Heating Regulator

Abstract

To reduce occurrence of various problems due to no-load running.SOLUTION: A heat cooker (2) includes a light-emitting element (61), a light receiving element (62), and a reading device for reading information code. When intensity of light that is received by the light receiving element (62) is equal to or less than a specified value, the heat cooker heats a food product on a heating condition in accordance with information code of the food product. The light-emitting element and the reading device are positioned on a side of a top surface of a heating compartment and in a central part in a width direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cooking device that heats food placed inside a heating chamber. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, convenience stores provide a service in which food items such as boxed lunches sold to customers are heated in a cooking device such as a microwave oven and handed over to the customers.

[0003] The suitable heating temperature and heating time for heating food vary depending on the type of food. Therefore, in the heating cookers shown in Patent Documents 1 and 2, a barcode indicating the type of food, which is written on the food container, is read by a reading device, and the food is heated according to the heating information (heating temperature and heating time) according to the type of food.

[0004] Specifically, in the configuration described in Patent Document 1, a barcode scanner is connected to a microwave oven, and a user manually operates the barcode scanner to read barcodes marked on food containers.

[0005] In the configuration described in Patent Document 2, the barcode written on a food container is read by holding it over a first barcode reader provided on one side of the front of the cooking appliance. Alternatively, food stored in a container is placed inside the heating chamber of the cooking appliance, and the barcode written on the food container is read by a second barcode reader provided on the top wall of the heating chamber. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] JP 2006-64362 A [Patent Document 2] Utility Model Registration No. 3076649 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] Incidentally, neither Patent Document 1 nor Patent Document 2 describes the timing at which the barcode scanner or the first or second barcode reading device reads. However, if these reading devices are configured to always read, there is a risk that the barcode on the food container may be read by mistake when the heated food is removed from the heating chamber. In this case, the food has already been removed from the heating chamber, so heating is performed without the food being present in the heating chamber. In other words, no-load operation is performed, which puts a strain on the heating unit of the cooking device, such as the magnetron, and causes problems such as shortening the life of the device.

[0008] An object of one aspect of the present invention is to provide a cooking device that can reduce the occurrence of various problems caused by no-load operation by reducing the occurrence of no-load operation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to solve the above problems, a cooking device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a heating chamber, a light-emitting element that irradiates light onto at least a portion of the interior of the heating chamber, a light-receiving element that receives the light irradiated by the light-emitting element, a determination unit that determines whether food is placed in the heating chamber, a heating unit that heats and cooks the food placed in the heating chamber, a heating control unit that controls the heating unit, and a reading device that reads an information code, wherein the determination unit determines that food is present in the heating chamber when the intensity of light received by the light-receiving element is equal to or lower than a predetermined value, and the heating control unit causes the heating unit to heat and cook the food under heating conditions corresponding to the information code read by the reading device, at least on the condition that it has been determined by the determination unit that food is placed in the heating chamber, and the light-emitting element and the reading device are located on the top side of a front opening of the heating chamber and are located in the center in the width direction, and the heating chamber has a light-transmitting flat plate as a bottom surface, ReceivingThe optical element is located below the flat plate. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to one aspect of the present invention, by reducing the occurrence of no-load operation, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of various problems caused by no-load operation. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of a cooking device according to an embodiment of the present invention with a front door closed, viewed obliquely from above and on the front side. [Diagram 2] 2 is a front view of the cooking device shown in FIG. 1 with a front door open. FIG. [Diagram 3] 2 is a perspective view of the cooking device shown in FIG. 1 with a front door open, as viewed from diagonally below on the right. [Figure 4] 2 is a vertical sectional view of a control frame showing an installation state of a reading device provided in the cooking appliance shown in FIG. 1. [Diagram 5] 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a reading area of ​​the reading device shown in FIG. 4. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of an information code. [Figure 7] 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control device provided in the cooking appliance shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 8] 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a method of determining the presence or absence of food in the cooking device shown in FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a front view of a cooking device according to another embodiment of the present invention with a front door open. [Figure 10] 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control device provided in the cooking appliance shown in FIG. 9. [Figure 11] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a method of determining the presence or absence of food in the cooking device shown in FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a front view of a cooking device according to another embodiment of the present invention with a front door open. [Figure 13]13 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control device provided in the cooking appliance shown in FIG. 12. [Figure 14] FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing a modified example of a method for determining the presence or absence of food. [Figure 15] 13 is an explanatory diagram showing a modified example of a method for determining whether or not a square plate is present. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] [Embodiment 1] An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the cooking device 1 of this embodiment with a freely openable and closable front door 12 provided on the main body of the cooking device 1 when it is closed, as viewed from diagonally above the front. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the cooking device 1 shown in Fig. 1 with the front door 12 open, as viewed from diagonally below the front. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the cooking device 1 shown in Fig. 1 with the front door 12 open, as viewed from diagonally below the right.

[0013] (Overview of Cooker 1) 1 to 3, cooking appliance 1 is, for example, a microwave oven, and has an operation panel 11 at the top of the front side, and a front door 12 below operation panel 11. Front door 12 is a door for opening and closing heating chamber 13 provided behind front door 12, and covers front opening 13b of heating chamber 13 when closed. In this embodiment, front door 12 is of a side-opening type that rotates around the end on the left side facing the door, and has a handle 14 near the right end, which is the end opposite to the center of rotation.

[0014] As shown in Fig. 2, a camera 31 (imaging unit) for photographing the interior of the heating chamber 13 is provided on a top surface 13a of the interior of the chamber. The camera 31 photographs the interior of the heating chamber 13. The presence or absence of food is determined from the image captured by the camera 31.

[0015] The operation panel 11 is provided on the front surface of the control frame 15. The operation panel 11 is provided so that the front surface of the operation panel 11 is substantially flush with the front surface of the front door 12 in the front-rear direction of the cooking appliance 1.

[0016] Inside the control frame 15, a control board (not shown) is provided that controls the display unit 30 of the operation panel 11, accepts user operations on the input keys and the like, and the like.

[0017] (Reader 16) Fig. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the control frame 15 showing the installation state of the reader 16. Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the reading area 19 of the reader 16.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 4, the control frame 15 is provided so as to protrude forward of the cooking appliance 1. The reader 16 is attached to the underside of a reader board (circuit board) 17, and is provided at the bottom inside the control frame 15. The reader board 17 includes a drive circuit for the reader 16. That is, the reader 16 is installed outside the heating chamber 13, above the front opening 13b of the heating chamber 13, and is provided so as to have a reading area 19 below the installation position.

[0019] The reader 16 is, for example, a barcode reader, and is configured to read an information code (for example, a barcode) attached to the food to be heated in the cooking appliance 1 or to a container for the food.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 5, the area below the reader 16 is used as a reading area 19, and the control frame 15 has a transparent reading window 18 in the portion of the lower wall facing the reader 16.

[0021] The reading area 19 of the reading device 16 is indicated, for example, by red light so that the user can visually understand the reading area 19. This red light is irradiated by a reading area illumination unit 21 (see FIG. 7). For example, a red LED is used as the reading area illumination unit 21. Note that the light indicating the reading area 19 is not limited to red, and may be other light visible to the user, such as a laser. Also, the number of red LEDs may be one or more.

[0022] 2 and 3, the reading device 16 is provided at the center in the width direction (left and right direction) of the front opening 13b of the heating chamber 13.

[0023] The reader 16 may be an imaging device such as a camera, and may read an information code (for example, a bar code) as an image.

[0024] (Information Code) FIG. 6(a) is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an information code consisting of a two-dimensional code (QR code (registered trademark)), and FIG. 6(b) is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an information code consisting of a one-dimensional barcode.

[0025] The information code is used to heat-cook food. For example, the information code includes information indicating the type of food and information (heating information) indicating the conditions for heat-cooking the indicated type of food. The heating information is information necessary for heat-cooking, and includes the heating time and wattage of the high-frequency output in the heat cooker 1. Specifically, the information code includes information indicating the type of food, for example, that the food is a bento (or further the type of bento) or that the food is a rice ball (or further the type of rice ball), and heating information including the heating time and wattage of the high-frequency output according to the indicated food. This information code is attached to the food or the food container, for example, by printing or sticker. Note that the information code is used to heat-cook a specified food, and therefore may include only information specifying the food, and the heating information of the specified food may be obtained from an external server 51 (FIG. 8). The information code may also include only the heating information of the food.

[0026] The information code may be, for example, a two-dimensional code as shown in (a) of Fig. 6, or a one-dimensional barcode as shown in (b) of Fig. 6. The information code is not limited to a barcode, etc., as long as it can indicate the type of food.

[0027] (Control device) Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a control device provided in the cooking appliance 1. The control device includes a control unit 22 that controls the operation of the cooking appliance 1. The control unit 22 is made up of, for example, a microcomputer, and has a CPU, ROM and RAM.

[0028] 7, the control unit 22 is connected to the operation panel 11, the heating operation unit 23, the reading device 16, the reading area illumination unit 21, the reading result notification unit 24, the front door opening / closing detection unit 25, and a memory (storage unit) 52. The front door opening / closing detection unit 25 is composed of, for example, a switch that is turned on when the front door 12 is closed, and detects whether the front door 12 is open or closed.

[0029] The heating operation unit 23 is an operation unit that heats the food placed in the heating chamber 13, and is, for example, a microwave output device or a heater. The reading result notification unit 24 is a buzzer or a sound generating unit, and is controlled by the control unit 22 to notify the user of the success or failure of the reading of the information code by the reading device 16.

[0030] The control unit 22 can communicate with the server 51, for example, using an internet line. Heating information corresponding to various types of food is registered in the server 51. The control unit 22 acquires heating information corresponding to the type of food from the server 51, which is acquired by the reading device 16 reading the information code, and controls the heating operation unit 23 so that the food is heated according to the acquired heating information. Note that the heating information corresponding to the type of food may be stored in the cooking device 1 itself. In this case, the cooking device 1 does not need to communicate with the server 51.

[0031] Furthermore, the control unit 22 includes a judgment unit 22a that judges whether or not food 40 is present in the heating chamber 13, a heating control unit 22b that controls the heating operation of the heating operation unit 23 based on the judgment result of the judgment unit 22a, and a reading control unit 22c that controls the reading operation of the reading device 16.

[0032] (Heating Control (1)) 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a method of determining the presence or absence of food in the cooking device 1. The determination unit 22a determines the presence or absence of food 40 in the heating chamber 13 based on the image captured by the camera 31. That is, the determination unit 22a determines that food 40 is present in the heating chamber 13 if the image obtained as a result of analyzing the image captured by the camera 31 is the image shown by reference numeral 1181, and determines that food 40 is not present in the heating chamber 13 if the image obtained is the image shown by reference numeral 1182.

[0033] Heating control unit 22b permits heating operation by heating operation unit 23 if the detection result of front door opening / closing detection unit 25 indicates that front door 12 is closed and the determination result of determination unit 22a indicates that food 40 is present in heating chamber 13. On the other hand, heating control unit 22b does not permit heating operation by heating operation unit 23 if the detection result of front door opening / closing detection unit 25 indicates that front door 12 is closed but the determination result of determination unit 22a indicates that food 40 is not present in heating chamber 13. In other words, heating control unit 22b causes heating operation unit 23 to perform cooking of food 40 under the condition that at least it is determined by determination unit 22a that food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13 and that front door opening / closing detection unit 25 detects that front door 12 is closed.

[0034] If the determination result of determination unit 22a indicates the presence of food 40, reading control unit 22c stops the reading operation of information code by reader 16 for a predetermined time, or cancels the information code read by reader 16 for a predetermined time. As a result, if food 40 is present in heating chamber 13, reading of unnecessary information codes by reader 16 is prevented. For example, even if food 40 is present in heating chamber 13 and front door 12 is open, and the information code of another food 40 can be read, reading of the information code by reader 16 is not performed.

[0035] The reading control unit 22c resumes the stopped operation of reading the information code by the reader 16 when it receives a determination result from the determination unit 22a indicating that there is no food 40 in the heating chamber 13.

[0036] The memory 52 stores the heating information contained in the information code read by the reader 16. As a result, for a food item whose information code has been read once, the heating information is registered in the memory 52 of the cooking device 1, making it unnecessary to obtain the heating information every time the information code is read from outside the cooking device 1.

[0037] (Heating Control (2)) A further condition for executing heating control by heating control unit 22b may be that the information code of food 40 placed in heating chamber 13 is read by reading device 16. That is, when the determination result of determination unit 22a indicates that food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13 and the information code of food 40 placed in heating chamber 13 is read by reading device 16, heating control unit 22b performs heating control of food 40 if the detection result of front door opening / closing detection unit 25 indicates that front door 12 is closed.

[0038] As a result, when the front door 12 is closed, the reading device 16 can execute heating control on the food 40 placed in the heating chamber 13 in accordance with the information code.

[0039] (Operation of cooking device 1) In the above configuration, the operation of the cooking device 1 will be described below. Here, a case will be described in which food 40 is a boxed lunch with an information code attached to the top surface of the container, and this boxed lunch is heated by the cooking device 1.

[0040] First, the user checks the guidance display 20 (for example, "Open the door and hold the information code over the red light") on the operation panel 11. Then, the user opens the front door 12 in accordance with the guidance display 20. When the front door open / close detection unit 25 detects that the front door 12 is open, the control unit 22 operates the reading device 16 and the reading area illumination unit 21.

[0041] Next, the user follows the guidance display 20 on the operation panel 11 and places the lunch in the lunch box so that the information code is in the reading area 19 of the reading device 16 (so that the information code is illuminated by red light).

[0042] Through this operation, the reader 16 reads the information code attached to the lunch box. When the reader 16 successfully reads the information code, the control unit 22 notifies the user of the reading result through the reading result notification unit 24. In this case, the operation of the reading result notification unit 24 is, for example, to emit a continuous "beep" sound, to emit a voice saying "The information code has been successfully read", or both.

[0043] When the user is notified by the read result notification unit 24 that the information code has been successfully read, the user moves the lunch to the inside of the heating chamber 13 and places it in a predetermined position (on the flat plate 13c) in the heating chamber 13. At this time, the control unit 22 determines by the determination unit 22a that the lunch is placed in the heating chamber 13, and based on this determination result, heating control by the heating control unit 22b, i.e., heating operation by the heating operation unit 23, is permitted. When the control unit 22 successfully reads the information code, it communicates with the server 51 and obtains from the server 51 heating information according to the type of food indicated by the information code. After that, when the user closes the front door 12, the control unit 22 sends a detection result indicating that the front door 12 has been closed from the front door opening / closing detection unit 25 to the heating control unit 22b, and heats the lunch in the heating chamber 13 according to the obtained heating information.

[0044] When the heating of the lunch box is completed in the above manner, the user is notified of this, and the user removes the lunch box from heating chamber 13. By removing the lunch box from heating chamber 13, determination unit 22a of control unit 22 determines that the lunch box is not in heating chamber 13. Based on the determination result of determination unit 22a (no lunch box), heating control unit 22b does not permit heating operation by heating operation unit 23 even if front door 12 is closed.

[0045] Here, it is assumed that the judgment unit 22a always judges whether or not the lunch box is present even during heating control of the lunch box in the heating chamber 13 by the heating control unit 22b. As a result, heating is not performed when the lunch box is not present in the heating chamber 13, i.e., in an unloaded state. This assumes, for example, a case in which the front door 12 is opened by a user during heating control and the lunch box is removed. In other words, when the front door opening / closing detection unit 25 detects that the front door 12 has been opened while the lunch box in the heating chamber 13 is being heated, the heating control unit 22b stops the heating control.

[0046] Furthermore, the presence or absence of food in heating chamber 13 may be notified to the user by, for example, lighting or unlighting a food mark on display unit 30 of operation panel 11. For example, if there is food in heating chamber 13, the food mark is lit, and if there is no food in heating chamber 13, the food mark is turned off. This allows the user to know whether or not food is in heating chamber 13 without visually checking the inside of heating chamber 13.

[0047] (effect) According to the cooking device 1 having the above configuration, when the determination unit 22a determines that the food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13 and the front door open / close detection unit 25 detects that the front door 12 is open, the heating control unit 22ba is permitted to control the heating of the food 40. As a result, heating is not performed in an unloaded state in which the food 40 is not placed in the heating chamber 13. As a result, the heating operation (unloaded operation) by the heating operation unit 23 is not permitted in a state in which there is no food 40 (object to be heated) in the heating chamber 13, i.e., in an unloaded state, so problems due to unloaded operation do not occur. For example, there is no problem that the magnetron is burdened by unloaded operation and the life of the device is shortened.

[0048] Furthermore, by adding the condition that the information code of the food 40 has been read by the reading device 16 to the above two conditions, in addition to the effect of not heating under no load conditions, it is possible to properly heat the food 40 based on the information code.

[0049] In this embodiment, the determination by determination unit 22a as to whether food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13 is performed by analyzing the image captured by camera 31, but this is not limited to this. For example, as described in the following embodiment 2, a light emitting element and a light receiving element may be provided to determine whether food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13 from the presence or absence of transmitted light.

[0050] [Embodiment 2] Other embodiments of the present invention will be described below. For ease of explanation, the same reference numerals are given to members having the same functions as those described in the above embodiment, and the description thereof will not be repeated.

[0051] (Overview of Cooking Appliance 2) Fig. 9 is a front view of the cooking device 2 of this embodiment with the front door 12 open. As shown in Fig. 9, the cooking device 2 has a light-emitting element 61 provided on the top surface 13a, and a light-receiving element 62 that receives light irradiated by the light-emitting element 61 provided below the flat plate 13c on the bottom surface. Since the flat plate 13c is made of a light-transmitting material, the light-receiving element 62 provided below the flat plate 13c can receive the light irradiated by the light-emitting element 61. In this way, the light-emitting element 61 and the light-receiving element 62 are used to detect the presence or absence of food placed in the heating chamber 13. The determination of the presence or absence of food in the heating chamber 13 will be described in detail later.

[0052] (Control device) 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a control device provided in the cooking appliance 2. The control device controls the light-emitting element 61 and the light-receiving element 62 instead of controlling the camera 31 in the cooking appliance 1 of the first embodiment. Since the control is the same as that of the first embodiment except for the control of the light-emitting element 61 and the light-receiving element 62, details are omitted.

[0053] Control unit 22 includes a determination unit 22a that determines whether food 40 is present in heating chamber 13, and a heating control unit 22b that controls the heating operation of heating unit 23 based on the determination result of determination unit 22a.

[0054] Determination unit 22a determines whether or not food 40 is present in heating chamber 13 based on the signal from light-receiving element 62. Here, when determination unit 22a receives a signal indicating that light is being received from light-receiving element 62, it determines that food 40 is not placed in heating chamber 13, and when determination unit 22a receives a signal indicating that light is not being received from light-receiving element 62, it determines that food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13.

[0055] If the judgment result of the judgment unit 22a indicates that food 40 is present in the heating chamber 13, the heating control unit 22b allows the heating operation by the heating operation unit 23, but if the judgment result indicates that food 40 is not present in the heating chamber 13, the heating control unit 22b does not allow the heating operation by the heating operation unit 23.

[0056] (Determining the presence or absence of food in heating chamber 13) Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the cooking device 2 shown in Fig. 9. As indicated by reference numeral 1111 in Fig. 11, when food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13, the light emitted from light-emitting element 61 is blocked by food 40 and is not received by light-receiving element 62. In other words, when food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13, a signal indicating that no light is being received from light-receiving element 62 is sent to control unit 22, which will be described later.

[0057] 11, when food 40 is removed from heating chamber 13, the light emitted from light-emitting element 61 is received by light-receiving element 62. Therefore, a signal indicating that light is being received (light-receiving signal) is sent from light-receiving element 62 to control unit 22, which will be described later.

[0058] As described above, control unit 22 determines whether or not food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13 based on the signal from light receiving element 62. That is, by using light emitting element 61 and light receiving element 62, it is possible to determine whether or not food 40 is placed in heating chamber 13.

[0059] In this embodiment, the light-emitting element 61 and the light-receiving element 62 are opposed to each other, so that the light-receiving element 62 receives the transmitted light that is emitted by the light-emitting element 61 and transmitted within the heating chamber 13, and determines whether or not food 40 is placed there based on the intensity of the received light, but this is not limited to the above. For example, the light-emitting element 61 and the light-receiving element 62 may be provided on the same side, and the light-receiving element 62 may receive the reflected light that is emitted by the light-emitting element 61 and reflected within the heating chamber 13, and determine whether or not food 40 is placed there based on the intensity of the received light. In other words, the determination unit 22a determines whether or not food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13 based on the light irradiated to the position where food 40 is placed within the heating chamber 13, or the light intensity of the reflected light reflected within the heating chamber 13.

[0060] (effect) In the cooking device 2 configured as above, whether or not food 40 is placed is determined using the light emitting element 61 and the light receiving element 62, so like the cooking device 1 of the first embodiment, heating is not performed in an unloaded state where food 40 is not placed in the heating chamber 13. As a result, heating operation (unloaded operation) by the heating operation unit 23 in a state where there is no food 40 (object to be heated) in the heating chamber 13, i.e., in an unloaded state, is not permitted, so problems due to unloaded operation do not occur. For example, there is no problem that unloaded operation puts a strain on the magnetron, shortening the life of the equipment.

[0061] In other words, compared to the conventional method of determining that the device is operating without load by first performing heating control and then detecting the magnetron temperature, this method places less strain on the device, thereby extending the device's lifespan.

[0062] In this embodiment, the light-emitting element 61 is provided for detecting food 40, but if the light emitted by the light-emitting element 61 is visible light, an interior light (not shown) that is already provided in the heating chamber 13 may be used instead of providing the light-emitting element 61. In this case, the light-receiving element 62 may be placed in a position where the light from the interior light is blocked when the food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13. In this way, if the light emitted by the light-emitting element 61 is visible light, an existing interior light can be used.

[0063] However, the light emitted by the light-emitting element 61 may be infrared light. In this case, the light received by the light-receiving element 62 must also be infrared light. In this way, when infrared light is used to determine the presence or absence of food 40 in the heating chamber 13, it is less susceptible to noise from external light, etc., than when visible light is used.

[0064] Generally, there are cooking appliances that can switch between cooking using high frequency waves as described in the first and second embodiments and oven cooking using a heater. In oven cooking, a square plate on which food to be heated is placed may be set in the heating chamber. Normally, square plates are made of metal and are not suitable for high frequency cooking. Therefore, when a metal square plate is set in the heating chamber, it is necessary to prevent high frequency cooking. In the following third embodiment, an example will be described in which the presence or absence of a metal square plate in the heating chamber is detected, and high frequency cooking is prevented when the square plate is detected.

[0065] [Embodiment 3] Other embodiments of the present invention will be described below. For ease of explanation, the same reference numerals are given to members having the same functions as those described in the above embodiment, and the description thereof will not be repeated.

[0066] (Overview of Cooker 3) Fig. 12 is a front view of the cooking device 3 of this embodiment with the front door 12 open. As shown in Fig. 12, the cooking device 3 has guide parts 32 extending horizontally in the front-rear direction formed on each of the left and right side walls 13d when the heating chamber 13 is viewed from the front. The guide parts 32 may be attached to the side walls 13d by welding or the like, or may be formed by drawing the side walls 13d.

[0067] The two guide sections 32 face each other and are formed at the same height from the flat plate 13c on the bottom surface. A square plate 34 used in oven cooking is placed on the guide section 32. A square plate detection sensor (square plate placement determination section) 33 that determines whether the square plate 34 is placed on the upper part of the back side of at least one of the two guide sections 32 is provided. The square plate detection sensor 33 may be any type of sensor that can determine whether the square plate 34 is placed on a predetermined position on the guide section 32. The determination of whether the square plate 34 is placed on the heating chamber 13 will be described in detail later.

[0068] (Control device) 13 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a control device provided in the cooking appliance 3. The control device further includes a square plate detection sensor 33 in addition to the control unit 22 of the cooking appliance 1 of the first embodiment, and controls square plate detection. Since the control is the same as that of the first embodiment except for the control using the square plate detection sensor 33, details are omitted.

[0069] Control unit 22 includes a determination unit 22a that determines whether food 40 is present in heating chamber 13, and a heating control unit 22b that controls the heating operation of heating unit 23 based on the determination result of determination unit 22a.

[0070] The determination unit 22a determines, from the image captured by the camera 31, whether or not food 40 is present in the heating chamber 13.

[0071] Furthermore, the determination unit 22a determines whether or not the square plate 34 is present in the heating chamber 13 based on a detection signal from the square plate detection sensor 33. Specifically, if the detection signal received from the square plate detection sensor 33 indicates that the square plate 34 is placed in the heating chamber 13, the determination unit 22a determines that the square plate 34 is not placed in the heating chamber 13.

[0072] The heating control unit 22b allows the heating operation unit 23 to perform the heating operation if the judgment result of the judgment unit 22a indicates that the food 40 is present in the heating chamber 13 or that the square plate 34 is not present in the heating chamber 13. On the other hand, the heating control unit 22b does not allow the heating operation unit 23 to perform the heating operation if the judgment result of the judgment unit 22a indicates that the food 40 is not present in the heating chamber 13 or that the square plate 34 is present in the heating chamber 13. In other words, if the square plate 34 is detected by the square plate detection sensor 33, the heating control unit 22b does not perform heating control (mainly high-frequency heating) for cooking other than oven cooking. If the square plate detection sensor 33 determines that the square plate 34 is placed in a predetermined position, the heating control unit 22b allows the heating operation unit 23 to perform oven cooking, but does not allow high-frequency heating to be performed.

[0073] (effect) In the cooking device 3 configured as above, the light emitting element 61 and the light receiving element 62 are used to determine whether or not food 40 is placed, and so, similar to the cooking device 1 of the first embodiment, heating is not performed in an unloaded state in which food 40 is not placed in the heating chamber 13. As a result, heating operation (unloaded operation) by the heating operation unit 23 in a state in which there is no food 40 (object to be heated) in the heating chamber 13, i.e., in an unloaded state, is not permitted, so problems resulting from unloaded operation do not occur. For example, there is no problem that unloaded operation puts a strain on the magnetron, shortening the lifespan of the device.

[0074] In other words, compared to the conventional method of determining that the device is operating without load by first performing heating control and then detecting the magnetron temperature, this method places less strain on the device, thereby extending the device's lifespan.

[0075] In this embodiment, the light-emitting element 61 is provided for detecting food 40, but if the light emitted by the light-emitting element 61 is visible light, an interior light (not shown) that is already provided in the heating chamber 13 may be used instead of providing the light-emitting element 61. In this case, the light-receiving element 62 may be placed in a position where the light from the interior light is blocked when the food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13. In this way, if the light emitted by the light-emitting element 61 is visible light, an existing interior light can be used.

[0076] However, the light emitted by the light-emitting element 61 may be infrared light. In this case, the light received by the light-receiving element 62 must also be infrared light. In this way, when infrared light is used to determine the presence or absence of food 40 in the heating chamber 13, it is less susceptible to noise from external light, etc., than when visible light is used.

[0077] (Variation 1) FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating another example of judging the presence or absence of food 40 using an image captured by the camera 31 in the cooking device 1 of the first embodiment.

[0078] A plurality of food detection marks 26 of a color different from that of the flat plate 13c are provided on the flat plate 13c of the heating chamber 13 of the cooking device 1. The food detection marks 26 may be attached to the flat plate 13c with a heat-resistant sticker, or may be directly drawn on the flat plate 13c. It is preferable to provide a plurality of food detection marks 26 on the flat plate 13c. For example, the plurality of food detection marks 26 are provided near the center of the flat plate 13c as shown by reference numeral 1411 in FIG. 14, and in an area where all of the food detection marks 26 are not hidden when food 40 is placed on the flat plate 13c as shown by reference numeral 1412 in FIG. 14.

[0079] As shown by reference numeral 1411 in FIG. 14, when the number of food detection marks 26 is 16, as shown by reference numeral 1412 in FIG. 14, when the food 40 is placed, the number of food detection marks 26 that are not hidden by the food 40 will be 12. As a result, the number of food detection marks 26 after the food 40 is placed is less than the number of food detection marks 26 before the food 40 is placed. In this way, it is possible to determine whether or not the food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13 based on the number of recognizable food detection marks 26. Specifically, the food detection marks 26 are extracted from the image obtained by capturing an image of the inside of the heating chamber 13 by the camera 31, and the presence or absence of the food 40 is determined based on the number of the extracted food detection marks 26. In this case, since it is only necessary to extract the food detection marks 26 from the image captured by the camera 31, it is possible to more easily determine the presence or absence of the food 40 than when the entire image is analyzed to determine whether or not the food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13.

[0080] (Variation 2) FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining another example of determining the presence or absence of the square plate 34 in the cooking device 3 of the third embodiment.

[0081] In the heating cooker 3 of the third embodiment, the presence or absence of a square plate 34 was detected using a square plate detection sensor 33 provided in the heating chamber 13, but here, the presence or absence of a square plate 34 is detected using square plate detection marks 27 formed on the four corners of the flat plate 13c.

[0082] A plurality of food detection marks 26 of a color different from that of the flat plate 13c are provided on the flat plate 13c of the heating chamber 13 of the cooking device 3, and square plate detection marks 27 are provided outside the food detection marks 26, i.e., at the four corners of the flat plate 13c. Like the food detection marks 26, the square plate detection marks 27 may be attached to the flat plate 13c with a heat-resistant sticker, or may be drawn directly on the flat plate 13c. For example, the square plate detection marks 27 are provided at the four corners of the flat plate 13c as shown by reference numeral 1511 in Fig. 15, and at positions where the square plate detection marks 27 are all hidden when a square plate 34 is placed on the flat plate 13c as shown by reference numeral 1512 in Fig. 15.

[0083] As shown by reference numeral 1511 in FIG. 15, if the square plate 34 is not placed on the flat plate 13c, the square plate detection mark 27 can be recognized, and if the food 40 is not placed on the flat plate 13c, all of the food detection marks 26 can be recognized. Also, as shown by reference numeral 1512 in FIG. 15, if the square plate 34 is placed on the flat plate 13c, all of the food detection marks 26 and all of the square plate detection marks 27 cannot be recognized. Specifically, the presence or absence of the square plate 34 is determined based on the presence or absence of the food detection mark 26 and the square plate detection mark 27 extracted from the image obtained by capturing an image of the inside of the heating chamber 13 by the camera 31. That is, if the food detection mark 26 and the square plate detection mark 27 cannot be extracted from the image, it is determined that the square plate 34 is placed on the flat plate 13c, and if they can be extracted, it is determined that the square plate 34 is not placed on the flat plate 13c. In this case, the presence or absence of a square plate 34 can be determined by whether or not the square plate detection mark 27 can be extracted from the image captured by the camera 31, so there is no need to provide a square plate detection sensor 33, and the presence or absence of a square plate 34 can be determined with a simple configuration.

[0084] [Software implementation example] The control blocks of the control unit 22 (particularly the judgment unit 22a, the heating control unit 22b, and the reading control unit 22c) may be realized by a logic circuit (hardware) formed in an integrated circuit (IC chip) or the like, or may be realized by software.

[0085] In the latter case, the control unit 22 is equipped with a computer that executes instructions of a program, which is software that realizes each function. This computer is equipped with, for example, at least one processor (control device) and at least one computer-readable recording medium that stores the program. In the computer, the processor reads the program from the recording medium and executes it, thereby achieving the object of the present invention. The processor can be, for example, a CPU (Central Processing The recording medium may be a "non-transitory tangible medium" such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a tape, a disk, a card, a semiconductor memory, etc. , a programmable logic circuit, etc. may be used. Also, the computer may further include a RAM (Random Access Memory) for expanding the program. Also, the program may be supplied to the computer via any transmission medium capable of transmitting the program (such as a communication network or broadcast waves). Note that one aspect of the present invention may also be realized in the form of a data signal embedded in a carrier wave, in which the program is embodied by electronic transmission.

[0086] 〔summary〕 A heating cooker according to aspect 1 of another invention of the present disclosure includes a heating chamber 13, a door (front door 12) provided in the heating chamber 13, an opening / closing detection unit (front door opening / closing detection unit 25) that detects the opening and closing of the door (front door 12), a judgment unit 22a that judges whether food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13, a heating unit (heating operation unit 23) that uses high frequency waves to heat the food 40 placed in the heating chamber 13, and a heating control unit 22b that controls the heating operation of the heating unit (heating operation unit 23), and the heating control unit 22b causes the heating unit (heating operation unit 23) to perform heating and cooking of the food 40, on the condition that at least the opening / closing detection unit (front door opening / closing detection unit 25) detects that the door (front door 12) has been closed, which is a state in which it has been judged by the judgment unit 22a that food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13.

[0087] According to the above configuration, when it is determined that food is placed in the heating chamber and it is detected that the door is closed, the heating unit heats the food. Therefore, even if it is determined that food is placed in the heating chamber, the food will not be heated unless it is detected that the door is closed. Furthermore, even if it is determined that no food is placed in the heating chamber and it is detected that the door is closed, heating by the heating unit will not be performed. In other words, heating will not be performed when no food (load) is placed in the heating chamber (unloaded state). Therefore, since the heating operation by the heating unit in an unloaded state (unloaded operation) can be reduced, various problems caused by unloaded operation can also be reduced.

[0088] A heating cooker according to aspect 2 of another invention of the present disclosure, in accordance with aspect 1 above, further includes a reading device 16 that reads an information code indicating at least the type of food 40, and the heating control unit 22b may control the heating operation of the heating unit (heating operation unit 23) under heating conditions according to the information code of the food 40 read by the reading device 16.

[0089] According to the above configuration, food can be heated under heating conditions appropriate for the food.

[0090] In a heating cooker according to aspect 3 of another invention of the present disclosure, in aspect 1 or 2 above, the judgment unit 22a may analyze imaging data obtained by photographing the inside of the heating chamber 13 to determine whether or not food 40 is placed in the heating chamber 13.

[0091] According to the above configuration, it is possible to easily determine whether or not food is placed in the heating chamber simply by photographing the inside of the heating chamber.

[0092] In a heating cooker according to aspect 4 of another invention of the present disclosure, in aspect 1 or 2 above, the judgment unit 22a may determine whether or not food is placed in the heating chamber 13 based on the received light intensity of light irradiated to a position in the heating chamber 13 where the food 40 is placed, or reflected light reflected within the heating chamber 13.

[0093] According to the above configuration, since it is possible to determine whether food is placed inside the heating chamber based on the intensity of light transmitted through or reflected from inside the heating chamber, it is only necessary to provide a light emitting unit that irradiates light and a light receiving unit that receives light, and therefore there is no need for complicated processing such as analyzing images captured by an imaging device such as a camera.

[0094] A heating cooker according to aspect 5 of another invention of the present disclosure is, in aspect 1 or 2 above, characterized in that the heating section (heating operation section 23) is capable of performing oven cooking as the heating cooking method, and includes a square plate 34 on which the food 40 to be heated is placed, and a square plate placement determination section (square plate detection sensor 33) for determining whether the square plate 34 is placed in a predetermined position in the heating chamber 13, and the heating control section 22b may, if the square plate placement determination section (square plate detection sensor 33) determines that the square plate 34 is placed in a predetermined position, allow the heating section (heating operation section 23) to perform the oven cooking, but may not allow high-frequency heating to be performed.

[0095] According to the above configuration, when a square plate is placed on the oven, oven cooking is permitted but high-frequency heating is not permitted. This prevents discharge from occurring, which would occur if high-frequency heating were performed on a metal square plate.

[0096] A heating cooker according to aspect 6 of another invention of the present disclosure, in any one of aspects 1 to 5 above, may be configured such that the heating control unit 22b stops the control when the opening / closing detection unit (front door opening / closing detection unit 25) detects that the door (front door 12) has been opened while controlling the heating operation by the heating unit (heating operation unit 23).

[0097] According to the above configuration, heating is not performed in a no-load state.

[0098] A cooking device according to a seventh aspect of another invention of the present disclosure is any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein the heating by the heating section (heating operation section 23) may be high-frequency heating.

[0099] According to the above configuration, if the heating by the heating unit is high-frequency heating, it is more preferable not to perform heating under no-load conditions. In other words, when performing high-frequency heating under no-load conditions, various problems such as magnetron failure occur, but if high-frequency heating is not performed under no-load conditions, problems caused by high-frequency heating under no-load conditions do not occur.

[0100] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. The technical scope of the present invention also includes embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in the different embodiments. Furthermore, new technical features can be formed by combining the technical means disclosed in the respective embodiments. [Explanation of symbols]

[0101] 1, 2, 3 Cooker 11 Operation Panel 12 Front door (door) 13 Heating cabinet 13a Top 13b Front opening 13c Flat Plate 13d side wall 14 Toride 15 Control Frame 16 Reading device 17 Device board 19 areas 20 Guidance display 21 Area lighting section 22 Control section 22a Judgment part 22b Heating control section 22c Reading control section 23 Heating operation part (heating part) 24 Results Notification Department 25 Front door opening / closing detector (door opening / closing detector) 26 Food Detection Mark 27 Square plate detection mark 30 Display section 31 Camera 32 Information Department 33 Square plate detection sensor (square plate placement determination section) 34 Square plate 40 Food 51 Server 52 Memory 61 Light emitting element 62 Photodetector

Claims

1. A heating chamber and A light-emitting element that irradiates light onto at least a part of the interior of the heating chamber; a light receiving element that receives light emitted by the light emitting element; A determination unit that determines whether food is placed in the heating chamber; A heating unit that heats and cooks food placed in the heating chamber; A heating control unit that controls the heating unit; A reader for reading the information code; Including, The determination unit is When the intensity of the light received by the light receiving element is equal to or lower than a predetermined value, it is determined that food is present in the heating chamber; The heating control unit is causing the heating unit to heat-cook the food under heating conditions corresponding to the information code read by the reading device, at least on condition that the determination unit has determined that food is placed in the heating chamber; The light emitting element and the reader are located on the top side of the front opening of the heating chamber and in the center in the width direction, The heating chamber has a light-transmitting flat plate as a bottom surface, The light receiving element is located below the flat plate.

2. Further comprising a guide display for guiding a user on a reading operation of the information code using the reading device, The cooking device according to claim 1 , wherein the guide indication is located on an outer surface on a side of the front opening, on a top surface side of the front opening, and in a central portion in a width direction.

Images