Cooker with Barcode-Based Heating Control and Output Power Correction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Microwave ovens require manual entry of heating times or selection of buttons, which is cumbersome and prone to errors, especially when dealing with different food types and varying maximum output powers across models.
Innovation Solution
A cooker with an imaging unit to capture and read heating control information from products, a correction calculator to adjust heating times based on the cooker's output power, and a heating controller to automatically set the heating time, eliminating the need for manual input and ensuring suitable heating across different models.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual entry of heating time is required, then heating control can be customized, but user workload increases and errors occur
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically reads the barcode on the food container and retrieves the corresponding heating time from its database, eliminating the need for manual input. The microwave oven performs the heating time setting operation by itself based on the product information, thereby reducing user workload and preventing input errors.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical operation of entering heating time through numeric keys with an automated optical recognition system. The barcode reader optically scans the product code and automatically translates it into the corresponding heating time parameter, substituting manual input with automated information retrieval.
2Ease of operation
If multiple buttons with different heating times are provided, then heating control is simplified, but user memory burden increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of requiring users to remember which button corresponds to which food type, the system automatically identifies the food through barcode reading and retrieves the appropriate heating parameters from its internal database. This self-service approach eliminates the need for users to memorize button-food correlations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent pre-stores the correlations between product barcodes and heating parameters in the microwave oven's database before use. When a product is placed in the oven, the system automatically matches the barcode with the pre-stored information to determine the correct heating time, eliminating the need for users to recall or search for the appropriate settings.
3Measurement precision
If heating control contents are registered in advance for each product, then heating accuracy is improved, but registration complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a universal barcode system that can identify various food products across different manufacturers and types. By storing heating parameters indexed by barcode in a database, the system can handle diverse food items through a single unified registration and retrieval mechanism, avoiding the need for separate complex registration processes for each product.
Solution Approach 2:
The system stores digital copies of product heating parameters in its database, associated with unique barcode identifiers. Instead of physically registering each product individually, the microwave oven maintains a digital library of heating control contents that can be quickly retrieved through barcode matching, significantly simplifying the registration and retrieval process.
4Productivity
If maximum output power is increased to reduce heating time, then heating efficiency is improved, but compatibility with different models decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent stores and retrieves heating parameters including power level and time duration specific to different microwave oven models. The system adjusts the output power and heating time parameters based on the model-specific characteristics and the product being heated, allowing optimal heating performance across different models without requiring a one-size-fits-all approach.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Automatically sets suitable heating times for various food types and output powers, reducing user workload and errors, and enabling efficient heating in different microwave oven models.
Implementation Method 1
an imaging unit configured to capture an image of an interior of the heating chamber
Implementation Method 2
a microwave oven, which is a typical cooker, is convenient in that it can heat food disposed in a container
Implementation Method 3
The microwave oven has an operation unit including numeric keys, for example, allowing manual setting of the heating time
Data Source
AI summary
A cooker is configured such that reader (19) reads heating control information attached to food from an image of an interior of heating chamber (12) captured by imaging unit (16), correction calculator (29) performs correction calculation based on the heating control information, and heating controller (14) controls heating unit (13) based on a result of the correction calculation.