Patents by Inventor Toshiaki Ueki

Toshiaki Ueki has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10104722
    Abstract: The disclosed heat cooker includes a control unit for controlling operation of the variable-type air supply opening. The control unit controls operation of the variable-type air supply opening so that an openness of the air supply opening becomes a predetermined target openness larger than 0% during heat cooking by the heater of the heating object, and upon an end of the heat cooking of the heating object, the control unit further controls operation of the variable-type air supply opening so that the openness of the air supply opening becomes larger than the target openness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2018
    Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Toshiaki Ueki
  • Patent number: 8695487
    Abstract: Disclosed is a cooking appliance provided with: a water tank (30) disposed inside a main case (10); a steam-generation device (40) that generates steam by heating water supplied from the water tank (30); a heating chamber (20) to which steam from the steam-generation device (40) is supplied; an exhaust duct (72), provided inside the main case (10), for expelling exhaust from inside the heating chamber (20) to outside the main case (10); an exhaust temperature sensor (74) that measures the temperature of the exhaust air inside the exhaust duct (72); and a steam-generation decision unit that, upon cooking in which steam is supplied from the steam-generation unit (40) into the heating chamber (20), uses information on a physical quantity (the exhaust temperature measured by the exhaust temperature sensor (74)), which indirectly indicates whether there is water in the steam-generation device (40), to decide whether or not to halt steam generation, including the case in which the water tank (30) is out of water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yasuaki Sakane, Toshiaki Ueki
  • Patent number: 8674267
    Abstract: A steam cooker includes: a heating chamber for an item to be cooked; a removable water tank; a steam generating device with a housing to which water is supplied from the water tank and that heats the water within the housing and supplies steam to the heating chamber. A hardness detection portion includes a plurality of electrodes immersed in water within the water tank that detect the hardness of the water within the water tank by resistance between the electrodes. When the hardness of the water within the water tank is high, the interval of cleaning is shorter than an interval set when the hardness detected is low.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2014
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Rika Nozawa, Toshiaki Ueki
  • Publication number: 20130153569
    Abstract: The disclosed heat cooker includes: a cooling fan for sucking in outside air from outside a casing and blowing the same into the casing during heat cooking of a heating object or item to be heated; an electrical component chamber which allows the outside air blown by the cooling fan to flow inside the casing; an air supply opening provided in a heating compartment to supply the outside air of the electrical component chamber into the heating compartment; an exhaust opening provided in the heating compartment for discharging smoke from the heating compartment to outside the heating compartment; an exhaust tube for guiding to outside of the casing the smoke that has come out of the heating compartment from the exhaust opening; an air supply damper for opening and closing the air supply opening; and a control unit (200) for controlling opening/closing operations of the air supply damper.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 31, 2011
    Publication date: June 20, 2013
    Applicant: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Toshiaki Ueki
  • Patent number: 8161870
    Abstract: A heating cooker includes a steam generator for generating steam for heating cooking, a removable water tank for storing water to be supplied to the steam generator, a pump 35 for supplying water from the water tank to the steam generator, a drain valve 70 for draining water within the steam generator into the water tank, a first timer TM1 which starts counting when water is supplied to the steam generator by the pump 35, and an operation panel 11 including a notification section for notifying of draining the water within the water tank. When the first timer TM1 has counted over a first specified time, the control unit 80 makes the operation panel 11 notify of draining the water within the water tank.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 24, 2012
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yoshikazu Yamamoto, Masahiro Nishijima, Toshiaki Ueki
  • Publication number: 20120091118
    Abstract: A steam cooker includes: a heating chamber for an item to be cooked; a removable water tank; a steam generating device with a housing to which water is supplied from the water tank and that heats the water within the housing and supplies steam to the heating chamber. A hardness detection portion includes a plurality of electrodes immersed in water within the water tank that detect the hardness of the water within the water tank by resistance between the electrodes. When the hardness of the water within the water tank is high, the interval of cleaning is shorter than an interval set when the hardness detected is low.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 10, 2010
    Publication date: April 19, 2012
    Inventors: Rika Nozawa, Toshiaki Ueki
  • Publication number: 20120017770
    Abstract: Disclosed is a cooking appliance provided with: a water tank (30) disposed inside a main case (10); a steam-generation device (40) that generates steam by heating water supplied from the water tank (30); a heating chamber (20) to which steam from the steam-generation device (40) is supplied; an exhaust duct (72), provided inside the main case (10), for expelling exhaust from inside the heating chamber (20) to outside the main case (10); an exhaust temperature sensor (74) that measures the temperature of the exhaust air inside the exhaust duct (72); and a steam-generation decision unit that, upon cooking in which steam is supplied from the steam-generation unit (40) into the heating chamber (20), uses information on a physical quantity (the exhaust temperature measured by the exhaust temperature sensor (74)), which indirectly indicates whether there is water in the steam-generation device (40), to decide whether or not to halt steam generation, including the case in which the water tank (30) is out of water.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 13, 2010
    Publication date: January 26, 2012
    Inventors: Yasuaki Sakane, Toshiaki Ueki
  • Publication number: 20100021146
    Abstract: The inside of an evaporation container (41) is partitioned by a peripheral wall (47) to form a water level detection chamber (S1) and an evaporation chamber (S2) that are interconnected only on the bottom side of the evaporation container (41). A vapor generation heater (42) is placed in the evaporation chamber (S2) of the evaporation container (41). The water level in the water level detection chamber (S1) of the evaporation container (41) is detected by a water level sensor (43a). Water which is supplied from the outside into the evaporation container (41) and is in the evaporation chamber (S2) is heated by the vapor generation heater 842) to generate vapor in the evaporation chamber (S2), and the vapor is discharged from a vapor outlet (73) provided in the evaporation container (41) at a position on the evaporation chamber (S2) side.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 25, 2007
    Publication date: January 28, 2010
    Inventors: Takao Murai, Kazushi Furukawa, Kazuyuki Matsubayashi, Yoshikazu Yamamoto, Toshiaki Ueki
  • Publication number: 20090038481
    Abstract: A heating cooker includes a steam generator for generating steam for heating cooking, a removable water tank for storing water to be supplied to the steam generator, a pump 35 for supplying water from the water tank to the steam generator, a drain valve 70 for draining water within the steam generator into the water tank, a first timer TM1 which starts counting when water is supplied to the steam generator by the pump 35, and an operation panel 11 including a notification section for notifying of draining the water within the water tank. When the first timer TM1 has counted over a first specified time, the control unit 80 makes the operation panel 11 notify of draining the water within the water tank.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 26, 2006
    Publication date: February 12, 2009
    Inventors: Yoshikazu Yamamoto, Masahiro Nishijima, Toshiaki Ueki