EP0615400B1 - Mikrowellenofen und Verfahren zur Bestimmung des Lebenmittelproduktes - Google Patents

Mikrowellenofen und Verfahren zur Bestimmung des Lebenmittelproduktes Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0615400B1
EP0615400B1 EP94300552A EP94300552A EP0615400B1 EP 0615400 B1 EP0615400 B1 EP 0615400B1 EP 94300552 A EP94300552 A EP 94300552A EP 94300552 A EP94300552 A EP 94300552A EP 0615400 B1 EP0615400 B1 EP 0615400B1
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EP
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Prior art keywords
food
basis
detected
steam
weight
Prior art date
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EP94300552A
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English (en)
French (fr)
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EP0615400A3 (de
EP0615400A2 (de
Inventor
Yukio C/O Aichi Works K. K. Toshiba Suzuki
Reiko C/O Aichi Works K. K. Toshiba Kawaguchi
Minoru C/O Aichi Works K. K. Toshiba Takagi
Mika C/O Aichi Works K. K. Toshiba Morita
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Toshiba Corp
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Toshiba Corp
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Priority claimed from JP5051993A external-priority patent/JPH0658894A/ja
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Publication of EP0615400A2 publication Critical patent/EP0615400A2/de
Publication of EP0615400A3 publication Critical patent/EP0615400A3/de
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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H05—ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H05B—ELECTRIC HEATING; ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES, IN GENERAL
    • H05B6/00—Heating by electric, magnetic or electromagnetic fields
    • H05B6/64—Heating using microwaves
    • H05B6/66—Circuits
    • H05B6/68—Circuits for monitoring or control
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H05—ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H05B—ELECTRIC HEATING; ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES, IN GENERAL
    • H05B6/00—Heating by electric, magnetic or electromagnetic fields
    • H05B6/64—Heating using microwaves
    • H05B6/6447—Method of operation or details of the microwave heating apparatus related to the use of detectors or sensors
    • H05B6/6458—Method of operation or details of the microwave heating apparatus related to the use of detectors or sensors using humidity or vapor sensors

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to microwave ovens wherein food is heated by means of high-frequency waves, and more particularly, to such a microwave oven wherein the food is determined by discrimination of the kind of food on the basis of data of detected volumes of gaseous alcohol and steam each emanating from the food and a method of determining the food, starting from Japanese patent publication No. 62-123 226.
  • Microwave ovens have been provided with a weight sensor, a gas sensor and the like, for example.
  • the weight of food to be heated is detected by the weight sensor and a volume of steam emanating from the food during the heating operation is detected by the gas sensor so that detection data is obtained.
  • Heating conditions for the food are set on the basis of the detection data, or a degree of the heating is determined on the basis of the detection data so that an automatic cooking is executed.
  • the prior art has recently proposed a microwave oven wherein a volume of gaseous alcohol emanating from the food is detected so that the kind of the food is determined.
  • a volume of steam emanating per weight is very small in different kinds of foods. Accordingly, there are some cases where the kind of food cannot be determined only on the basis of detection results of the weight sensor and gas sensor. Even in these cases, however, a volume of gaseous alcohol emanating from the food differs from food to food, so that the volume of gaseous alcohol is detected for the purpose of discrimination of the kind of food.
  • Japanese boiled rice and miso soup are sometimes warmed by the microwave oven when they become cold.
  • the discrimination between the boiled rice and the miso soup is made on the basis of the detection result that a volume of gaseous alcohol emanating from the miso soup after initiation of the heating operation is larger than that of gaseous alcohol emanating from the boiled rice.
  • the gas sensor detects the volume of gaseous alcohol emanating from the food being heated a predetermined time after the initiation of the heating, for example, 40 seconds after that, thereby generating a detection signal.
  • the detection signal generated by the gas sensor is compared with a reference value of the sensor output previously set for discrimination between the boiled rice and the miso soup so that the kind of food being heated is discriminated according to the magnitude of the detection signal.
  • a heating time suitable for the food is determined on the basis of previously set heating conditions. Consequently, an automatic cooking can be executed even when the food is either the boiled rice or the miso soup.
  • the prior art has provided for another type of microwave oven wherein only a beverage warming key is operated when the food such as Japanese saké or milk is warmed.
  • the kind of the beverage is discriminated on the basis of the difference between the detection volumes of the alcohol and gas sensors.
  • Either a saké warming course or a milk warming course is selected on the basis of the result of determination.
  • the optimum heating time is obtained so that the automatic cooking is executed.
  • the Japanese saké is usually put in a particular ceramic liquor bottle called "tokkuri” in Japanese when warmed.
  • the "tokkuri” usually has a top opening and an upper slender neck portion.
  • the “tokkuri” will hereinafter be referred to as “bottle” throughout the specification.
  • a piece of aluminum foil is wound around the neck portion of the bottle to cover the top opening, so that the saké contained in the bottle is uniformly warmed.
  • the aluminum foil is wound around the upper neck portion of the bottle so that the warming of the part of the bottle contained saké in the vicinity of the top opening is retarded.
  • the other part of the saké in the bottle is heated and that of the saké in the vicinity of the bottle neck portion is heated by application of heat transferred by convection, so that the whole saké in the bottle is uniformly heated.
  • EP-A-0074764 and Japanese patent publication No. 62-123226 both disclose automatic discrimination of the kind of food heated by the microwave oven.
  • an alcohol sensor is provided for detecting gaseous alcohol emanating from a food being heated in a heating chamber. The kind of the food is automatically discriminated on the basis of a time-dependent change rate of volume of gas detected by the alcohol sensor.
  • an alcohol sensor and a humidity sensor are provided for detecting gaseous alcohol and steam both emanating from a food being heated respectively. The kind of the food is automatically discriminated on the basis of the difference between time-dependent change rates of volume of gas and volume of steam detected by the respective gas sensor and humidity sensor.
  • an object of the present invention is to provide a microwave oven wherein the kind of food to be heated can be precisely discriminated on the basis of the detection outputs of the alcohol and gas sensors.
  • the present invention provides a microwave oven comprising heating means for high-frequency heating food, a first gas sensor for detecting gaseous alcohol emanating from the food, a second gas sensor for detecting steam emanating from the food, and determining means for determining the kind of food on the basis of outputs of the respective sensors, the determining means comprising change rate determining means for determining a rate of change in the gaseous alcohol on the basis of data of a volume of gaseous alcohol detected by the first gas sensor and a rate of change in the steam on the basis of data of a volume of steam detecting by the second gas sensor, characterized in that the determining means further comprises ratio determining means for determining a ratio of the change rate of the gaseous alcohol and the change rate of the steam each obtained by the change rate determining means, and discriminating means for discriminating the kind of the food on the basis of a value of the ratio obtained by the ratio determining means.
  • the change rate determining means obtains the change rate of the gaseous alcohol on the basis of data of the volume of gaseous alcohol detected by the first gas sensor and the change rate of the steam on the basis of data of the volume of steam detected by the second gas sensor.
  • the ratio of these obtained change rates is obtained by the ratio determining means.
  • the kind of the food to be heated is determined by the determining means on the basis of the obtained ratio. Accordingly, the difference between the values of the ratios can be increased even though the volume of alcohol contained in the food to be heated is small. Even when the value of the change rate of the volume of gaseous alcohol detected by the gas sensor is small, that small value can be used for discrimination of the kind of food as the ratio of the change rates taking a large value. Consequently, the food to be heated can be reliably determined without error determination.
  • the discriminating means includes comparing means for comparing the value of the ratio obtained by the ratio determining means with a reference value set for each kind of food, and the discriminating means discriminates the kind of the food to be heated on the basis of results of comparison performed by the comparing means. Consequently, the kind of the food to be heated can be reliably discriminated by the discriminating means with a simplified arrangement.
  • the microwave oven is further characterized by a weight sensor detecting the weight of the food and setting means for setting a heating time of the food on the basis of both the weight of the food detected by the weight sensor and the results of determination of the determining means.
  • a weight sensor detecting the weight of the food
  • setting means for setting a heating time of the food on the basis of both the weight of the food detected by the weight sensor and the results of determination of the determining means.
  • an appropriate heating time can be determined on the basis of both the weight and the kind of the food.
  • the microwave oven is further characterized by a weight sensor detecting the weight of the food and detection time setting means for setting a detection time on the basis of the weight detected by the weight sensor and is characterized in that the change rate determining means performs the operation on the basis of data of the volume of gaseous alcohol detected by the first gas sensor and data of the volume of steam detected by the second gas sensor, both said data being detected by the respective gas sensors upon lapse of the detection time set by the detection time setting means after initiation of the heating operation. Consequently, the kind of the food can be discriminated at an appropriate time according to the weight of the food on the basis of the ratio of the change rates of the gaseous alcohol and the steam detected by the first and second gas sensors respectively.
  • the microwave oven may be further chararacterized by heating time setting means for setting a heating time of the food on the basis of both the weight of the food detected by the weight sensor and the results of determination of the determining means.
  • heating time setting means for setting a heating time of the food on the basis of both the weight of the food detected by the weight sensor and the results of determination of the determining means.
  • an appropriate heating time can be determined on the basis of both the weight and the kind of the food.
  • the invention provides a method of determining food contained in a heating chamber of a microwave oven by discriminating the kind of food on the basis of data of volumes of gaseous alcohol and steam detected by first and second gas sensors, the method comprising the steps of executing a change rate determining step of determining a rate of change in gaseous alcohol on the basis of data of a volume of gaseous alcohol detected by the first gas sensor and a rate of change in steam on the basis of data of a volume of steam detected by the second gas sensor during a high frequency heating operation by heating means, characterized in that the method further comprises the steps of determining a ratio of the change rate of the gaseous alcohol and the change rate of the steam both obtained at the change rate determining step, and discriminating the kind of the food on the basis of a value of the obtained ratio.
  • the step of discriminating the kind of the food may include steps of comparing the value of the obtained ratio of the change rate of the gaseous alcohol and the change rate of the steam with a reference value set for each kind of food and of discriminating the kind of the food to be heated.
  • the invention may be further characterized by steps of detecting the weight of the food by a weight sensor and of setting a detection time on the basis of the weight detected by the weight sensor and characterized in that in the change rate determining step, the operation is performed on the basis of data of the volume of gaseous alcohol detected by the first gas sensor and data of the volume of steam detected by the second gas sensor, both said data being detected by the respective gas sensors upon lapse of the set detection time after initiation of the heating operation.
  • an outer cabinet 1 defines a heating chamber 2 in its left-hand interior and a component chamber (not shown) in its right-hand interior, as viewed in FIG. 2.
  • a magnetron 3 (see FIG. 1), a cooling fan unit (not shown) and the like are provided in the component chamber.
  • the magnetron 3 is energized to supply microwaves into the heating chamber 2, so that food contained in it is heated.
  • the cooling fan unit comprises a cooling fan and a fan motor (see FIG. 1).
  • the heating chamber 2 has a front opening and a door (not shown) closing and opening the front opening.
  • a rotational shaft 5 projects upwardly from the inner bottom of the heating chamber 2.
  • a turntable 6 on which the food to be heated is placed is detachably mounted on the upper portion of the shaft 5.
  • a turntable motor 7 (see FIG. 2) is provided for rotating the shaft 5.
  • a weight sensor 8 is provided in the lower interior of the heating chamber 2 for detecting, via the shaft 5, the weight of the food placed on the turntable 6.
  • a rear wall of the heating chamber has on its upper left-hand end an air exit 9 composed of a number of through apertures.
  • An exhaust path 10 extends from the air exit 9, communicating with the outside of the outer casing 1.
  • a first gas sensor or alcohol sensor 11 highly sensitive to gaseous alcohol and a second gas sensor or steam sensor 12 highly sensitive to steam are disposed in the exhaust path 10, as shown in FIG. 3.
  • the alcohol sensor 11 detects the gaseous alcohol and produces a detection voltage V A
  • the steam sensor 12 detects the steam and produces a detection voltage V G .
  • An operation panel 13 is provided on the front right-hand side of the outer casing 2, as viewed in FIG. 2.
  • the operation panel 13 includes a display section 14 (see FIG. 1) for displaying a heating time period, a heating mode, a cooking menu and the like and an operation switch section 15 (see FIG. 1) having various switches for entering the heating time period, heating mode, cooking menu, a heating start time and the like.
  • Each switch of the operation switch section 15 generates an operation input signal when operated.
  • a control circuit 16 comprises a microcomputer, memories and the like.
  • a control program for execution of the heating operation is previously stored in one of the memories.
  • the control circuit 16 serves as determining means, change rate operating means, ratio operating means, comparing means, discriminating means and heating time setting means, which means will be described later.
  • the control circuit 16 has input terminals to which the alcohol sensor 11, the steam sensor 12, the weight sensor 8 and the operation switch section 15 are connected so that the detection signals and the operation input signals are supplied to the control circuit 16.
  • the control circuit 16 further has output terminals connected to the display section 14 and drive circuits 3a, 4a and 5a further connected to the magnetron 3, the fan motor 4 and the turntable motor 7 respectively, so that the magnetron 3, the fan motor 4, the turntable motor 7 and the display section 14 are controlled by the control circuit 16.
  • the operation of the microwave oven will now be described with reference to FIGS. 4-6.
  • Japanese miso soup and boiled rice are employed as food to be heated.
  • the miso soup contains an alcoholic component while the boiled rice contains no alcoholic component.
  • the control circuit 16 stands by for supply of the input regarding selection of one cooking menu.
  • the control circuit 16 supplies a display signal to the display section 14 so that an indication of the selected cooking menu is displayed.
  • the control circuit 16 operates to energize the magnetron 3, the fan motor 4 and the turntable motor 7 via the respective drive circuits 3a, 4a, 5a.
  • the control circuit 16 further detects the weight of the food on the basis of the detection signal generated by the weight sensor 8 and stores data of the detected weight in the memory.
  • the control circuit 16 Based on the detection voltages V A and V G produced by the respective alcohol and steam sensors 11, 12, the control circuit 16 obtains the respective maximum values V Amax and V Gmax while 40 seconds elapses after the initiation of the heating, and stores data of these maximum values. These maximum values V Amax , V Gmax represent the condition that the detected volume of gas is the smallest.
  • FIGS. 4 and 5 show variations in the values of the obtained change rates ⁇ A and ⁇ G of the alcohol and the steam with lapse of time respectively.
  • FIG. 6 shows variations in the obtained ratio r with lapse of time after the initiation of the heating.
  • the ratio r obtained 40 seconds after the initiation of the heating is compared with a threshold or a reference value whose data is previously stored in the memory so that the determination is made as to which the food is, the miso soup or the boiled rice.
  • the discrimination between them can be reliably made. More specifically, as understood from FIG. 6, the differences between the values of the ratios r varying with laps of time with respect to the respective miso soup and boiled rice are larger than those between the values of the change rates ⁇ A and ⁇ G (see FIGS. 4 and 5) obtained on the basis of the detection voltages V A , V G produced by the alcohol and steam sensors 11, 12 respectively. Consequently, the determination of the cooking menu can be reliably made without error determination when the threshold is set at a medium value between the variations in the values of the ratios r with respect to the respective miso soup and boiled rice.
  • the control circuit 16 Upon discrimination between the miso soup or the boiled rice in the manner as described above, the control circuit 16 sets the heating time at 70 seconds in the case of the miso soup while setting it at 35 seconds in the case of the boiled rice. The heating operation is continued until each set heating time elapses. Upon lapse of the set heating time, the control circuit 16 deenergizes the magnetron 3 and the turntable motor 7, thereby completing the heating. At the same time, the control circuit 16 operates to display on the display section an indication indicative of completion of the heating and to activate a buzzer (not shown) so that the user is informed of completion of the heating. Subsequently, the control circuit 16 deenergizes the fan motor 4 upon lapse of a period of time previously determined according to the heating condition for the food, thereby completing the heating program.
  • the ratios r of the change rates are obtained and then compared with the threshold when the food is discriminated. Consequently, since the threshold can be set readily and the food can be reliably discriminated, the food can be cooked under an optimum heating condition.
  • FIGS. 7-12 illustrate a second embodiment of the invention. Difference between the first and second embodiments will be described.
  • FIGS. 7 and 8 show flowcharts explaining a program for warming beverage.
  • Japanese saké and milk are warmed.
  • the control circuit 16 is provided with a function of setting a detection time on the basis of the weight detected by the weight sensor 8, as will be described later.
  • the control circuit 16 obtains the heating time and executes the heating operation in a manner as will be described later.
  • control circuit 16 Upon application of the electric power to the microwave oven, the control circuit 16 executes an initializing process for initializing control data, flags and the like (step S1). In this state, when the user puts the food into the heating chamber 2 and closes its door, the control circuit 16 determines in the affirmative at step S2, standing by for operation of any one of the cooking menu selecting key (step S3).
  • control circuit 16 advances to step S4 and then to step S5 where the indication of UNDER COOKING is displayed on the display section 14, the chamber lamp is turned on, and the fan motor 4 and the turntable motor 7 are energized. Additionally, the control circuit 16 inputs the detection signal indicative of the detection weight W of the food detected by the weight sensor 8, storing the data of the detection weight W.
  • the control circuit 16 then starts to drive the magnetron 3 and sets a built in timer for a detection time according to the detection weight W, starting the timing operation.
  • the timer is set at 45 seconds when the detection weight W is below 450 g while being set at 90 seconds when the detection weight W is 450 g or above.
  • the control circuit 16 sets at the built-in timer the detection time differentiated according to the weight W of the food to be heated.
  • the control circuit 16 inputs the data of the volume of gaseous alcohol detected by the alcohol sensor 11 and the data of the volume of steam detected by the steam sensor 12, each data being detected upon lapse of the detection time set at the built-in timer.
  • control circuit 16 obtains the maximum values V Gmax and V Amax of the detection voltages V G and V A produced by the steam sensors 12 and the alcohol sensor 11 respectively and stores the data of these values until the time period set at the built-in timer elapses (steps S7 to S10).
  • the control circuit 16 determines in the affirmative at step S7, resetting the display state of the display section 14 and then, driving the fan motor 4 for 90 seconds (step S11). Subsequently, the control circuit 16 returns to step S1.
  • the control circuit 16 then obtains by calculation the change rate ⁇ A of the gaseous alcohol from the expression (1) on the basis of the detection voltage V A produced by the alcohol sensor 11 and its maximum value V Amax in the same manner as in the foregoing embodiment and further obtains the change rate ⁇ G of the steam from the expression (2) on the basis of the detection voltage V G produced by the steam sensor 12 and its maximum value V Gmax . Based on the obtained change rates, the control circuit 16 obtains the ratio r of the change rates from the expression (3).
  • step S13 determines whether or not the value of the obtained ratio r is larger than "12."
  • the control circuit 16 determines in the affirmative at step S13, selecting the saké warming course and operating the display section 14 to display the indication for the selected course (step S14).
  • the control circuit 16 obtains and sets the heating time for the saké warming course in accordance with the detection weight W (step S15).
  • the control circuit 16 selects the milk warming course and operates the display section 14 to display the indication of the selected course (step S16).
  • the control circuit 16 then advances to step S17 where the heating time for the selected course is obtained in accordance with the detection weight W and is set.
  • the control circuit 16 subtracts the time currently indicated by the built-in timer from the obtained heating time T to thereby obtain a remaining heating time Ta (step S18). Further at step S18, the control circuit 16 sets a subtracting timer (not shown) to the remaining heating time Ta and starts its timing operation. The heating operation is executed until the remaining time Ta elapses (step S20).
  • the control circuit 16 determines in the affirmative at step S19 and interrupts the timing operation of the subtracting timer and the operation of the magnetron 3 (step S21). Thereafter, when the door is reclosed and the beverage warming key is operated, the control circuit 16 determines in the affirmative at step S22, returning to step S20, where the heating operation is restarted.
  • step S20 determines in the affirmative, further advancing to step S23.
  • step S23 the magnetron 3 is deenergized and simultaneously, the buzzer for informing of completion of the heating is activated once and the chamber lamp is turned off.
  • step S24 and S25 the control circuit 16 advances to steps S24 and S25 in turn.
  • step S25 the fan motor 4 is driven for 10 minutes and subsequently, the program is completed.
  • the reference value takes "12" in the embodiment, as described above.
  • the value is based on the results of experiments made by the inventors.
  • the inventors measured the transition of deviation (1- ⁇ A) of the change rates ⁇ A of the detection voltages V A generated by the alcohol sensor 11 with respect to one cup of saké, one bottle of saké, one bottle of saké with the bottle having an aluminum foil around its neck portion, and one glass of milk in the case where the weight W is below 450 g.
  • FIG. 9 shows the results of the measurement.
  • the inventors further measured the transition of deviation (1- ⁇ A) of the change rates ⁇ A of the detection voltages V A generated by the alcohol sensor 11 with respect to two cups of saké, two bottles of sake, two bottles of saké with each bottle having an aluminum foil around its neck portion, and two glasses of milk in the case where the weight W is 450 g or above and below 680 g.
  • the volume of gaseous alcohol detected by the alcohol sensor 11 is small with respect to both of one bottle of saké with the bottle having the aluminum foil around its neck portion and of one glass of milk in the case where the weight W is below 450 g. Accordingly, discrimination cannot be exactly made between these cases even when the detection of gaseous alcohol is performed 50 seconds after the initiation of the heating, for example. On the other hand, the difference between the change rates ⁇ G in both cases is not so large even though there is a small difference between the volumes of steam in both cases.
  • the rates of changes in the detection voltages V A , V G generated by the respective alcohol and steam sensors 11, 12 are obtained and then the ratio r of the change rates is obtained from the expression (3) in the same manner as in the first embodiment, so that the discrimination is made as to which the food to be heated is, saké or milk. Since either the saké warming course or the milk warming course is set on the basis of the discrimination, the determination of the course can be reliably made.
  • control circuit 16 is arranged to switch the detection time for input of the detection data from the alcohol and steam sensors 11, 12 between 45 and 90 seconds in the cases where the weight W detected by the weight sensor 8 is below 450 g and 450 g or above. Consequently, the food discriminating operation can be performed at a suitable time in accordance with the detected weight.
  • control circuit 16 is arranged to set the remaining heating time Ta on the basis of the results of discrimination of the food and the weight W detected by the weight sensor 8. Consequently, the appropriate heating time T can be set in accordance with the kind and weight of the food to be cooked, which can provide for an appropriate heating operation.

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Claims (8)

  1. Mikrowellenofen, der folgende Elemente aufweist: eine Heizvorrichtung (3) zum Hochfrequenzheizen eines Lebensmittelproduktes, einen ersten Gassensor (11) zum Nachweis von gasförmigem Alkohol, der aus dem Lebensmittelprodukt entweicht, einen zweiten Gassensor (12) zum Nachweis von Dampf, der aus dem Lebensmittelprodukt entweicht, sowie ein Bestimmungshilfsmittel (16) zum Bestimmen der Art des Lebensmittelproduktes auf der Grundlage von Ausgangsgrößen der jeweiligen Sensoren (11, 12), wobei das Bestimmungshilfsmittel (16) ein Mittel zum Bestimmen des Änderungswertes (16) aufweist, zwecks Bestimmens eines Wertes einer Änderung bei dem gasförmigen Alkohol auf der Grundlage von Volumendaten des durch den ersten Gassensor (11) nachgewiesenen gasförmigen Alkohols sowie eines Wertes einer Änderung bei dem Dampf auf der Grundlage der Volumendaten des durch den zweiten Gassensor (12) nachgewiesenen Dampfes, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass das Bestimmungshilfsmittel (16) ferner ein Mittel zum Bestimmen des Verhältnisses (16) aufweist, zwecks Bestimmens eines Verhältnisses des Änderungswertes des gasförmigen Alkohols sowie eines Änderungswertes des Dampfes, wobei ein jeder durch das Mittel zum Bestimmen des Änderungswertes (16) erzielt worden ist, und ein Unterscheidungshilfsmittel (16) zum Unterscheiden der Art des Lebensmittelproduktes auf der Grundlage eines Wertes des Verhältnisses, das über das Mittel zum Bestimmen des Verhältnisses (16) erzielt worden ist.
  2. Mikrowellenofen gemäß Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass das Unterscheidungshilfsmittel (16) Mittel zum Vergleichen (16) enthält, zwecks Vergleichens des Wertes des Verhältnisses, das über das Mittel zum Bestimmen des Verhältnisses (16) erzielt worden ist, mit einem Referenzwert, der für jede Art des Lebensmittelproduktes festgelegt worden ist, und dadurch, dass das Unterscheidungshilfsmittel (16) die Art des Lebensmittelproduktes, das erwärmt werden soll, auf der Grundlage von Ergebnissen des Vergleichs unterscheidet, welcher durch die Mittel zum Vergleichen (16) durchgeführt worden ist.
  3. Mikrowellenofen gemäß den Ansprüchen 1 oder 2, gekennzeichnet durch einen Gewichtssensor (8), der das Gewicht des Lebensmittelproduktes nachweist, und durch ein Einstellungshilfsmittel (16) zum Einstellen einer Erwärmungsdauer für das Lebensmittelprodukt auf der Grundlage von sowohl dem Gewicht des Lebensmittelproduktes, das durch den Gewichtsensor (8) nachgewiesen worden ist, als auch den Ergebnissen der Bestimmung des Bestimmungshilfsmittels (16).
  4. Mikrowellenofen gemäß den Ansprüchen 1 oder 2, gekennzeichnet durch einen Gewichtssensor (8), zum Nachweis des Gewichtes des Lebensmittelproduktes und durch ein Einstellungshilfsmittel für die Nachweisdauer (16) zum Einstellen einer Nachweisdauer auf der Grundlage des Gewichtes, das durch den Gewichtsensor (8) nachgewiesen worden ist, und dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass das Mittel zum Bestimmen des Änderungswertes(16) den Vorgang auf der Grundlage der Volumendaten des durch den ersten Gassensor (11) nachgewiesenen gasförmigen Alkohols und der Volumendaten des durch den zweiten Gassensor (12) nachgewiesenen Dampfes ausführt, wobei diese beiden Daten durch die jeweiligen Gassensoren (11, 12) nach Ablauf der Nachweisdauer nachgewiesen werden, welch letztere durch das Einstellungshilfsmittel für die Nachweisdauer (16) nach dem Beginn der Erwärmungsvorganges festgelegt worden ist.
  5. Mikrowellenofen gemäß Anspruch 4, gekennzeichnet durch ein Einstellungshilfsmittel für die Erwärmungsdauer (16) zum Einstellen einer Erwärmungsdauer des Lebensmittelproduktes auf der Grundlage von sowohl dem mit dem Gewichtssensor (8) nachgewiesenen Gewicht des Lebensmittelproduktes als auch den Ergebnissen der Bestimmung des Bestimmungshilfsmittels (16).
  6. Verfahren zum Bestimmen eines Lebensmittelproduktes, das in einem Heizraum (2) eines Mikrowellenofens enthalten ist, durch Unterscheiden der Art des Lebensmittelproduktes auf der Grundlage von Volumendaten von gasförmigem Alkohol und von Dampf, die durch einen ersten und einen zweiten Gassensor (11, 12) nachgewiesen worden sind, wobei das Verfahren die Schritte aufweist, die darin bestehen einen Schritt zum Bestimmen des Änderungswertes durchzuführen, zwecks Bestimmens eines Wertes einer Änderung bei dem gasförmigen Alkohol auf der Grundlage von Volumendaten des durch den ersten Gassensor (11) nachgewiesenen gasförmigen Alkohols und zwecks Bestimmens eines Wertes einer Änderung bei dem Dampf auf der Grundlage von Volumendaten des durch den zweiten Gassensor (12) nachgewiesenen Dampfes, im Verlaufe eines Hochfrequenzheizvorganges unter Zuhilfenahme einer Heizvorrichtung (3), dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass das Verfahren ferner die Schritte des Bestimmens des Verhältnisses des Änderungswertes des gasförmigen Alkohols zu dem Änderungswert des Dampfes enthält, wobei beide durch den Schritt zum Bestimmen des Änderungswertes erhalten werden; und das Unterscheiden der Art des Lebensmittelproduktes auf der Grundlage eines Wertes des erzielten Verhältnisses erfolgt.
  7. Verfahren gemäß Anspruch 6, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass der Schritt des Unterscheidens der Art des Lebensmittelproduktes die Schritte enthält, die darin bestehen den Wert des erzielten Verhältnisses des Änderungswertes des gasförmigen Alkohols und des Änderungswertes des Dampfes mit einem Referenzwert zu vergleichen, welcher für jede Art eines Lebensmittelproduktes festgesetzt worden ist, und die Art des Lebensmittelproduktes, die erwärmt werden soll, zu unterscheiden.
  8. Verfahren gemäß den Ansprüchen 6 oder 7, gekennzeichnet durch die Schritte des Nachweisens des Gewichtes des Lebensmittelproduktes durch einen Gewichtssensor (8) und des Festsetzens einer Nachweisdauer auf der Grundlage des durch den Gewichtssensor (8) nachgewiesenen Gewichtes und dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass bei dem Schritt des Bestimmens des Änderungswertes der Vorgang durchgeführt wird auf der Grundlage der Volumendaten des durch den ersten Gassensor (11) nachgewiesenen gasförmigen Alkohols und der Volumendaten des durch den zweiten Gassensor (12) nachgewiesenen Dampfes, wobei beide Daten nachgewiesen werden durch die jeweiligen Gassensoren (11, 12) nach Ablauf der festgesetzten Nachweisdauer nach dem Beginn des Erwärmungsvorganges.
EP94300552A 1993-03-11 1994-01-26 Mikrowellenofen und Verfahren zur Bestimmung des Lebenmittelproduktes Expired - Lifetime EP0615400B1 (de)

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JP5051993A JPH0658894A (ja) 1992-05-27 1993-03-11 電子レンジ
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GB2293027A (en) * 1994-09-07 1996-03-13 Sharp Kk Apparatus for and method of controlling a microwave oven
DE10327861B4 (de) * 2003-06-18 2006-05-11 Miele & Cie. Kg Verfahren zur Steuerung eines Garvorgangs bei einem Gargerät und Gargerät
US10009965B2 (en) 2015-01-28 2018-06-26 Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Gas detection apparatus, cooking apparatus, and method of controlling the apparatuses
KR102327881B1 (ko) * 2015-01-28 2021-11-18 삼성전자주식회사 가스 검출 장치, 조리 장치 및 그 제어 방법

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US4162381A (en) * 1977-08-30 1979-07-24 Litton Systems, Inc. Microwave oven sensing system
JPS55146329A (en) * 1979-04-28 1980-11-14 Sharp Corp Cooking system
CA1199076A (en) * 1981-07-06 1986-01-07 Takeshi Tanabe Microwave heating appliance with simplified user's operation
CA1192618A (en) * 1981-09-03 1985-08-27 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Microwave oven with automatic cooking performance having additional heating process
DE3205124A1 (de) * 1982-02-12 1983-08-18 Licentia Gmbh Einrichtung und verfahren zum automatischen garen von nahrungsmitteln in einem mikrowellengeraet
JPS62123226A (ja) * 1985-11-22 1987-06-04 Toshiba Corp 高周波加熱調理装置
JPH0697096B2 (ja) * 1986-03-20 1994-11-30 松下電器産業株式会社 加熱装置
JPH03170726A (ja) * 1989-11-30 1991-07-24 Toshiba Corp 電子レンジ

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KR940022002A (ko) 1994-10-19
DE69425168D1 (de) 2000-08-17

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