Stove

Abstract

To provide a cooking stove capable of efficiently driving a fan according to a situation where the cooking stove is used.SOLUTION: A cooking stove includes inside a housing: a burner; an electric base plate loaded with a CPU; a temperature sensor for detecting a temperature of the inside of the housing; and a fan to be controlled in driving by the CPU. The cooking stove adjusts a drive amount of the fan at a plurality of stages based on T as a temperature of the inside of the housing, shown by a detection result of the temperature sensor. In more details, the CPU determines a value of T (S21). When T shows a temperature higher than a first threshold value and equal to or lower than a second threshold value, the CPU drives the fan at a drive amount with weak drive (S23). When T shows a temperature higher than the second threshold value, the CPU drives the fan at a drive amount with strong drive (S22).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a stove. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a gas stove that cools the inside of the housing by driving a fan. Patent Document 1 discloses a gas stove that starts driving the fan when multiple burners are burning, and does not start driving the fan when the number of burning burners is one or less. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 681393 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Even if multiple burners are burning, the temperature inside the housing may not be high. Also, even if no burners are burning, the temperature inside the housing may be high. Furthermore, in an emergency, it may be desirable not to drive the fan. The above gas stove has a problem in that it is not possible to change the fan drive mode according to such individual situations. Also, power is required to drive the fan, and unnecessary fan drive should be avoided in order to reduce power consumption.

[0005] The present invention has been made to solve such problems, and has an object to provide a stove that can drive a fan efficiently depending on the situation in which the stove is used. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The stove according to claim 1 of the present invention has a housing having: MultipleThe burner and the control unit that controls the burner are provided. At least one sensor that detects the temperature inside the housing and outputs the detection result to the control unit. A fan whose operation is controlled by the control unit is provided. The control unit is: When all of the burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, if the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature equal to or lower than a first threshold value, the fan is not driven; when the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature higher than the first threshold value and equal to or lower than a second threshold value, the fan is driven at a first driving amount; when the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold value, the fan is driven at a second driving amount larger than the first driving amount; when all of the burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, when the fan is driven at the second driving amount, if a predetermined time has elapsed since all of the burners transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state and the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature lower than the second threshold value, the driving amount of the fan is changed from the second driving amount to the first driving amount, and the driving of the fan is stopped according to the time that has elapsed since the change to the first driving amount. It is characterized by:

[0007] The stove according to claim 2 Before The control unit is characterized in that when any of the multiple burners is in a combustion state, if the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature below a first threshold value, the control unit does not drive the fan, if the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature higher than the first threshold value and below a second threshold value, the control unit drives the fan at a first drive amount, if the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold value, the control unit drives the fan at a second drive amount greater than the first drive amount.

[0008]

[0009]

[0010]

[0011]

[0012] Claim 3 Related stoves of The control unit executes a judgment process to judge whether the output of the detection result by the sensor is normal, and if the judgment process judges that the output of the detection result is not normal, transitions all of the burners from a combustion state to a non-combustion state and drives the fan, and stops driving the fan depending on the elapsed time since it was judged that the output of the detection result was not normal.

[0013] Claim 4 The stove related to The housing includes a burner, a control unit that controls the stove, at least one sensor that detects the temperature inside the housing and outputs the detection result to the control unit, a fan whose drive is controlled by the control unit, and a grill provided below the control unit, the burner including a grill burner for the grill, the control unit adjusting the drive amount of the fan to a plurality of stages according to the detection result by the sensor, and controlling the drive amount of the fan to the maximum drive amount of the plurality of stages when the grill burner is in a combustion state, and further the control unit operates based on power obtained from an external power source, operates based on power obtained from an internal power source connected to the control unit when power cannot be obtained from the external power source, drives the fan based on the power obtained from the external power source, and when operating based on power obtained from the internal power source, prohibits combustion of the grill burner and does not drive the fan. It is characterized by:

[0014]

[0015] Claim 5 In the stove according to the present invention, the sensor includes a first sensor and a second sensor. ,before The control unit controls the amount of drive of the fan based on one of the detection result of the first sensor and the detection result of the second sensor, which indicates a higher temperature. Effect of the Invention

[0016] The stove according to claim 1 can adjust the fan drive amount in multiple stages based on the temperature inside the housing detected by the sensor. Therefore, the stove according to claim 1 can drive the fan efficiently according to the situation in which the stove is used. When all burners transition from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, the temperature inside the housing varies depending on the previous combustion state. The control unit changes the fan drive amount or stops the fan depending on whether the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature equal to or lower than a first threshold, a temperature higher than the first threshold and equal to or lower than a second threshold, or a temperature higher than the second threshold. In this way, the stove according to claim 1 can maintain an appropriate temperature inside the housing while suppressing power consumption. When all burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, the control unit changes the fan drive amount from the second drive amount to the first drive amount when the fan continues to drive at the second drive amount for a predetermined time and the detection result indicates a temperature lower than the second threshold value. This allows the stove according to claim 1 to reduce power consumption of the stove compared to when the fan continues to drive at the second drive amount. When all burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, and the fan drive amount is changed from the second drive amount to the first drive amount, the temperature inside the housing of the stove is already decreasing due to the fan having been driven for a predetermined period of time. The control unit stops the fan drive according to the time that has elapsed since the fan drive amount was changed from the second drive amount to the first drive amount. Therefore, the stove according to claim 1 can stop the fan drive at the first drive amount in a timely manner, thereby reducing the power consumption of the stove.

[0017] Even if multiple burners are in a burning state, the temperature inside the housing may not become very high depending on their firepower. On the other hand, when one burner is in a burning state, the temperature inside the housing may become high. The control unit changes the amount of fan drive or stops the fan depending on whether the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature equal to or lower than the first threshold, a temperature higher than the first threshold and equal to or lower than the second threshold, or a temperature higher than the second threshold. In this way, the stove according to claim 2 can maintain an appropriate temperature inside the housing while suppressing power consumption.

[0018]

[0019]

[0020]

[0021]

[0022] If the sensor fails to provide a normal detection result due to a sensor failure or other reason, the control unit cannot properly control the fan drive amount based on the temperature inside the housing. In such a case, the control unit switches all burners from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, drives the fan, and then stops the fan according to the elapsed time.3 Even if a problem occurs in the output of the detection results by the sensor, the stove in question can reduce the power consumption of the stove by appropriately lowering the temperature inside the casing and then stopping the fan operation at the appropriate time.

[0023] The stove according to claim 4 can adjust the fan drive amount in multiple stages based on the temperature inside the housing detected by the sensor. Therefore, the stove according to claim 1 can drive the fan efficiently according to the situation in which the stove is used. When a grill is disposed below the control unit inside the housing, the temperature of the control unit is likely to increase due to the grill burner being in a combustion state. 4 In the stove according to the present invention, when the grill burner is in a combustion state, the fan drive amount is controlled to the maximum drive amount, thereby preventing malfunctions caused by the control unit becoming too hot.

[0024] The power capacity of the internal power supply is limited. When the control unit operates based on the power obtained from the internal power supply, the control unit maintains the grill burner in a non-combustion state and does not drive the fan. 4 The stove according to the present invention can prevent the internal power supply from being depleted by driving the fan in response to the use of the grill.

[0025] Claim 5 The stove controls the amount of fan drive based on the detection result of the first sensor or the detection result of the second sensor, whichever indicates the higher temperature, so that the temperature inside the housing can be kept at a safe and appropriate temperature. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0026] [Figure 1] FIG. [Diagram 2] FIG. [Diagram 3] 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] 1 is a perspective view of a state in which a left front panel 80 and a right front panel 90 are connected to a sensor case 40 fixed to the underside of a top plate 3 via a left duct portion 71 and a right duct portion 72. FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a perspective view seen from a different direction than FIG. 4. [Figure 6] 2 is a perspective view of the upper surface side of the sensor case 40. FIG. [Figure 7] 2 is a perspective view of the lower surface side of the sensor case 40. FIG. [Figure 8] This is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the stove 1. [Figure 9] 4 is a flowchart of a fan drive control process. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart continuing from FIG. [Figure 11] 11 is a flowchart continuing from FIG. 10. [Figure 12] 12 is a flowchart continuing from FIG. 11. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0027] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Unless otherwise specified, the structure of the device described below is not intended to be limited to that, but is merely an explanatory example. The drawings are used to explain technical features that the present invention can employ. In the following description, left and right, front and back, and up and down are indicated by arrows in the drawings.

[0028] The configuration of the stove 1 will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 5. The stove 1 is a built-in type gas stove. As shown in Fig. 1, the stove 1 includes a housing 2 and a top plate 3. The top plate 3 is made of glass. A left burner 4 is provided on the left side of the top surface of the top plate 3, a right burner 5 is provided on the right side of the top surface, and an exhaust port 7 for the grill is provided on the rear side of the top surface. The left burner 4 and the right burner 5 are collectively called the stove burner. A pot sensor 4A for detecting the temperature of the heated object, such as the temperature of the bottom of the pot, is provided in the center of the left burner 4. A pot sensor 5A is also provided in the center of the right burner 5. In this embodiment, the pot sensors 4A and 5A are configured using a general-purpose thermistor. A grill door 8 is provided in the center of the front of the housing 2 so that it can be pulled out toward the front. The grill door 8 opens and closes the grill opening on the front side of the grill chamber 10 shown in Fig. 3 provided inside the housing 2. A handle 8A is provided to protrude forward from the upper part of the front surface of grill door 8. Decorative panels 6A and 6B are attached to the top and bottom of the left side of grill door 8, and decorative panels 6C and 6D are attached to the top and bottom of the right side of the front surface of housing 2. An opening 66 is provided at the upper part of the front surface of decorative panel 6C, and SW19, which is a power switch for stove 1, protrudes forward from opening 66.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 2, behind the left burner 4, TC4B, which is a thermocouple for detecting the presence or absence of a flame of the left burner 4, and IG4C, which is an igniter for igniting by discharge, are provided. Similarly, TC5B and IG5C are provided behind the right burner 5. In the front part of the upper surface of the top plate 3, in front of the left burner 4, a left operation unit 11 for operating the left burner 4 is provided. In front of the right burner 5, a right operation unit 12 for operating the right burner 5 is provided. The left operation unit 11 is provided with a plurality of reception units that receive operations such as ignition, extinguishing, and increasing / decreasing the flame power of the left burner 4 by touching with the fingertip of the user of the stove 1, a display unit that displays the timer time, etc., and a light-emitting display unit that lights up or blinks depending on the usage state. Similarly to the left operation unit 11, the right operation unit 12 is also provided with a plurality of reception units, display units, light-emitting display units, etc. corresponding to the operation of the right burner 5. A grill light-emitting display unit 13 that lights up when the grill burner, which will be described later, is provided on the front side of the central portion sandwiched between the left burner 4 and the right burner 5. In the left operation unit 11 and the right operation unit 12, the reception unit, the light-emitting display unit, and the grill light-emitting display unit 13 are translucent buttons, marks, symbols, etc. printed on the top plate 3. The display unit is a non-printed area of ​​the top plate 3, and is a transparent window portion.

[0030] A sheet of electrical board 100, which will be described later in FIG. 6, is attached to the front part of the lower surface of the top plate 3 with adhesive, double-sided tape, or the like so as to correspond to the left operation unit 11, the right operation unit 12, and the grill light-emitting display unit 13 provided on the upper surface. A sensor case 40, which will be described later in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, is fixed so as to cover the electrical board 100 from below. On the upper surface of the electrical board 100, a capacitive touch sensor 24 is provided at a position corresponding to the reception unit, and a light-emitting unit 29 using an LED or the like is provided at a position corresponding to the display unit, the light-emitting display unit, and the grill light-emitting display unit 13. With these, in the left operation unit 11 and the right operation unit 12, the touch of the user's fingertip on each reception unit is sensed by the touch sensor 24 of the electrical board 100, and the light emitted by the light-emitting unit 29 is recognized by the user at the display unit, the light-emitting display unit, and the grill light-emitting display unit 13.

[0031] A sensor window 15 having a generally arcuate shape in plan view is provided on the rear side of the left operation unit 11. A sensor window 16 having a generally arcuate shape in plan view is provided on the rear side of the right operation unit 12. A sensor window 17 having a generally rectangular shape in plan view is provided on the rear side of the grill light-emitting display unit 13. The sensor windows 15-17 are non-printed areas having transparency, and transmit the lower part of the top plate 3 when viewed from above. Four distance measuring sensors 31-34 are arranged from left to right below the sensor window 15. Four distance measuring sensors 35-38 are arranged from left to right below the sensor window 16. One distance measuring sensor 39 is arranged below the sensor window 17. The distance measuring sensors 31-39 can measure the distance to a foreign object located above, and in this embodiment, are general-purpose infrared distance measuring sensors. The distance measuring sensors 31 to 39 are housed in a sensor case 40 fixed to the underside of the tabletop 3 and supported on the underside of the tabletop 3 .

[0032] As shown in FIG. 3, the grill chamber 10 is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape with an opening at the front. The grill chamber 10 includes an upper burner 25 and a lower burner 26. The upper burner 25 is a flat burner provided at the substantially central portion of the lower surface of the upper wall of the grill chamber 10. The lower burner 26 is formed in a substantially U-shape that opens toward the front in a plan view at the substantially central portion of the grill chamber 10 in the vertical direction, and includes a left flame hole portion 261 and a right flame hole portion (not shown). The upper burner 25 and the lower burner 26 are collectively referred to as the grill burner. A duct portion 27 that communicates with the inside of the grill chamber 10 is provided at the rear of the grill chamber 10. The duct portion 27 extends obliquely upward from the rear of the grill chamber 10 toward the rear, and a grill exhaust port 271 at the upper end portion is disposed directly below the exhaust port 7 of the top plate 3. The combustion exhaust generated inside the grill chamber 10 flows through the duct portion 27 and is discharged to the outside of the housing 2 through the grill exhaust port 271 and the exhaust port 7. Hereinafter, when the stove burner and the grill burner are collectively referred to, they will simply be referred to as burners.

[0033] As shown in FIG. 4, when the right decorative plates 6C and 6D are removed from the front surface of the housing 2, the front surface of the right front panel 90 is exposed. The right front panel 90 is formed in a vertically elongated rectangular shape when viewed from the front, and includes a front wall portion 91 and a tube portion 92. The front wall portion 91 is a substantially rectangular shape that is elongated in the vertical direction when viewed from the front, and constitutes the front surface of the right front panel 90. SW19 is provided in the upper right part of the front wall portion 91. The tube portion 92 is a substantially square tube extending rearward from the rear part of the lower side of the front wall portion 91. An intake passage portion 95 is provided on the bottom surface of the tube portion 92. The intake passage portion 95 is extended rearward inside the tube portion 92, and an air inlet 951 is provided at the front end portion. The air inlet 951 opens downward near the front side of the bottom surface of the housing 2. When the left decorative plates 6A and 6B are removed from the front surface of the housing 2, the front surface of the left front panel 80 is exposed. Like the right front panel 90, the left front panel 80 also has a front wall portion 81 and a cylindrical portion 82. A battery case 83 accommodating a dry battery 21 for emergency power supply shown in FIG. 8 is provided in the approximate center of the front surface of the front wall portion 81 so as to be able to be pulled out toward the front. An air intake passage portion 85 is provided in the bottom surface of the cylindrical portion 82. The air intake passage portion 85 is provided inside the cylindrical portion 82 and extends rearward, and an air inlet 851 is provided at its front end portion. The air inlet 851 opens downward near the front side of the bottom surface of the housing 2.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 5, the sensor case 40 is fixed to the lower surface of the top plate 3 via a fixing plate 3A fixed to the lower surface of the top plate 3. A right duct portion 72 having a substantially cylindrical shape extending in the vertical direction is connected between the right end portion of the sensor case 40 and the rear end of the intake passage portion 95 of the right front panel 90. A fan 75 is attached to the inside of the right duct portion 72. Air sucked from the intake passage portion 95 by the driving of the fan 75 flows from the bottom to the top inside the right duct portion 72. An outlet 721 is provided at the upper end portion of the right duct portion 72. The outlet 721 opens upward and serves as an outlet for air flowing inside the right duct portion 72. A left duct portion 71 having a substantially cylindrical shape extending in the vertical direction is connected between the left end portion of the sensor case 40 and the rear end of the intake passage portion 85 of the left front panel 80. The structure of the left duct portion 71 is similar to that of the right duct portion 72. A fan 75 is also attached inside the left duct portion 71, and air drawn into the intake passage portion 85 from the air inlet 851 by driving the fan 75 flows from the bottom to the top inside the left duct portion 71. An air outlet 711 is provided at the upper end portion of the left duct portion 71. The air outlet 711 opens upward and serves as an outlet for the air flowing inside the left duct portion 71.

[0035] The structure of the sensor case 40 will be described with reference to Fig. 6 and Fig. 7. The sensor case 40 is a resin structure extending in the left-right direction. The sensor case 40 includes a main body 41. The main body 41 is a case body extending in the left-right direction in a plan view, and includes a front side portion 44 and a rear side portion 45.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 6, the front part 44 is a front part of the main body part 41, and is formed in a substantially rectangular shape elongated in the left-right direction in a plan view. The upper surface of the front part 44 faces the lower surface of the top plate 3. A board accommodating part 50 is provided on the upper surface of the front part 44. The board accommodating part 50 is formed in a box shape that opens upward. With the sensor case 40 fixed to the lower surface of the top plate 3, the electrical board 100 attached to the lower surface of the top plate 3 is accommodated inside the board accommodating part 50. A cylindrical left cylinder part 42 that protrudes downward is provided at the left end of the lower surface of the front part 44. A cylindrical right cylinder part 43 that protrudes downward is provided at the right end of the lower surface of the front part 44.

[0037] A left inlet 52 is provided at the rear of the left end of the bottom surface of the board accommodating section 50, and a right inlet 53 is provided at the rear of the right end. The left inlet 52 communicates with the inside of the left tubular section 42, and the right inlet 53 communicates with the inside of the right tubular section 43. As shown in FIG. 7, front exhaust ports 54A and 54B arranged side by side in the left-right direction are provided in the front part, which is approximately the center in the left-right direction of the bottom surface of the board accommodating section 50. The front exhaust ports 54A and 54B open downward. An opening 55 is provided behind the front exhaust port 54A. The connector section 100A of the electrical board 100 is arranged inside the opening 55.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 6, inside the substrate accommodating section 50, there are formed a left side flow path 50A which is a flow path for air from the left inlet 52 to the front exhaust outlet 54A, and a right side flow path 50B which is a flow path for air from the right inlet 53 to the front exhaust outlet 54B.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 7, the rear portion 45 is a rear portion of the main body 41 and extends in the left-right direction in a plan view. The upper surface of the rear portion 45 faces the lower surface of the top plate 3. The sensor housing 60 is provided on the lower surface of the rear portion 45. The sensor housing 60 has a shape in which two arcs are aligned in the left-right direction when viewed from the bottom, and is formed in a box shape that opens downward. The sensor housing 60 includes a left sensor housing 61, a right sensor housing 62, and a central sensor housing 63. The left sensor housing 61 is provided on the left side of the sensor housing 60, the right sensor housing 62 is provided on the right side of the sensor housing 60, and the central sensor housing 63 is provided on the center side of the sensor housing 60. The left sensor housing 61 and the right sensor housing 62 are curved in a substantially arc shape so as to be concave toward the rear when viewed from the bottom. The central sensor housing 63 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape when viewed from the bottom.

[0040] Four distance measuring sensors 31-34 are fixed from left to right inside the left sensor housing 61. With the sensor case 40 fixed to the lower surface of the top plate 3, the distance measuring sensors 31-34 are supported directly below the sensor window 15 of the top plate 3. The left end of the left sensor housing 61 communicates with the left inlet 52. Four distance measuring sensors 35-38 are fixed from right to left inside the right sensor housing 62. With the sensor case 40 fixed to the lower surface of the top plate 3, the distance measuring sensors 35-38 are supported directly below the sensor window 16 of the top plate 3. The right end of the right sensor housing 62 communicates with the right inlet 53. A distance measuring sensor 39 is fixed to the center of the inside of the central sensor housing 63. With the sensor case 40 fixed to the lower surface of the top plate 3, the distance measuring sensor 39 is supported directly below the sensor window 17 of the top plate 3. A partition wall 631 is erected inside the central sensor accommodating portion 63 at a position adjacent to the left side of the distance measuring sensor 39. The partition wall 631 extends in the front-rear direction, and divides the inside of the central sensor accommodating portion 63 into a left sensor accommodating portion 61 side and a right sensor accommodating portion 62 side. A right flow path 60B is formed inside the right sensor accommodating portion 62 and the central sensor accommodating portion 63, which is a flow path for air that flows from the right inlet 53 to the left end portion of the central sensor accommodating portion 63.

[0041] A lid portion 65 is fixed to the lower surface side of the rear side portion 45 with a plurality of screws so as to close the inside of the sensor housing portion 60. The lid portion 65 includes a left lid portion 651, a right lid portion 652, and a central lid portion 653 so as to correspond to the shape of the sensor housing portion 60. The shapes of the left lid portion 651, the right lid portion 652, and the central lid portion 653 correspond to the shapes of the left sensor housing portion 61, the right sensor housing portion 62, and the central sensor housing portion 63, respectively. The left cylinder portion 42 is provided at the left end portion of the left lid portion 651. The lower end 421 of the left cylinder portion 42 is connected to the outlet 721 at the upper end portion of the right duct portion 72 via a packing 422 as shown in FIG. 5. The right cylinder portion 43 is provided at the right end portion of the right lid portion 652. The lower end 431 of the right cylinder portion 43 is connected to the outlet 711 at the upper end portion of the left duct portion 71 via a packing 432 as shown in FIG. 5.

[0042] A connecting tube 68 having a generally rectangular cylindrical shape and protruding downward is provided on the lower surface of the central lid portion 653. The connecting tube 68 communicates with the inside of the central sensor housing portion 63. A partition wall 681 is provided on the inside of the connecting tube 68 to divide the inside of the connecting tube 68 into left and right. With the lid portion 65 fixed to the lower surface side of the rear side portion 45, the upper end of the partition wall 681 abuts against the lower end of the partition wall 631 of the central sensor housing portion 63. A left flow path 60A is formed on the inside of the left sensor housing portion 61 as a flow path for air that flows in from the left inlet 52, moves toward the right end of the left sensor housing portion 61, and then flows out to the outside of the sensor case 40 via the connecting tube 68. Inside the right sensor accommodating section 62 and the central sensor accommodating section 63, a right flow path 60B is formed, which is a flow path for air that flows in from the right inlet 53, passes through the left sensor accommodating section 61, heads toward the central sensor accommodating section 63, and then flows out to the outside of the sensor case 40 via the connecting tube 68.

[0043] When the burner is used, the temperature inside the housing 2 is likely to become higher than the temperature outside the housing 2. In particular, since the sensor case 40 is installed above the grill chamber 10, the temperature of the sensor case 40 and its vicinity is likely to rise during use of the grill burner. The air flowing through the left flow paths 50A, 60A and the right flow paths 50B, 60B by the driving of the fans 75, 75 is called cooling air. The cooling air cools the electrical board 100 and the distance measuring sensors 31 to 39 housed in the sensor case 40. The cooling air flowing out of the sensor case 40 through the connecting tube 68 flows into the inside of the duct 28 and is discharged to the outside of the housing 2 through the grill exhaust port 271 and the exhaust port 7 as shown in FIG. 3.

[0044] Stove 1 has temperature sensors THb58, 59 disposed inside housing 2 for detecting the temperature inside housing 2. In this embodiment, THb58, 59 are general-purpose thermistors. THb58 is disposed in mounting hole 56 shown in FIG. 7 in order to detect the temperature inside housing 2 cooled by cooling air flowing through left flow path 50A and right flow path 50B. THb59 is disposed near central sensor housing 63 in order to detect the temperature inside housing 2 cooled by cooling air flowing through left flow path 60A and right flow path 60B.

[0045] The electrical configuration of the stove 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 8. The stove 1 includes a control circuit 110 on an electrical board 100. The control circuit 110 includes a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a RAM 113, a non-volatile memory 114, and an I / O interface (not shown). The CPU 111 controls various operations of the stove 1. The ROM 112 stores various programs for the stove 1, including the fan drive control process shown in FIG. 9 to FIG. 12. The RAM 113 temporarily stores various information. The RAM 113 stores timer counters such as an M1 timer counter, an M2 timer counter, an M3 timer counter, and an ME timer counter, which will be described later. The non-volatile memory 114 stores various data such as various parameters for driving the fans 75, 75, and burner firepower information.

[0046] The control circuit 110 is electrically connected to a power supply circuit 121, a pot sensor input circuit 122, a thermocouple input circuit 123, an igniter circuit 124, a touch sensor 24, a light-emitting unit 29, a fan control circuit 125, a temperature sensor input circuit 126, a distance measurement sensor input circuit 127, a buzzer circuit 128, a safety valve circuit 131, a solenoid valve circuit 132, etc.

[0047] The power supply switching circuit 20 is electrically connected to the power supply circuit 121. The power supply switching circuit 20 is connected to the AC22, an AC power supply that is an external power supply supplied from outside the stove 1, and the dry cell 21, an internal power supply built into the stove 1. During normal supply when AC22 supplies AC (e.g., 100V), the power supply switching circuit 20 steps down the AC supplied from AC22 to DC (e.g., 3V) and rectifies it, and supplies it to the power supply circuit 121. During an emergency when AC22 does not supply AC due to a power outage or the like, the power supply switching circuit 20 supplies DC supplied from the dry cell 21 to the power supply circuit 121. When the user presses the power button 19, the power supply circuit 121 supplies the power supplied from the power supply switching circuit 20 to the various circuits, and the power supply of the stove 1 is turned on. When the user presses the power button 19 again, the power supply circuit 121 cuts off the power supply to the various circuits, and the power supply of the stove 1 is turned off. It should be noted that the dry battery 21 does not need to be normally housed in the battery case 83 at all times, but may be housed in the battery case 83 only in an emergency.

[0048] In an emergency when operating on the internal power supply, it is preferable that the stove 1 be in a usable state for as long as possible until the external power supply is restored. For this reason, the stove 1 does not drive the fans 75, 75 in an emergency when operating on the internal power supply. This allows the stove 1 to reduce consumption of the internal power supply due to use of the stove 1 in an emergency, and ensure that the stove 1 can be used for as long as possible. In other words, in the stove 1, the fans 75, 75 are driven only by the external power supply, and are not driven by the internal power supply.

[0049] The touch sensor 24 outputs a detection signal corresponding to the touch operation of the user on the reception unit to the control circuit 110. The light emitting unit 29 performs a light emitting operation in response to a control signal from the CPU 111. The pan sensors 4A and 5A are connected to the pan sensor input circuit 122. The pan sensors 4A and 5A output a temperature signal based on a resistance value corresponding to a temperature change to the pan sensor input circuit 122. In FIG. 8, the pan sensor is represented as "THa". The pan sensor input circuit 122 outputs a temperature signal input from the pan sensors 4A and 5A to the control circuit 110. The thermocouple input circuit 123 is connected to TC4B and 5B and TC6B, which is a thermocouple provided in the grill burner. TC4B, 5B, and 6B output a temperature signal corresponding to a thermoelectromotive force to the thermocouple input circuit 123. The thermocouple input circuit 123 outputs a temperature signal input from TC4B, 5B, and 6B to the control circuit 110. IG4C, IG5C and IG6C, which is an igniter provided in the stove burner, are connected to the igniter circuit 124. When the CPU 111 receives a sensing signal from the touch sensor 24 indicating that the burners are to be ignited, it drives one of IG4C, IG5C, and IG6C in the igniter circuit 124 to ignite one of the left burner 4, the right burner 5, and the grill burner corresponding to the sensing signal.

[0050] The fans 75, 75 are connected to the fan control circuit 125. The fan control circuit 125 drives the fans 75, 75 or stops driving the fans 75, 75 in response to a control signal from the CPU 111. The CPU 111 can adjust the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 in multiple stages. In this embodiment, the drive amount is two stages, weak drive and strong drive. Strong drive has a larger drive amount than weak drive. Therefore, when the fans 75, 75 are driven strongly, the flow of cooling air in the left flow paths 50A, 60A and the right flow paths 50B, 60B becomes stronger than when the fans 75, 75 are driven weakly, and the effect of lowering the temperature inside the housing 2 is increased. The temperature sensor input circuit 126 is connected to the THb 58, 59. The THb 58, 59 inputs a temperature signal based on a resistance value corresponding to a temperature change to the temperature sensor input circuit 126. The pan sensor input circuit 122 inputs the input temperature signal to the control circuit 110.

[0051] Distance measurement sensors 31-39 are connected to distance measurement sensor input circuit 127. Each of distance measurement sensors 31-39 incorporates a light-emitting unit that emits infrared rays and a light-receiving unit that receives infrared rays. The light-receiving unit receives light emitted by the light-emitting unit and reflected by a foreign object. Distance measurement sensors 31-39 measure the distance to the foreign object using a triangulation method based on the intensity of the reflected light received, and output a distance signal indicating the measured distance to the foreign object to distance measurement sensor input circuit 127. Distance measurement sensor input circuit 127 outputs the distance signal input from distance measurement sensors 31-39 to control circuit 110.

[0052] The buzzer circuit 128 drives the piezoelectric buzzer 78 based on a control signal from the CPU 111 when an error occurs in the stove 1, etc. The safety valve 104 is connected to the safety valve circuit 131. In FIG. 8, the safety valve is represented as "SV." The safety valve 104 is provided upstream of the gas supply pipe that supplies gas to the burner. The safety valve 104 is a known magnetic safety valve. When the CPU 111 receives a sensing signal from the touch sensor 24 indicating that the burner is to be ignited, the CPU 111 causes the safety valve circuit 131 to open the safety valve 104. When the CPU 111 determines that the temperature signal input via the thermocouple input circuit 123 indicates a burner misfire, the CPU 111 causes the safety valve circuit 131 to close the safety valve 104.

[0053] The solenoid valves 101, 102, and 103 are connected to the solenoid valve circuit 132. The solenoid valves 101, 102, and 103 are known keep solenoid valves for adjusting the gas flow rate. The solenoid valve 101 is provided in the middle of the supply pipe extending from the gas supply pipe toward the left burner 4. The solenoid valve 102 is provided in the middle of the supply pipe extending from the gas supply pipe toward the right burner 5. The solenoid valve 103 is provided in the middle of the supply pipe extending from the gas supply pipe toward the stove burner. When the CPU 111 receives a sensing signal indicating that the flame power of the burner is to be adjusted from the touch sensor 24, the solenoid valve circuit 132 opens and closes the solenoid valves 101, 102, and 103 to adjust the gas flow rate flowing through the supply pipe and adjust the flame power of the burner. In particular, when the CPU 111 determines that the distance to the foreign object indicated by the distance signal input via the distance sensor input circuit 127 is within a predetermined height range from the top plate 3, it performs flame adjustment control by closing the solenoid valves 101, 102 to minimize the flame power of the stove burner during combustion.

[0054] 9 to 12, the fan drive control process executed by CPU 111 will be described. When power button 19 is pressed to turn on stove 1, CPU 111 reads out a program for the fan drive control process stored in ROM 112, and executes the fan drive control process. When the fan drive control process starts, fans 75, 75 are not driven and are stopped. In the following description, each process step is abbreviated as "S".

[0055] As shown in Fig. 9, when the fan drive control process is started, CPU 111 starts measuring the time that has elapsed since startup (S11). The time that has elapsed since startup is the time that has elapsed since stove 1 was powered on and CPU 111 started up. Hereinafter, the time that has elapsed since startup is abbreviated to "M1." CPU 111 starts measuring M1 using an M1 timer counter stored in RAM 113. The M1 timer counter is a timer counter for measuring M1.

[0056] The CPU 111 judges whether the stove 1 is in a normal supply state where AC power is supplied from the outside, that is, whether AC power is being supplied from the AC 22 (S12). If AC power is being supplied from the AC 22, the CPU 111 judges that the normal supply state is in effect (S12: YES), and judges whether the temperature inside the housing 2 is being detected normally by the THb 58, 59 (S16). Whether the temperature inside the housing 2 is being detected normally by the THb 58, 59 is judged based on a predetermined criterion. The predetermined criterion is set to identify the occurrence of a failure of the THb 58, 59, a poor connection of the THb 58, 59, a failure of the temperature sensor input circuit 126, or the like. The value of the temperature inside the housing 2 indicated by the temperature signal output by the THb 58, 59 is abbreviated as "T". The predetermined criterion is, for example, a threshold value for determining whether the difference between T corresponding to the temperature signal output by THb 58 and T corresponding to the temperature signal output by THb 59 is within a predetermined range, a reference time for determining the period during which no temperature signal is input from the temperature sensor input circuit 126 continues, etc. The predetermined criterion is stored in advance in the ROM 112.

[0057] When the CPU 111 determines that the temperature inside the housing 2 is normally detected by the THb 58, 59 (S16: YES), it determines whether the grill burner is burning (S18). This determination is made based on whether the temperature signal corresponding to the thermoelectromotive force output by the TC6B, which is a thermocouple provided in the grill burner and input via the thermocouple input circuit 123, indicates the temperature at which the grill burner is burning. When the CPU 111 determines that the grill burner is burning (S18: YES), it drives the fans 75, 75 at the high drive amount (S22). That is, when the grill burner is burning, the stove 1 drives the fans 75, 75 at the high drive amount, which is the maximum drive amount among the multiple drive amounts. This prevents the temperature inside the housing 2, particularly the temperature of the electrical board 100 and the distance measuring sensors 31 to 39 provided above the grill chamber 10, from becoming too high. If the fans 75, 75 are already driven at the high drive amount, the CPU 111 continues the drive. The CPU 111 returns the process to the determination in S12 and continues the execution of the fan drive control process, thereby monitoring the power supply status and the burner usage status thereafter.

[0058] When the CPU 111 determines that the grill burner is not burning (S18: NO), it determines whether at least one of the left burner 4 and the right burner 5 is burning (S19). This determination is made based on whether a temperature signal corresponding to the thermoelectromotive force outputted by the thermocouples TC4B, 5B provided in the stove burner, inputted via the thermocouple input circuit 123, indicates the temperature at which the stove burner is burning. When the CPU 111 determines that at least one of the left burner 4 and the right burner 5 is burning (S19: YES), it determines the value of T (S21).

[0059] When T indicates a temperature equal to or lower than the first threshold, the CPU 111 stops driving the fans 75, 75 (S25). When the fans 75, 75 are stopped, the CPU 111 maintains the stopped state of the fans 75, 75. In this embodiment, the first threshold is 5° C. When T indicates a temperature higher than the first threshold and equal to or lower than the second threshold, the CPU 111 drives the fans 75, 75 at the low drive drive amount (S23). When the fans 75, 75 are driven at the high drive drive amount, the CPU 111 changes the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 from the high drive drive to the low drive drive. The second threshold is a temperature higher than the first threshold, and is 40° C. in this embodiment. When T indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold, the CPU 111 drives the fans 75, 75 at the high drive drive amount (S22). If the fans 75, 75 are driven at a low drive rate, the CPU 111 changes the drive rate of the fans 75, 75 from low drive to high drive. The CPU 111 returns the process to the judgment of S12. In this way, even if the burner is burning, if the value of T is equal to or less than the first threshold, the stove 1 determines that the temperature inside the housing 2 is sufficiently low and safe, and does not drive the fans 75, 75, thereby reducing the power consumption of the stove 1. Furthermore, the stove 1 appropriately adjusts the drive rate of the fans 75, 75 depending on whether the value of T during the burning of the burner exceeds the second threshold, and therefore, it is possible to prevent the temperature inside the housing 2 from becoming too high while reducing the power consumption of the stove 1.

[0060] When T corresponding to the temperature signal output by THb58 and T corresponding to the temperature signal output by THb59 indicate different values, CPU111 adopts the higher value to determine the drive amount of fans 75, 75 or to stop driving fans 75, 75. This allows stove 1 to appropriately lower the temperature inside housing 2 while ensuring safety.

[0061] On the other hand, in an emergency in which AC power is not supplied from the AC 22 to the stove 1, that is, when power is supplied from the dry cell 21, which is an internal power source (S12: NO), the CPU 111 prohibits the grill burner from burning (S13). Therefore, in an emergency, the user's operation to ignite the grill burner is invalid, and the grill burner does not ignite. If the grill burner is already in a burning state, the burning is stopped and the grill burner goes into a non-burning state. Furthermore, the CPU 111 does not drive the fans 75, 75 in an emergency (S15). If the fans 75, 75 are being driven, the CPU 111 stops driving the fans 75, 75. This allows the stove 1 to avoid the internal power source being consumed by the internal power source driving the fans 75, 75. In an emergency, even if the stove burner is burning, the fans 75, 75 are not driven, but since the grill burner is not burning, the temperature inside the housing 2 of the stove 1 does not become so high that it affects the operation of the CPU 111. The CPU 111 returns the process to the decision of S12.

[0062] Furthermore, when the CPU 111 determines that the temperature inside the housing 2 is not normally detected by the THb 58, 59 (S16: NO), the THb 58, 59 and the temperature sensor input circuit 126 are suspected to have a malfunction. For this reason, the CPU 111 stops the combustion of all the burners (S26). In this process, the CPU 111 causes the safety valve circuit 131 to close the safety valve 104. The CPU 111 starts measuring the time elapsed since the malfunction (S28). The time elapsed since the malfunction is the time that has elapsed since it was determined that the temperature inside the housing 2 is not normally detected by the THb 58, 59. Hereinafter, the time elapsed since the malfunction is abbreviated as "ME". The CPU 111 starts measuring the ME by the ME timer counter stored in the RAM 113. The ME timer counter is a timer counter for measuring the ME. The CPU 111 drives the fans 75, 75 at a high drive amount (S22). If the fans 75, 75 are already being driven at the high drive level, the CPU 111 continues driving the fans 75, 75. The CPU 111 returns the process to the determination in S12.

[0063] Also, when the CPU 111 determines that neither the left burner 4 nor the right burner 5 is burning (S19: NO), it determines whether any of the burners have transitioned from a burning state to a non-burning state at this time (S31). If any of the burners have transitioned from a burning state to a non-burning state at this time (S31: YES), the CPU 111 starts measuring the elapsed time after extinguishing (S32). The elapsed time after extinguishing is the time that has elapsed from the time when all of the burners transitioned from a burning state to a non-burning state. Hereinafter, the elapsed time after extinguishing is abbreviated as "M2". The CPU 111 starts measuring M2 using the M2 timer counter stored in the RAM 113. The M2 timer counter is a timer counter for measuring M2. The CPU 111 shifts the process to S41 in FIG. 10. If all the burners continue to be in a non-combustion state before and after this point in time (S31: NO), the CPU 111 shifts the process to S41.

[0064] As shown in FIG. 10, the CPU 111 judges the value of T (S41). When T indicates a temperature equal to or lower than the first threshold, the CPU 111 stops driving the fans 75, 75 (S45) and ends the fan drive control process. Thereafter, the CPU 111 turns off the power of the stove 1. In this embodiment, the first threshold is 5° C., the same as the judgment in S21. When T indicates a temperature higher than the first threshold and equal to or lower than the second threshold, the CPU 111 drives the fans 75, 75 at the low drive drive amount (S43). Note that, when the fans 75, 75 are driven at the high drive drive amount, the CPU 111 changes the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 from the high drive drive to the low drive. In this embodiment, the second threshold is 40° C., the same as the judgment in S21. When T indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold, the CPU 111 drives the fans 75, 75 at the high drive drive amount (S42). If the fans 75, 75 are driven at a low drive rate, the CPU 111 changes the drive rate of the fans 75, 75 from low drive to high drive. The CPU 111 moves the process to S51 in Fig. 11. In this way, the stove 1 adjusts the drive rate of the fans 75, 75 or stops the drive of the fans 75, 75 according to the value of T after all the burners have transitioned to the non-combustion state. This allows the stove 1 to appropriately lower the temperature inside the housing 2 after all the burners have transitioned to the non-combustion state while suppressing power consumption.

[0065] 11, the CPU 111 determines whether the fans 75, 75 are driven at a high drive rate (S51). If the fans 75, 75 are driven at a high drive rate (S51: YES), the CPU 111 determines whether the M2 timer counter is measuring M2 (S52: YES). If the M2 timer counter is measuring M2 (S52: YES), the CPU 111 determines whether the value of M2 indicates 15 minutes or more (S53). If the value of M2 indicates less than 15 minutes (S53: NO), the CPU 111 returns the process to the determination of S12.

[0066] When the value of M2 indicates 15 minutes or more (S53: YES), the CPU 111 judges whether T is a temperature equal to or lower than the second threshold (S55). In this embodiment, in S55, in order to judge whether T is certainly equal to or lower than the second threshold, the judgment criterion is set to 38°C, which is a temperature slightly lower than the second threshold of 40°C. When T indicates a temperature equal to or lower than the second threshold (S55: YES), the CPU 111 changes the driving amount of the fans 75, 75 to low driving (S58). That is, when a sufficient amount of time has passed after all the burners have reached the non-combustion state and the temperature inside the housing 2 has reached the second threshold or lower, the stove 1 changes the driving amount of the fans 75, 75 from high driving to low driving. Therefore, the stove 1 can reduce the power consumption of the stove 1 more than if the fans 75, 75 were continuously driven at high driving after all the burners have reached the non-combustion state.

[0067] The CPU 111 starts measuring the post-change elapsed time (S58). The post-change elapsed time is the time that has elapsed since the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 was changed from high drive to low drive after all the burners had transitioned from the combustion state to the non-combustion state. Hereinafter, the post-change elapsed time is abbreviated as "M3". The CPU 111 starts measuring M3 using the M3 timer counter stored in the RAM 113. The M3 timer counter is a timer counter for measuring M3. The CPU 111 returns the process to the judgment of S12.

[0068] On the other hand, if T indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold (S55: NO), it is determined whether the value of M2 indicates 60 minutes or more (S59). If the value of M2 indicates less than 60 minutes (S59: NO), the CPU 111 returns the process to the determination of S12. If the value of M2 indicates 60 minutes or more (S59, YES), the CPU 111 stops the driving of the fans 75, 75 (S63) and ends the fan drive control process. Thereafter, the CPU 111 turns off the power of the stove 1. If T exceeds the second threshold even after the driving of the fans 75, 75 continues for a considerable time after all the burners have reached a non-combustion state, it is considered that T indicates a temperature caused by the temperature outside the stove 1, and the inside of the housing 2 has reached a safe temperature. Therefore, the CPU 111 sets the determination criterion of S55 to 60 minutes, and stops the driving of the fans 75, 75 when M2 exceeds 60 minutes. This allows the stove 1 to avoid further power consumption due to driving the fans 75, 75. The time period used as the criterion for S55 may be set to any time period that ensures that the inside of the housing 2 is at a safe temperature.

[0069] Also, if the M2 timer counter is not measuring M2 (S52: NO), the CPU 111 judges whether the ME timer counter is measuring ME (S61). If the ME timer counter is measuring ME (S61: YES), the CPU 111 judges whether the ME value indicates 60 minutes or more (S62). If the ME value indicates less than 60 minutes (S62: NO), the CPU 111 returns the process to the judgment of S12. If the ME value indicates 60 minutes or more (S62: YES), the CPU 111 stops driving the fans 75, 75 (S63) and ends the fan drive control process. After that, the CPU 111 turns off the power of the stove 1. That is, if the temperature inside the housing 2 cannot be obtained normally due to a failure of the THb 58, 59 and the temperature sensor input circuit 126, the stove 1 turns off all burners, drives the fans 75, 75 at high drive for 60 minutes, and then stops the fans 75, 75. In this way, even if the temperature inside the housing 2 is not normal, the stove 1 drives the fans 75, 75 for a considerable period of time to appropriately lower the temperature inside the housing 2. In addition, the stove 1 can then stop driving the fans 75, 75 to reduce power consumption.

[0070] If the ME timer counter is not measuring ME (S61: NO), the CPU 111 refers to the M1 timer counter and judges whether the value of M1 indicates 60 minutes or more (S65). If the value of M1 indicates less than 60 minutes (S65: NO), the CPU 111 returns the process to the judgment of S12. If the value of M1 indicates 60 minutes or more (S65: YES), the CPU 111 stops driving the fans 75, 75 (S63) and ends the fan drive control process. Thereafter, the CPU 111 turns off the power of the burner 1. That is, if the fans 75, 75 start to be driven at high drive in response to the temperature inside the housing 2 being equal to or higher than the second threshold value at the time when the power of the burner 1 is turned on, the driving of the fans 75, 75 is stopped in response to the fact that the driving of the fans 75, 75 has continued for 60 minutes while all the burners are in a non-combustion state. In this way, if the fans 75, 75 continue to be driven at high speed for a considerable period of time with all burners in a non-combustion state, the stove 1 determines that the inside of the housing 2 has reached a safe temperature and stops driving the fans 75, 75. This allows the stove 1 to avoid further power consumption due to driving the fans 75, 75. The time criterion for S65 may be set to any time that ensures that the inside of the housing 2 is at a safe temperature.

[0071] Furthermore, when the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 is low (S51: NO), the CPU 111 judges whether the M2 timer counter is measuring M2 (S71) as shown in FIG. 12. When the M2 timer counter is measuring M2 (S71: YES), the CPU 111 judges whether the M3 timer counter is measuring M3 (S72). When the M3 timer counter is measuring M3 (S72: YES), the CPU 111 judges whether the value of M3 indicates 10 minutes or more (S75). When the value of M3 indicates 10 minutes or more (S75: YES), the CPU 111 stops the drive of the fans 75, 75 (S78) and ends the fan drive control process. Thereafter, the CPU 111 turns off the power of the stove 1. That is, after all burners have gone from a non-combustion state to a combustion state, the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 is changed from high drive to low drive by the process of S56, and if 10 minutes have passed since then, the stove 1 stops the drive of the fans 75, 75 at low drive. When the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 of the stove 1 is changed from high drive to low drive by the process of S56, the temperature inside the housing 2 is lower than the second threshold, and the temperature is further decreasing due to the drive of the fans 75, 75. For this reason, the CPU 111 executes the judgment of S75 using 10 minutes, which is relatively shorter than the time of the other judgment criteria, as the judgment criterion, and stops the drive of the fans 75, 75 in a timely manner, thereby avoiding power consumption due to the drive of the fans 75, 75 thereafter. The judgment criterion time of S75 may be set to any time that can ensure that the inside of the housing 2 is at a safe temperature.

[0072] On the other hand, if the value of M3 indicates less than 10 minutes (S75: NO), the CPU 111 judges whether the value of M2 indicates 60 minutes or more (S76). If the value of M2 indicates less than 60 minutes (S76: NO), the CPU 111 returns the process to the judgment of S12. If the value of M2 indicates 60 minutes or more (S76: YES), the CPU 111 stops driving the fans 75, 75 (S78) and ends the fan drive control process. Thereafter, the CPU 111 turns off the power of the stove 1. That is, after all burners have changed from a non-combustion state to a combustion state, if 10 minutes have not yet elapsed since the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 was changed from high drive to low drive by the process of S56, but the elapsed time since the change has reached 60 minutes, the stove 1 stops driving the fans 75, 75 at low drive. In this way, if the fans 75, 75 continue to operate at low speed for a considerable period of time after all burners have reached a non-combustion state, the stove 1 determines that the inside of the housing 2 has reached a safe temperature and stops operating the fans 75, 75, thereby avoiding power consumption due to subsequent operation of the fans 75, 75. The time criterion for S75 and S76 may be set to any time that ensures that the inside of the housing 2 is at a safe temperature.

[0073] Specifically, the drive of the fans 75, 75 is controlled as follows based on the judgments made in S75 and S76. For example, if the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 is changed from high to low 55 minutes after the power of the stove 1 is turned on, the fans 75, 75 will continue to drive for five minutes and then stop. Also, if the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 is changed from high to low 5 minutes after the power of the stove 1 is turned on, the fans 75, 75 will continue to drive for 10 minutes and then stop.

[0074] Furthermore, when the M3 timer counter is not measuring M3 (S72: NO), the CPU 111 judges whether the value of M2 indicates 10 minutes or more (S73). When the value of M2 indicates less than 10 minutes (S73: NO), the CPU 111 returns the process to the judgment of S12. When the value of M2 indicates 10 minutes or more (S73: YES), the CPU 111 stops the driving of the fans 75, 75 (S78) and ends the fan drive control process. After that, the CPU 111 turns off the power of the stove 1. That is, when the fans 75, 75 continue to be driven at low drive from the time when all the burners change from the non-combustion state to the combustion state, the stove 1 executes the judgment of S73 using 10 minutes, which is relatively shorter than the time of the other judgment criteria. This allows the stove 1 to stop the driving of the fans 75, 75 at an appropriate time and to avoid power consumption due to the driving of the fans 75, 75 thereafter.

[0075] Furthermore, when the M2 timer counter is not measuring M2 (S71: NO), the CPU 111 judges whether the M3 timer counter is measuring M3 (S81). When the M3 timer counter is not measuring M3 (S81: NO), the CPU 111 stops the driving of the fans 75, 75 (S85) and returns the process to the judgment of S12. That is, when the fans 75, 75 start to drive at low drive in response to the temperature inside the housing 2 immediately after the power of the burner 1 is turned on being equal to or lower than the second threshold value and higher than the first threshold value, the burner 1 stops driving the fans. Then, since it is immediately after the power is turned on and none of the burners have been ignited yet, the CPU 111 monitors the usage status of the burners thereafter. Note that, when the fans 75, 75 do not drive and none of the burners are ignited for a predetermined time after the power of the burner 1 is turned on, the CPU 111 ends the fan drive control process and turns off the power.

[0076] If the M3 timer counter is measuring M3 (S81: YES), the CPU 111 judges whether the value of M3 is 10 minutes or more (S82). If the value of M3 is less than 10 minutes (S82: NO), the CPU 111 judges whether the value of M1 is 60 minutes or more (S83). If the value of M1 is less than 60 minutes (S83: NO), the CPU 111 returns the process to the judgment of S12. If the value of M3 is 10 minutes or more (S82: YES) or if the value of M1 is 60 minutes or more (S83: YES), the CPU 111 stops driving the fans 75, 75 (S78) and ends the fan drive control process. Thereafter, the CPU 111 turns off the power to the stove 1. That is, when the temperature inside the housing 2 immediately after the stove 1 is turned on exceeds the second threshold and the fan 75,75 starts to be driven at high drive, and the drive amount of the fan 75,75 is changed to low drive by the processing of S56, the stove 1 stops the drive of the fan 75,75 in response to the determination of YES in S82 or S83. Specifically, for example, when the drive amount of the fan 75,75 is changed from high drive to low drive 55 minutes after the stove 1 is turned on, the fan 75,75 continues to drive for 5 minutes and then stops. Also, for example, when the drive amount of the fan 75,75 is changed from high drive to low drive 5 minutes after the stove 1 is turned on, the fan 75,75 continues to drive for 10 minutes and then stops. In this way, the stove 1 stops the drive of the fan 75,75 according to the elapsed time after start-up and the elapsed time after the change, and can avoid power consumption due to the drive of the fan 75,75 thereafter. The time criterion for S82 and S83 may be set to any time that ensures that the inside of the housing 2 is at a safe temperature.

[0077] As described above, the stove 1 can adjust the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 in multiple stages based on the temperature inside the housing 2 indicated by the detection results of THb 58, 59 (S22, S23, S42, S43). Therefore, the stove 1 can efficiently drive the fans 75, 75 according to the situation in which the stove 1 is used, and can reduce the power consumption of the stove 1.

[0078] In the case where the stove 1 includes a plurality of burners, the left burner 4 and the right burner 5, even if the plurality of burners are in a burning state, the temperature inside the housing 2 may not be so high depending on their firepower. On the other hand, the temperature inside the housing 2 may be high because one burner is in a burning state. The CPU 111 changes the driving amount of the fans 75, 75 or stops the fans 75, 75 without driving them (S22, S23, S25) depending on whether the temperature inside the housing 2 indicated by the detection result of THb58, 59 indicates a temperature equal to or lower than the first threshold, indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold, or indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold. In this way, the stove 1 can maintain the inside of the housing 2 at an appropriate temperature while suppressing the power consumption due to the driving of the fans 75, 75 when the burners are in a burning state.

[0079] When all the burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, the temperature inside the housing 2 varies depending on the combustion state of the burners up to that point. When all the burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, the CPU 111 determines the drive amount of the fans 75, 75, or stops the fans 75, 75 without driving them, depending on whether the temperature inside the housing 2 indicates a temperature equal to or lower than the first threshold, a temperature higher than the first threshold and equal to or lower than the second threshold, or a temperature higher than the second threshold (S42, S43, S45). This allows the stove 1 to maintain the inside of the housing 2 at an appropriate temperature while suppressing power consumption due to the drive of the fans 75, 75 after all the burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state.

[0080] If the driving of the fans 75, 75 continues for a considerable time after all the burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, the temperature inside the housing 2 has dropped to a safe temperature. The stove 1 measures M2, which is the time that has passed since all the burners transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, and stops the driving of the fans 75, 75 according to the measured value of M2 (S59, S63, S73, S76, S78). This allows the stove 1 to keep the temperature inside the housing 2 at a safe temperature while limiting the time that the fans 75, 75 are driven to an appropriate time and reducing the power consumption of the stove 1.

[0081] When all burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, and the fans 75, 75 continue to be driven at the high drive rate for a predetermined time (S53: YES), and T indicates a temperature equal to or lower than the second threshold (S55: YES), the CPU 111 changes the drive rate of the fans 75, 75 from high drive to low drive (S56). This allows the stove 1 to reduce power consumption compared to when the fans 75, 75 continue to be driven at high drive.

[0082] When all burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, and the temperature inside the housing 2 falls below the second threshold and the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 is changed from high drive to low drive, the temperature inside the housing 2 is decreasing due to the drive of the fans 75, 75 up to that point. The CPU 111 measures M3, which is the elapsed time since the change, and stops the drive of the fans 75, 75 according to the measured value of M3 (S75: YES) (S78). Therefore, the stove 1 can stop driving the fans 75, 75 at the low drive amount in a timely manner, and reduce the power consumption of the stove 1.

[0083] When the temperature inside the housing 2 cannot be obtained normally due to a failure of the THb 58, 59 and the temperature sensor input circuit 126, the CPU 111 cannot appropriately control the driving of the fans 75, 75 based on the temperature inside the housing 2. The CPU 111 judges whether the temperature inside the housing 2 is detected normally by the THb 58, 59 (S16). Then, the CPU 111 stops the combustion of all the burners (S26) and starts measuring M3, which is the time elapsed since the failure (S28). The CPU 111 continues to drive the fans 75, 75 at high speed until the value of M3 reaches a predetermined time, and then stops driving the fans 75, 75 (S62, S63). In this way, the stove 1 appropriately lowers the temperature inside the housing 2 even when the temperature inside the housing 2 cannot be obtained normally, and then stops driving the fans 75, 75 at an appropriate time, so that the power consumption of the stove 1 can be reduced while maintaining the safety of the stove 1.

[0084] Inside the housing 2, the grill chamber 10 is disposed below the electrical circuit board 100 on which the CPU 111 is mounted. When the grill burner is in a combustion state (S18: YES), the CPU 111 drives the fans 75, 75 at the maximum driving force (S22). This allows the stove 1 to prevent the electrical circuit board 100 from becoming too hot due to the combustion of the grill burner.

[0085] The capacity of the internal power supply of the stove 1 is limited. In an emergency, when power is being supplied from the dry cell 21, which is the internal power supply (S12: YES), the CPU 111 prohibits combustion of the grill burner (S13) and does not drive the fans 75, 75 (S15). Therefore, in an emergency, the stove 1 can avoid exhaustion of the internal power supply by driving the fans 75, 75 in response to the combustion of the grill burner.

[0086] When T corresponding to the temperature signal output by THb58 and T corresponding to the temperature signal output by THb59 indicate different values, CPU 111 adopts the higher value to determine the drive amount of fans 75, 75 or to stop driving fans 75, 75. Therefore, stove 1 can drive fans 75, 75 appropriately to make the temperature inside housing 2 a safer temperature.

[0087] In this embodiment, the stove 1 corresponds to the "stove" of the present invention. The housing 2 corresponds to the "housing" of the present invention. The left burner 4 and the right burner 5, which are stove burners, and the upper burner 25 and the lower burner 26, which are grill burners, correspond to the "burners" of the present invention. The CPU 111 functions as the "control unit" of the present invention. The THb58, 59 correspond to the "sensor" of the present invention, the THb58 corresponds to the "first sensor" of the present invention, and the THb59 corresponds to the "second sensor" of the present invention. The fans 75, 75 correspond to the "fan" of the present invention. The grill chamber 10 corresponds to the "grill" of the present invention. The AC 22 corresponds to the "external power source" of the present invention. The dry cell 21 housed in the battery case 83 corresponds to the "internal power source" of the present invention.

[0088] The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, the first threshold value and the second threshold value are not limited to the above embodiment, and may be values ​​indicating other temperatures. The first threshold value and the second threshold value in S21 may be different from the first threshold value and the second threshold value in S41.

[0089] The drive amount of the fans 75, 75 may be set in three or more stages. Therefore, in addition to the first threshold value and the second threshold value, another threshold value may be set for determining the drive amount of the fans 75, 75. When the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 is set in three or more stages, it is preferable that the fans 75, 75 are driven at the maximum drive amount during combustion of the grill burner.

[0090] In addition to THb 58 and 59, other temperature sensors may be provided as temperature sensors for detecting the temperature inside the housing 2. In this case, it is preferable that the driving of the fans 75 and 75 is controlled based on the highest temperature among the detection results output by the multiple temperature sensors. In addition, the temperature sensor is not limited to a thermistor, and various sensors such as a thermocouple, an IC temperature sensor, and a temperature-sensitive reed switch may be used as the temperature sensor.

[0091] The value of the criterion based on the value of M1 in S65 and S83 (60 minutes) may be changed in various ways depending on the viewpoint of enhancing the safety of stove 1. Similarly, the values ​​of the criterion based on the value of M2 in S53, S59, S73, and S76 (10 minutes, 15 minutes, 60 minutes) may be changed in various ways. Similarly, the value of the criterion based on the value of M3 in S75 (10 minutes) may be changed in various ways. Similarly, the value of the criterion based on the value of ME in S62 (60 minutes) may be changed in various ways.

[0092] The adjustment of the drive amount of the fans 75, 75 may be performed by setting the drive amount of each of the two fans 75, 75 to low and high as in the above embodiment, or by other methods such as driving one fan 75 and stopping the drive of the other fan 75. The number of fans provided in the stove 1 may be one, or three or more.

[0093] The electrical board 100 may be divided into a plurality of boards. Therefore, for example, a part of the circuits and the like shown as components of the electrical board 100 in Fig. 8 may be mounted on another board electrically connected to the electrical board 100.

[0094] Each step of the fan drive control process is not limited to being executed by the CPU 111 of the control circuit 110, and may be executed in part or in whole by other electronic devices (e.g., ASIC). Each step of the fan drive control process may be distributed and processed by a plurality of electronic devices (e.g., a plurality of CPUs). The order of each step of the fan drive control process may be changed, and steps may be omitted or added, as necessary. The scope of the present invention also includes an embodiment in which an operating system (OS) running on the stove 1 performs a portion or all of the fan drive control process based on instructions from the CPU 111. [Explanation of symbols]

[0095] 1 Stove 2. Chassis 4 Right burner 5 Left burner 10 Grill room 21 Dry cell battery 22 AC 25 Upper burner 26 Lower burner 58,59 THb 75,75 Fan 111 CPU 112 ROM 113 RAM

Claims

1. Inside the housing, A plurality of burners; A control unit that controls the stove; At least one sensor that detects a temperature inside the housing and outputs a detection result to the control unit; A fan whose drive is controlled by the control unit; Equipped with The control unit is When all the burners transition from a combustion state to a non-combustion state, When the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature equal to or lower than a first threshold value, the fan is not driven; When the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature higher than the first threshold value and equal to or lower than a second threshold value, driving the fan at a first driving amount; When the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold value, driving the fan at a second driving amount that is greater than the first driving amount; When all of the burners have transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state and the fan is driven at the second driving amount, When the time that has elapsed since all of the burners transitioned from a combustion state to a non-combustion state reaches a predetermined time and the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature that is lower than the second threshold value, the drive amount of the fan is changed from the second drive amount to the first drive amount, and the drive of the fan is stopped according to the time that has elapsed since the change to the first drive amount. A stove characterized by the above.

2. The control unit, when any of the plurality of burners is in a combustion state, When the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature equal to or lower than a first threshold value, the fan is not driven; When the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature higher than the first threshold value and equal to or lower than a second threshold value, driving the fan at a first driving amount; When the detection result by the sensor indicates a temperature higher than the second threshold value, the fan is driven at a second driving amount that is greater than the first driving amount.

2. The stove according to claim 1 .

3. The control unit is execute a determination process to determine whether the output of the detection result by the sensor is normal; When it is determined that the output of the detection result is not normal by the determination process, all of the burners are shifted from a combustion state to a non-combustion state and the fan is driven; The driving of the fan is stopped according to the elapsed time since it was determined that the output of the detection result is abnormal.

3. A stove as claimed in claim 1 or 2.

4. Inside the housing, Burna and A control unit that controls the stove; At least one sensor that detects a temperature inside the housing and outputs a detection result to the control unit; A fan whose drive is controlled by the control unit; A grill provided below the control unit; Equipped with the burner includes a grill burner for the grill; The control unit is adjusting a driving amount of the fan in a plurality of stages according to the detection result by the sensor; When the grill burner is in a combustion state, the driving amount of the fan is controlled to a maximum driving amount among the plurality of steps, Furthermore, the control unit The device operates based on power obtained from an external power source, and when power cannot be obtained from the external power source, the device operates based on power obtained from an internal power source connected to the control unit; driving the fan based on the power obtained from the external power supply; A stove characterized in that, when operating based on power obtained from the internal power source, combustion of the grill burner is prohibited and the fan is not driven.

5. The sensor includes a first sensor and a second sensor, A stove as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the control unit controls the amount of drive of the fan based on the detection result of the first sensor or the detection result of the second sensor, whichever indicates a higher temperature.

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