Rice cooker and method for controlling same

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a rice cooker and a method for controlling the rice cooker. The rice cooker includes: a container, adapted to hold rice and water to be cooked; a heating apparatus, configured to heat the container; and a controller, configured to: control, during a warming phase, the heating apparatus to heat the container; determine, in response to detecting that a temperature in the container reaches a first predetermined temperature, to proceed to a boiling maintaining phase, the boiling maintaining phase including a plurality of first cycles; control, during a first time period of a first cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at first power; control, during a second time period of the first cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at second power, the second power being less than the first power; and control, during a simmering phase, the heating apparatus to maintain the temperature in the container to be within a predetermined temperature range. In this way, by reducing the power consumption in phases and prolonging the cooking time, it can be ensured that rice is gently heated and gelatinized to the innermost part of the rice, and the energy consumption can also be reduced.

Description

RICE COOKER AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING SAMEFIELD OF TECHNOLOGY

[0001] The embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the field of household appliances, in particular to a rice cooker and a method for controlling the rice cooker.BACKGROUND

[0002] Rice is one of the most important staple crops in the world, providing nutrition for nearly half of the world population. About 3 billion people in the world derive 35-59% of their caloric intake from rice consumption. Especially in Asia, per capita rice intake exceeds 100 kilograms in many countries.

[0003] Traditionally, rice is cooked in excess or limited amounts of water at a temperature above the gelatinization temperature. Cooking with excess water means adding rice to excess boiling water and then discarding redundant water when the rice is completely gelatinized. Although this method does not necessarily result in the most desirable texture of the cooked rice, the distribution of heat and water is highly uniform throughout the cooking process, and the cooking method can be carried out as a continuous process. Accordingly, this cooking method is commonly used in rice cookers.SUMMARY

[0004] The present disclosure provides a rice cooker that at least partially overcomes one or more of the above disadvantages.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a rice cooker is provided. The rice cooker includes: a container, adapted to hold rice and water to be cooked; a heating apparatus, configured to heat the container; and a controller, configured to: control, during a warming phase, the heating apparatus to heat the container; determine, in response to detecting that a temperature in the container reaches a first predetermined temperature, to proceed to a boiling maintaining phase, the boiling maintaining phase including a plurality of first cycles; control, during a first time period of a first cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at first power; control, during a second time period of the first cycle, the heating apparatus to heatthe container at second power, the second power being less than the first power; and control, during a simmering phase, the heating apparatus to maintain the temperature in the container to be within a predetermined temperature range.

[0006] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a method for controlling a rice cooker is provided. The method includes: during a warming phase, controlling, by a controller of the rice cooker, a heating apparatus of the rice cooker to heat a container of the rice cooker; in response to detecting that a temperature in the container reaches a first predetermined temperature, determining, by the controller, to proceed to a boiling maintaining phase, the boiling maintaining phase including a plurality of first cycles; during a first time period of a first cycle, controlling, by the controller, the heating apparatus to heat the container at first power; during a second time period of the first cycle, controlling, by the controller of the rice cooker, the heating apparatus to heat the container at second power, the second power being less than the first power; and during a simmering phase, controlling, by the controller, the heating apparatus to maintain the temperature in the container to be within a predetermined temperature range.

[0007] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, a computer program product is provided. The computer program product includes computer instructions, and the computer instructions are configured to cause a computer to perform the method for controlling a rice cooker according to claim 13.

[0008] It should be understood that what has been described in this section is not intended to limit key or critical features of the embodiments of the present disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] The above and other features, advantages and aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure will become more apparent in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and with reference to the following detailed description. In the accompanying drawings, identical or similar reference numerals indicate identical or similar elements.

[0010] FIG. 1 A and FIG. IB illustrate schematic diagrams of a rice cooker accordingto some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0011] FIG. 1C illustrates a schematic diagram of a cooking process of a rice cooker according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0012] FIG. 2 illustrates a flowchart of a method for controlling a rice cooker according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0013] FIG. 3 A to FIG. 3D illustrate schematic diagrams of a power curve of a rice cooker according to embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0014] FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary device that may be used to implement embodiments of the present disclosure.DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0015] Various embodiments are now described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein throughout the text, similar reference numerals are used to refer to similar elements. In the following description, many specific details are set forth for explanatory purposes in order to promote a thorough understanding of one or more embodiments. However, it may be clear in some or all instances that any of the embodiments described below may be practiced without employing the specific design details described below. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to facilitate the description of one or more embodiments. A simplified overview of one or more embodiments is given below to provide a basic understanding of the embodiments. The overview is not an exhaustive overview of all intended embodiments, is not intended to identify key or important elements of all embodiments, and is not intended to define the scope of any or all embodiments.

[0016] References to "embodiments" or "an embodiment" in the framework of this description are intended to indicate that a particular configuration, structure, or feature described with respect to an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, phrases such as "in embodiments" or "in an embodiment" that may be present at one or more points in this description do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, in one or more embodiments, particular configurations, structures, or features may be combined in any appropriate manner.

[0017] Unless otherwise indicated, when reference is made to two elements coupledtogether, this denotes a direct connection without any intermediate element other than a conductor; and when reference is made to two elements coupled together, this denotes that the two elements can be connected or that they can be coupled via one or more other elements.

[0018] In the following disclosure, unless otherwise indicated, when referring to absolute positional modifiers (e.g., the terms "front", "back", "top", "bottom", “left", and "right"), or when referring to relative positional modifiers (e.g., the terms "above", "below", "higher", and "lower"), or when referring to directional modifiers (e.g., "horizontal" and "vertical”), it refers to the orientation shown in the figure. Unless otherwise specified, the expressions "about", "approximately", "substantially", and "roughly" mean within 10%, preferably within 5%.

[0019] As mentioned above, a rice cooker is the main tool for cooking rice. Rice can be cooked in a rice cooker with a predetermined amount of water until the water is completely absorbed. Basically all rice cookers utilize a similar cooking process. Although the cooking method is universal, the settings for both the cooking time and the target temperature for heating the rice are different. As a result, rice cookers that perform cooking with different cooking parameters also differ in energy consumption.

[0020] Three important variables that determine the energy consumption of rice cookers for cooking rice are hardware design, the rice-water ratio, and heating control. Hardware design greatly affects the energy consumption of the cooking process by influencing the efficiency of energy transfer from electricity to heat and delivery to a rice / water substrate. Poor hardware design may result in significant energy consumption during the cooking process, thereby significantly increasing the total energy consumption. Since a large portion of the energy consumed during cooking is to bring the temperature of the food substrate to the target temperature, usually around the boiling temperature, cooking based on a large rice-water ratio, i.e., introducing too much water during the cooking, will increase this portion of energy consumption. In some rice cookers on the market, a slow cooking mode is provided, i.e., low power is utilized to control the degree of heating to reduce energy consumption. However, the reduction in energy consumption simply from the slow cooking mode is very limited, at most 15% lower than the normal cooking mode. In this regard, it is expected that more energy efficient cooking modes are possible.

[0021] In view of this, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a rice cooking scheme based on power cycle control. In this scheme, in a three-phase cooking process including a warming phase, a boiling maintaining phase, and a simmering phase, rice is heated alternately at first power and second power that are different during the boiling maintaining phase, thereby preventing a rice cooker from keeping operating at the first power that is high. In this way, by reducing the power consumption in phases and prolonging the cooking time, it can be ensured that rice is gently heated and gelatinized to the innermost part of the rice, and the energy consumption can also be reduced. Although the cooking time is prolonged, cooked rice still tastes good in texture (hardness). In power-controlled heating, the energy consumption for complete gelatinization of rice may be reduced by up to 40%. By means of power-controlled cooking, water evaporation during cooking is also reduced by 84%, which helps to save energy and maintain the quality of the rice.

[0022] The power consumption control based rice cooking scheme according to the present disclosure will be described in detail below in connection with FIG. 1 Ato FIG. 4. FIG. 1 A illustrates a schematic cross-sectional view of a main body 100 A of a rice cooker according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1A, the main body 100A includes a barrel-shaped housing 102 and a lid 104 for sealing the housing 102. The housing 102 includes an inner cavity. A container 106 (which may also be referred to as a liner) is placed in the inner cavity such that a gap is formed between an outer wall of the container 106 and an inner wall 108 of the inner cavity. The container 106 is used to hold food to be cooked, such as rice, millet and water. The main body 100A further includes a heating apparatus 110 disposed at a bottom of the inner cavity. The heating apparatus 110 is capable of heating the container 106 so as to heat ingredients in the container 106.

[0023] The rice cooker further includes a controller 114. The controller 114 is capable of controlling each controlled electrical component in the rice cooker. For example, the controller 114 is capable of controlling the start and stop of a steam apparatus, and the temperature or amount of steam produced by the steam apparatus. In some embodiments, the rice cooker further includes a temperature sensor 112 for detecting the temperature in the container 106. The temperature sensor 112 may be positioned, for example, below the lid 104, and is located on the top of the inner cavity of the main body 100A when the lid 104 is closed.Data detected by the sensor may be transmitted to the controller 114, so that the controller 114 may control the cooking process on the basis of the detected data.

[0024] FIG. IB illustrates a schematic cross-sectional view of a circuit 100B of a rice cooker according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. IB, the circuit 100B includes a power circuit 116 for receiving external electrical energy. The power circuit 116 is connected to a voltage conversion module 118 and delivers the received electrical energy to the voltage conversion module 118. The voltage conversion module 118 converts the electrical energy into electrical energy suitable for use by electrical components inside the rice cooker, and delivers the converted electrical energy to the controller 114 and other components that require electrical energy. The controller 114 further includes a power control module 132. The power control module 132 is capable of generating a power control signal for controlling the power of the heating apparatus according to a cooking operation mode.

[0025] A temperature sensor 112, a keep warm / start operation button 122, and a function selection operation button 120 are connected to an input side of the controller 114. As discussed above, the temperature sensor 112 is capable of transmitting sensed temperature data to the controller 114. The keep warm / start operation button 122, when pressed by a user, is capable of generating an indication signal indicating the rice cooker to perform a keep warm or start cooking operation. The function selection operation button 120, when pressed by the user, is capable of generating an indication signal indicating which cooking operation to perform in the rice cooker. For example, the rice cooker is capable of performing a normal cooking operation, a first low-power-consumption cooking operation according to embodiments of the present disclosure, a second low-power-consumption cooking operation that is more energy-efficient than the first low-power-consumption cooking operation, and a fast cooking operation that utilizes high power consumption.

[0026] Relatively, a sound prompting apparatus 124, a display circuit 128, and a power controller 130 are connected to an output side of the controller 114. The sound prompting apparatus 124 is capable of emitting a sound to prompt a user upon receiving an output indication from the controller 114. The display circuit 128 is connected to a function indicator 126 and is capable of controlling the function indicator 126 according to the instructions of the controller 114 to make a corresponding display. The power controller 130 is capable ofreceiving a power control signal from the power control module 132 and controlling the power of the heating apparatus 110 on the basis of the power control signal.

[0027] The rice cooker may, for example, execute one cooking program, selected by the user, of a plurality of predetermined cooking programs. Each predetermined cooking program includes at least one predetermined operation. The controller 114 may control the execution of each operation of each cooking program. According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the controller 114 is capable of controlling the rice cooker to execute a power control-based cooking program.

[0028] FIG. 1C illustrates a schematic diagram of a cooking process 100C of a rice cooker according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1C, a temperature curve 134 sensed by the temperature sensor 112 and an ingredient temperature curve 132 for cooking under the control of the controller 114 are shown in a time-temperature curve of the cooking process 100C. The ingredient temperature curve 132 indicates, for example, a target temperature. The rice cooker controls the power of the heating apparatus based on the target temperature as well as the detected temperature in the container to obtain the desired temperature to cook the ingredients.

[0029] The cooking process 100C of the rice cooker includes, in general, a heating phase from the start to time point tl, a warming phase from time point tl to time point t2, a continuous boiling phase from time point t3 to time point t4, and a simmering phase from time point t4 to time point t5. During the heating phase, the ingredients in the container 106 may be heated from a room temperature to a temperature suitable for soaking the rice, such as 50°C as shown in FIG. 1C. Since the ingredients have been heated, the subsequent rice soaking phase is a heated rice soaking process. During the rice soaking process, the rice is immersed in water having a temperature below the gelatinization temperature of the rice for a period of time to allow for adequate hydration and expansion. In the warming phase and the continuous boiling phase, the rice and water rapidly reach a boiling temperature to allow rice starch to start to gelatinize. During the simmering phase, the rice is allowed to continue to gelatinize, absorb water and expand, and the rice is fully cooked until all of the water is absorbed.

[0030] FIG. 2 illustrates a flowchart of an exemplary method 200 for controlling a rice cooker according to embodiments of the present disclosure. For discussion purposes, themethod 200 will be discussed in conjunction with FIG. 1 A and FIG. IB. The method 200 may be performed, for example, by the controller 114 in FIG. 1A and FIG. IB.

[0031] As shown in FIG. 2, at 202, during a warming phase, the controller 114 controls a heating apparatus to heat a container. This warming phase corresponds, for example, to the warming phase from time point t2 to time point t3 in FIG. 1C. During the warming phase, the controller 114 may, for example, control the heating apparatus 110 to perform heating at the highest power, so that water in the container is rapidly heated to boiling.

[0032] At 204, the controller 114 determines, in response to detecting that the temperature in the container has reached a first predetermined temperature, to proceed to a boiling maintaining phase. The controller 114 may determine the temperature of ingredients in the container 106 from the temperature detected by a temperature sensor 112. When the detected temperature of an inner cavity exceeds a predetermined threshold, the controller 114 may determine that the water temperature has reached a boiling temperature and determine to proceed to a boiling maintaining phase of the cooking process.

[0033] At 206, during a first time period of a first cycle, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus to heat the container at first power. At 208, the controller 114 controls, during a second time period of the first cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at second power less than the first power. Here, the boiling maintaining phase includes a plurality of first cycles. Each first cycle may, for example, include two time periods, that is, the first time period and the second time period. During the different time periods, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus to heat the container at different power, so that the rice cooker is not always at high power.

[0034] In some embodiments, the time of the first cycle, the first power, the second power, the first time period, and the second time period may be pre-configured. For example, the time of the first cycle and the first equivalent power at the first cycle may be determined by the total power required by the ingredients in the container during this phase. The time of the first cycle and the first equivalent power may, for example, be determined experimentally. In some embodiments, the first cycle may be 30 seconds. On this basis, the first equivalent power may be 15% to 30% of the maximum power of the rice cooker. Thereafter, the first power, the second power, the first time period, and the second time period may be determinedbased on the time of the first cycle and the first equivalent power. For example, the first power may be 80% of the maximum power, and the second power may be 0. In this case, the first time period may be 6-12 seconds, and the second time period may be 18-24 seconds. In this way, the time and power may be flexibly configured to achieve a desired cooking duration or desired power.

[0035] At 210, during the simmering phase, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus to maintain the temperature in the container to be within a predetermined temperature range. After the continuous boiling phase of cooking, the simmering phase is started, for example, the simmering phase corresponding to t4 to time point t5 in FIG. 1C.

[0036] Most rice cookers are equipped with microchips or controllers. These microchips may rely on monitored temperature and time signals to interact in order to control the power output during the cooking process. The control logic may be adjusted for various cooking goals, such as shortening the cooking time, achieving a target hardness of the cooked rice, and preserving the cooked rice for a longer period of time. The control logic may also be adjusted to maximize energy conservation. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus to cook the rice at different power in a cyclic manner, allowing the cooked rice to have the proper eating quality and reducing the energy consumption.

[0037] FIG. 3 A illustrates a schematic diagram of an equivalent power curve 300A for an exemplary cooking process according to embodiments of the present disclosure. For discussion purposes, FIG. 3 A to FIG. 3D will be described below in conjunction with FIG. 1A and FIG. IB. The exemplary cooking process is, for example, a low-energy-consumption cooking process according to the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3A, the equivalent power curve 300 A indicates the equivalent power of the heating apparatus at each phase, rather than the actual power. The cooking process indicated by the equivalent power curve 300 A includes, in general, a rice soaking phase from the start to time point tl, a warming phase from time point tl to time point t2, a continuous boiling phase from time point t3 to time point t4, and a simmering phase from time point t4 to time point t5.

[0038] For the purpose of reducing energy consumption, no heating operation is performed before the rice soaking phase in FIG. 3A. The rice soaking phase may last, for example, for 20 to 30 minutes. In some embodiments, the ratio of water to rice added to thecontainer prior to the start of cooking may be 1 : 1.1 to 1 : 1.2 to achieve sufficient rice soaking. The rice soaking phase is timed, for example, from when the rice cooker receives a start instruction from the user. After the recorded time reaches a predetermined time, the cooking operation proceeds to the warming phase. During the warming phase, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the water to a boiling temperature at first equivalent power Pl. This warming phase may also be performed utilizing a method similar to the power control method for the boiling maintaining process according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2.

[0039] In such an embodiment, the warming phase may include a plurality of warming cycles (also referred to as a third cycle). The warming cycle includes a first warming time period (also referred to as a fifth time period) and a second warming time period (also referred to as a sixth time period) following the first warming time period. During the first warming time period of the warming cycle, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container at first warming power (also referred to as fifth power). During the second warming time period of the first warming cycle, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at second warming power (also referred to as sixth power), the second warming power being less than the first warming power. Here, the first warming power, the second warming power, the first warming time period, and the second warming time period are configured such that the equivalent power on the warming cycle is within the range of 60% to 70% of the maximum rated power of the heating apparatus. In this way, energy consumption may be further reduced. This process will be described below with reference to FIG. 3B.

[0040] FIG. 3B illustrates a schematic diagram of an equivalent power curve 300B for an exemplary warming process according to embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3B, the warming cycle is 60 seconds. The first warming time period from time point tl is 39 seconds. During this time period, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at the first warming power that is the maximum power. The second warming time period following the first warming time period is 21 seconds. During this time period, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at the second warming power of 0.

[0041] Returning to FIG. 3 A, when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is greater than a predetermined temperature, the controller 114 controls the cooking process to proceed to a boiling maintaining phase. During the boiling maintaining phase, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at second equivalent power P2. This boiling maintaining phase may also be performed utilizing a method similar to the power control method for the boiling maintaining process according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2. This process will be described below with reference to FIG. 3C.

[0042] FIG. 3C illustrates a schematic diagram of an equivalent power curve 300C for an exemplary boiling maintaining process according to embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3C, the boiling maintaining phase includes a plurality of boiling maintaining cycles, and each boiling maintaining cycle is 30 seconds. A first boiling maintaining time period starting at time point t2 is 12 seconds. During this time period, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at first boiling maintaining power that is 80% of the maximum power. The second boiling maintaining time period following the first boiling maintaining time period is 18 seconds. During this time period, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at second boiling maintaining power of 0. In some embodiments, the boiling maintaining phase may last for 2-5 minutes. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3C, the boiling maintaining phase lasts for 3 minutes.

[0043] Returning to FIG. 3 A, when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is greater than a predetermined temperature, the controller 114 determines that the water in the container is substantially absorbed and evaporated. In this case, the controller 114 controls the cooking process to proceed to the simmering phase. During the simmering phase, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at third equivalent power P3. This simmering phase may also be performed utilizing a method similar to the power control method for the boiling maintaining process according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2.

[0044] In some embodiments, the simmering phase may include a plurality of simmering cycles (also referred to as a second cycle). Each simmering cycle includes a first simmering time period (also referred to as a third time period) and a second simmering time period (also referred to as a fourth time period) following the first simmering time period. During the first simmering time period of the simmering cycle, the controller 114 controls theheating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at first simmering power (also referred to as third power). During the second simmering time period of the simmering cycle, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at second simmering power (also referred to as fourth power). Here, the second simmering power is less than the first simmering power. In some embodiments, the first simmering power, the second simmering power, the first simmering time period, and the second simmering time period are configured such that the equivalent power on the simmering cycle is within the range of 7%-9% of the maximum rated power of the heating apparatus. This process will be described below with reference to FIG. 3D.

[0045] FIG. 3D illustrates a schematic diagram of an equivalent power curve 300D for an exemplary simmering process according to embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3D, the simmering phase includes a plurality of simmering cycles, and each simmering cycle is 60 seconds. The first simmering time period starting at time point t3 is 6 seconds. During this time period, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at the first simmering power that is 80% of the maximum power. The second simmering time period following the first simmering time period is 54 seconds. During this time period, the controller 114 controls the heating apparatus 110 to heat the container 106 at the second simmering power of 0. In some embodiments, the simmering may last from 5 minutes to 15 minutes.

[0046] In some embodiments, during the keep warm phase following the simmering phase, the controller may also control, in response to determining that the temperature in the container is less than a second predetermined temperature, the heating apparatus to heat the container, so as to make the temperature in the container reach a third predetermined temperature.

[0047] FIG. 4 illustrates a schematic block diagram of an exemplary device 400 that may be used to implement the embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 400 may be, for example, the controller 114 in FIG. IB, the controller 430 in FIG. 4, or the controller 530 in FIG. 5. As shown in FIG. 4, device 400 includes central processing unit (CPU) 401 that may perform various appropriate actions and processing according to computer program instructions stored in read-only memory (ROM) 402 or computer program instructions loadedfrom storage unit 408 to random access memory (RAM) 403. In RAM 403, various programs and data required for the operation of device 400 may also be stored. The CPU 401, the ROM 402, and the RAM 403 are connected to each other through a bus 404. An input / output (I / O) interface 405 is also connected to the bus 404.

[0048] A plurality of components in the device 400 are connected to the I / O interface 405, including: an input unit 406, such as a keyboard and a mouse; an output unit 407, such as different types of displays and speakers; a storage unit 408, such as a magnetic disk and a compact disk; and a communication unit 409, such as a network card, a modem and a wireless communication transceiver. The communication unit 409 allows the device 400 to exchange information / data with other devices via a computer network, such as the Internet, and / or various telecommunication networks.

[0049] The various processes and processing described above, such as the method 200, may be performed by processing unit 401. For example, in some embodiments, the method 200 may be implemented as a computer software program that is tangibly included in a machine- readable medium such as the storage unit 408. In some embodiments, part of or all of computer programs may be loaded into and / or installed onto device 400 via ROM 402 and / or communication unit 409. When the computer programs are loaded into the RAM 403 and executed by the CPU 401, one or more actions of the method 200 described above may be executed.

[0050] The present disclosure may be a method, an apparatus, a system and / or a computer program product. The computer program product may include a computer-readable storage medium on which computer-readable program instructions for performing various aspects of the present disclosure are loaded.

[0051] The computer-readable storage medium may be a tangible device that may hold and store instructions used by an instruction-executing device. For example, the computer- readable storage medium may be, but is not limited to, an electric storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples (a non- exhaustive list) of the computer-readable storage medium include: a portable computer disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM or a flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanical encoding device such as a punch card or a protruding structure in a groove with instructions stored thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. The computer-readable storage medium used herein is not to be interpreted as transient signals per se, such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through waveguides or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses through fiber-optic cables), or electrical signals transmitted through electrical wires.

[0052] The computer-readable program instructions described herein may be downloaded from a computer-readable storage medium to various computing / processing devices or downloaded to an external computer or external storage device via a network, such as the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network, and / or a wireless network. The network may include copper transmission cables, fiber optic transmission, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers, and / or edge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in each computing / processing device receives computer- readable program instructions from a network and forwards the computer-readable program instructions for storage in a computer-readable storage medium in each computing / processing device.

[0053] The computer program instructions for executing the operation of the present disclosure may be assembly instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, status setting data, or source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, the programming languages including object-oriented programming language such as Smalltalk and C++, and conventional procedural programming languages such as the C language or similar programming languages. The computer-readable program instructions may be executed entirely on a user computer, partly on a user computer, as a standalone software package, partly on a user computer and partly on a remote computer, or entirely on a remote computer or a server. In the case where the remote computer is involved, the remote computer can be connected to the user's computer through any kind of networks, including alocal area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or can be connected to an external computer (e.g., connected through the Internet using an Internet service provider). In some embodiments, an electronic circuit, such as a programmable logic circuit, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or a programmable logic array (PLA), is customized by utilizing status information of the computer-readable program instructions. The electronic circuit may execute the computer-readable program instructions to implement various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0054] Various aspects of the present disclosure are described here with reference to flow charts and / or block diagrams of the method, the apparatus (system), and the computer program product implemented according to the embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be understood that each block of the flowcharts and / or block diagrams, and the combinations of various blocks in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams, can be implemented by the computer-readable program instructions.

[0055] These computer-readable program instructions may be provided to a processing unit of a general -purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or a further programmable data processing apparatus, thereby producing a machine, such that these instructions, when executed by the processing unit of the computer or the further programmable data processing apparatus, produce means for implementing functions / actions specified in one or more blocks in the flow charts and / or block diagrams. These computer-readable program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, and these instructions cause a computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and / or other devices to operate in a specific manner; and thus the computer-readable medium having instructions stored includes an article of manufacture that includes instructions that implement various aspects of the functions / actions specified in one or more blocks in the flow charts and / or block diagrams.

[0056] The computer-readable program instructions may also be loaded to a computer, a further programmable data processing apparatus, or a further device, so that a series of operating steps may be performed on the computer, the further programmable data processing apparatus, or the further device to produce a computer-implemented process, such that the instructions executed on the computer, the further programmable data processing apparatus, or the further device may implement the functions / actions specified in one or more blocks in theflow charts and / or block diagrams.

[0057] The flow charts and block diagrams in the drawings illustrate the architectures, functions, and operations of possible implementations of the systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. In this regard, each block in the flow charts or block diagrams may represent a module, a program segment, or part of an instruction, the module, program segment, or part of an instruction including one or more executable instructions for implementing specified logical functions. In some alternative implementations, functions marked in the blocks may also occur in an order different from that marked in the accompanying drawings. For example, two successive blocks may actually be executed in parallel substantially, and sometimes they may also be executed in an inverse order, which depends on involved functions. It should be further noted that each block in the block diagrams and / or flow charts as well as a combination of blocks in the block diagrams and / or flow charts may be implemented using a special hardware-based system that executes specified functions or actions, or implemented using a combination of special hardware and computer instructions.

[0058] Without prejudice to the rationale, details and embodiments may vary, even significantly, relative to what is described by way of example only, without departing from the scope of protection. Various embodiments described above may be combined to provide additional embodiments. These and other changes to the embodiments may be made in accordance with the foregoing detailed description. Generally, in the following claims, the terms used should not be construed as limiting the claims to the particular embodiments disclosed in the specification and claims, but rather should be construed to include the full scope of all possible embodiments and equivalents given to such claims. Thus, the claims are not limited by the disclosure.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A rice cooker, comprising: a container, adapted to hold rice and water to be cooked; a heating apparatus, configured to heat the container; and a controller, configured to: control, during a warming phase, the heating apparatus to heat the container; determine, in response to detecting that a temperature in the container reaches a first predetermined temperature, to proceed to a boiling maintaining phase, the boiling maintaining phase comprising a plurality of first cycles; control, during a first time period of a first cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at first power; control, during a second time period of the first cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at second power, the second power being less than the first power; and control, during a simmering phase, the heating apparatus to maintain the temperature in the container to be within a predetermined temperature range.

2. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the first power, the second power, the first time period, and the second time period are configured such that first equivalent power on the first cycle is within a range of 15% to 30% of maximum rated power of the heating apparatus.

3. The rice cooker according to claim 2, wherein the first cycle is 30 seconds, the first power is 80% of the maximum rated power, and the second power is 0.

4. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the simmering phase comprises a plurality of second cycles, and wherein the controller is further configured to: control, during a third time period of a second cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at third power; and control, during a fourth time period of the second cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at fourth power, the fourth power being less than the third power.

5. The rice cooker according to claim 4, wherein the third power, the fourth power, the third time period, and the fourth time period are configured such that second equivalent power on the second cycle is within a range of 7% to 9% of maximum rated power of the heatingapparatus.

6. The rice cooker according to claim 5, wherein the second cycle is 60 seconds, the third time period is 6 seconds, the fourth time period is 54 seconds, the third power is 80% of the maximum rated power, and the fourth power is 0.

7. The rice cooker according to claim 4, wherein the boiling maintaining phase lasts for 2- 5 minutes, and / or the simmering phase lasts for 5-15 minutes.

8. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the warming phase comprises a plurality of third cycles, and wherein the controller is further configured to: control, during a fifth time period of a third cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at fifth power; and control, during a sixth time period of the third cycle, the heating apparatus to heat the container at sixth power, the sixth power being less than the fifth power.

9. The rice cooker according to claim 8, wherein the fifth power, the sixth power, the fifth time period, and the sixth time period are configured such that third equivalent power on the third cycle is within a range of 60% to 70% of maximum rated power of the heating apparatus.

10. The rice cooker according to claim 9, wherein the third cycle is 60 seconds, the fifth time period is 39 seconds, the sixth time period is 21 seconds, the fifth power is the maximum rated power, and the sixth power is 0.

11. The rice cooker according to claim 8, wherein the controller is further configured to: determine, in response to receiving a rice soaking command, to proceed to a rice soaking phase; and during the rice soaking phase, control, by the controller, the heating apparatus to be in a non-operational state for a predetermined time period.

12. The rice cooker according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to: during a warm-keeping phase after the simmering phase, control, by the controller in response to determining that the temperature in the container is less than a second predetermined temperature, the heating apparatus to heat the container, such that the temperature in the container reaches a third predetermined temperature.

13. A method for controlling a rice cooker, comprising: during a warming phase, controlling, by a controller of the rice cooker, a heating apparatusof the rice cooker to heat a container of the rice cooker; in response to detecting that a temperature in the container reaches a first predetermined temperature, determining, by the controller, to proceed to a boiling maintaining phase, the boiling maintaining phase comprising a plurality of first cycles; during a first time period of a first cycle, controlling, by the controller, the heating apparatus to heat the container at first power; during a second time period of the first cycle, controlling, by the controller of the rice cooker, the heating apparatus to heat the container at second power, the second power being less than the first power; and during a simmering phase, controlling, by the controller, the heating apparatus to maintain the temperature in the container to be within a predetermined temperature range.

14. A computer program product, comprising computer instructions, the computer instructions being configured to cause a computer to perform the method for controlling a rice cooker according to claim 13.

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