with the microwave heating output set to 600W. Therefore, if the output setting of 600W is not changed, the user only needs to operate the touch panel 8 to set the microwave heating setting time displayed on the picker display sections B6, B7, and B9 to a time other than "00" hours and "00" minutes, and press the start key 7A to start heating the food in the cooking chamber 14. The heating control section 61 receives an operation signal from the start key 7A and controls the operation of the microwave heating means 48 so that the food is heated at the set output and time.

[0093] Conventionally, the top screen displayed on the display means 6 could be switched between a category screen related to the "manual" cooking menu and a category screen related to the "automatic" cooking menu, but in this embodiment, the configuration is divided into a first top screen G1 (FIG. 6) of the "warm" category, which is assumed to be used frequently, and a second top screen G2 (FIG. 7) of the "cook" category, which is assumed to be used less frequently, so that for everyday use, only the first top screen G1 displayed by default on the display means 6 can be used. This allows the user to immediately select the heating function for everyday use, which is frequently used, from the first top screen G1, which is the initial screen.

[0094] The first top screen G1 and the second top screen G2 can be easily switched to one of them by performing a left / right sliding operation on the touch panel 8, and scroll-displayed on the display means 6. The direction of the sliding operation at this time is different from and perpendicular to the direction in which the picker display sections B6, B7, B9 are slid up and down when setting the microwave heating time, so the two operations do not interfere with each other.

[0095] 7, the heating functions in the "cooking" category are grouped together to allow the user to select one heating function according to the purpose of cooking. Specifically, a third menu display area M3 that lists the main manual cooking menus that allow the user to set the time, power, and temperature in detail, and a fourth menu display area M4 that lists the main automatic cooking menus that do not require the user to set the time, power, or temperature and that can be selected according to the cooking image, are arranged in sections on the second top screen G2 displayed on the display means 6. This allows the user to select the desired menu from the third menu display area M3 where the manual cooking menus and automatic cooking menus are arranged in an easy-to-understand manner.

[0096] In the first top screen G1 in which "Warm" is selected as shown in FIG. 6, when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping any of the button display portions B21, B23, B25, B27, B29, B31 in the second menu display area M2 is tapped, a heating function selection screen corresponding to the touched button display portion B21, B23, B25, B27, B29, B31 is displayed on the display means 6 by the transition screen display control portion 62B in place of the first top screen G1.

[0097] 7, when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping any of the button display portions B41, B43, B45, B47 in the third menu display area M3 is tapped, a selection screen for a heating function for a manual cooking menu corresponding to the touched button display portion B41, B43, B45, B47 is displayed on the display means 6 by the transition screen display control portion 62B in place of the second top screen G2. Also, when a portion of the touch panel 8 overlapping any of the button display portions B51, B53, B55, B57 in the fourth menu display area M4 is tapped, a selection screen for a heating function for an automatic cooking menu corresponding to the touched button display portion B51, B53, B55, B57 is displayed on the display means 6 by the transition screen display control portion 62B in place of the second top screen G2.

[0098] The top screen control unit 62A may be configured to allow the user to select an already selected heating function to be displayed in the first menu display area M1 in the first top screen G1 displayed by default on the display means 6, other than the microwave heating menu, by operating the operation means 9. In this way, if the user operates the operation means 9 to select an oven heating menu instead of the microwave heating menu, for example, the oven heating menu is already selected, and a heating function in which the oven heating temperature is set to 250°C and cooking start instruction can be issued only by setting the heating time can be displayed from the beginning in the first menu display area M1 of the first top screen G1, and the one heating function to be displayed by default in the first menu display area M1 of the display means 6 can be changed from among multiple heating functions according to the user's preference.

[0099] 18 shows how the transition screen display control unit 62B displays recipe information corresponding to how to make a hamburger on the display means 6 as the above-mentioned heating function selection screen when a hamburger cooking menu is selected as one of the automatic cooking menus selected from the total cooking menu storage unit 63. In the figure, the area enclosed by a frame is one screen that can be displayed on the display means 6.

[0100] When information such as recipes and usage instructions to be displayed on the display means 6 does not fit on one screen of the display means 6, the transition screen display control unit 62B accepts a slide operation (swipe or flick) from the touch panel 8. When the user performs such a slide operation on the touch panel 8 with a finger or a pen-like object, the information to be displayed on the display means 6 is scrolled in the direction of the slide.

[0101] Specifically, as shown in Fig. 18, when recipe information R1 extracted from cooking information for the hamburger menu in the entire menu storage unit 63 is displayed on the display means 6, if the transition screen display control unit 62B determines that the recipe information R1 does not fit on one screen of the display means 6, the transition screen display control unit 62B accepts a slide operation from the touch panel 8. Only a part of the hamburger recipe information R1 is displayed on the display means 6 from the beginning, but when the user touches the touch panel 8 with, for example, a finger F and performs a swipe operation by sliding the finger F downward from there, the transition screen display control unit 62B, which senses this, scrolls the recipe information R displayed on the display means 6 in the downward direction indicated by the arrow in accordance with the movement of the finger F. This allows the user to visually confirm the entire recipe information R on the display means 6.

[0102] Furthermore, if the recipe information R displayed on the display means 6 reaches the end due to this downward swipe operation, the transition screen display control unit 62B can accept this by swiping upward, and the recipe information R can be scrolled upward, allowing the user to review the entire recipe information R on the display means 6 at any time. In this manner, in this embodiment, the UI familiar to users on smartphones and the like can be used as is for operations on the touch panel 8 of the oven range, and various information that does not fit on one screen of the display means 6 can be checked in detail by swiping and the accompanying scrolling display.

[0103] As described above, in this embodiment, the cooking appliance comprises: display means 6; a touch panel 8 provided at an overlapping position on the display screen of the display means 6 as a touch operation unit that accepts touch operations from a user; and display control means 62 that incorporates a UI in which a screen including the display unit and display body is displayed on the display means 6 in response to operation input from the user to the touch panel 8, and that accepts a slide operation of touching the touch panel 8 on the screen of the display means 6 and sliding from there as a touch operation on the screen displayed on the display means 6.

[0104] In this case, a cooking device can be provided that allows the user to visually check the entire information on the display means 6 and allows the user to use a UI that is familiar to the user on a smartphone or the like by simply operating the touch panel 8.

[0105] Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the display control means 62 determines that the information displayed on the screen of the display means 6 will not fit on one screen of the display means 6, it accepts a slide operation from the touch panel 8 and scrolls the information displayed on the display means 6 in the direction of the slide operation.

[0106] In this case, various information that does not fit on one screen of the display means 6 can be thoroughly checked by swiping and the accompanying scrolling.

[0107] In this embodiment, the display control means 62 incorporates a UI that allows settings to be made on the screen displayed on the display means 6 by both a slide operation and a tap operation on the screen.

[0108] In this case, when setting a value related to the control of a cooking device, such as a microwave heating time, the user can freely select either a slide operation or a tap operation, whichever is easier to operate.

[0109] In addition, in this embodiment, when a user sets a numerical value indicating at least one of the temperature or time related to the control of the cooking appliance from a screen displayed on the display means 6, the display control means 62 is configured to control the display operation of the numerical values ​​so that when the set numerical value reaches the upper limit value for which the numerical value can be set, a setting of a numerical value higher than that is not accepted, and when the set numerical value reaches the lower limit value for which the numerical value can be set, a setting of a numerical value lower than that is not accepted, and the displayed numerical value loops between the upper limit value and the lower limit value.

[0110] In this case, by appropriately changing the range of settable numerical values ​​displayed on the display means 6, it is possible to eliminate unnecessary operations for the user.

[0111] In addition, in this embodiment, when the numerical value displayed on the display means 6 reaches the upper limit value or the lower limit value, the display control means 62 is configured to either not display the key display unit, which is a key that switches the numerical value one by one each time the touch panel 8 is tapped, on the display means 6 at all, or to change the color of the key display unit to a color different from that before while keeping the key display unit displayed on the display means 6.

[0112] In this case, it is possible for the user to visually understand that the numerical value displayed on the display means 6 has reached the upper or lower limit.

[0113] In addition, in this embodiment, the handle 4 extending horizontally above the door 3 which is provided on the front of the main body 1 and can be opened and closed freely is not formed on the vertical upper side of the display means 6, and the device is configured so that there is no convex portion protruding above the flat surface of the display means 6 on the vertical upper side of the display means 6.

[0114] In this case, when the user looks at the cooking appliance from diagonally above, the handle 4 does not get in the way and visibility is good, and in particular, when the user performs a sliding operation from bottom to top on the surface of the display means 6, the user's finger or a pen-like object will not hit the handle 4.

[0115] In this embodiment, the convex handle 4 is not formed on the horizontal sides of the display means 6.

[0116] In this case, when the user performs a sliding operation to the left or right on the surface of the display means 6, it is possible to prevent the finger or pen-like object from hitting the handle 4.

[0117] In addition, in this embodiment, the first to fourth virtual lines L1 to L4 along each side of the display means 6, which has a rectangular outline when viewed from the front, are configured so that no convex portions are located between the extension lines of the first and second virtual lines L1, L2, which are the top and bottom virtual lines, and between the extension lines of the third and fourth virtual lines L3, L4, which are the left and right virtual lines.

[0118] In this case, even if the user performs a slide operation in any direction, up, down, left or right, on the surface of the display means 6, the finger or pen-like object can be prevented from hitting a portion protruding beyond the display means 6. [Explanation of symbols]

[0119] 6 Display means 8. Touch Panel 62 Display control unit (display control means) B6 10-minute picker display (area where numbers are displayed) B7 Minute picker display (area where numbers are displayed) B9 10-second picker display (area where numbers are displayed) B11, B12, B13 Up key display section (Key display section) B14, B15, B16 Lower key display section (Key display section) G1 First top screen (display screen showing the heating time at the set heating output of the cooking device) M1 First menu display area (first display area) M2 Second menu display area (second display area)

Claims

1. A display means; a touch panel provided at a position overlapping the display screen of the display means and configured to receive user operations; a display control unit that controls a display of the display unit based on an operation on the touch panel, The display control means as the operation, a touch operation of touching a predetermined position on the touch panel and a slide operation of touching a predetermined position on the touch panel and sliding the touch panel from that position are accepted; The touch operation allows the operation of setting the heating output of the cooking device, The slide operation is an operation of the touch panel on an area where a numerical value indicating a heating time at a set heating output of the cooking device is displayed, The cooking device according to the present invention is characterized in that, by the sliding operation, the set heating time is displayed in a loop between an upper limit value and a lower limit value that can be set at the set heating output.

2. The display control means The cooking device according to claim 1, characterized in that when the numerical value has reached the upper limit value or the lower limit value, a key display unit which serves as a key for switching the numerical value by one each time the touch panel is tapped is configured to be not displayed at all on the display means, or to change the color of the key display unit to a color different from that before while keeping the key display unit displayed on the display means.

3. The display screen, on which a numerical value indicating a heating time at a set heating output of the cooking device is displayed, is formed with a first display area in which the numerical value is arranged, and a second display area in which several menus selected from a plurality of menus are displayed as defaults so that the menus can be selected and operated; The cooking device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the display control means controls the display of the display means so as to enlarge the first display area to the second display area when a predetermined operation is performed.

Images