Food processor

Abstract

A food processor is provided which can produce delicious and good-texture vinegared rice, suppressing stickiness of the cooked rice. By constituting one cycle from standstill-cooling operation 210 for sending only air into the container 20 that is in a halt, sending air into the container through cooling means, and mixing-cooling operation 220 for sending air into the container, rotating the container, standstill duration of the standstill-cooling operation 210 is gradually prolonged as time passes.

1 . A food processor comprising: 
 a container for putting thereinto cooked rice and sushi dressing blended with each other in a predetermined ratio that depends on measure of the cooked rice;    mixing means for mixing the cooked rice in the container;    cooling means for cooling with air the cooked rice in the container;    controlling means for controlling the mixing means and the cooling means;    wherein the controlling means includes a cooling process for intermittently mixing the cooked rice through the mixing means while sending air into the container through the cooling means; and    wherein, in the cooling process, standstill-cooling operation for merely sending air through blowing means while keeping the cooked rice being not mixed, and mixing-cooling operation for sending air through the blowing means while mixing the cooked rice, constitute a cycle; the cycle is recurrently carried out within the cooling process; and standstill duration of the standstill-cooling operation is set in such a way as to gradually be prolonged every predetermined number of the cycles.    
   
   
       2 . The food processor according to  claim 1 , wherein operating duration of the mixing-cooling operation is constant in each of the cycles.  
   
   
       3 . The food processor according to  claim 1 , wherein, given that the operating duration, in the first cycle, of the standstill-cooling operation is t 1 , prolonged duration for the operating duration of the standstill-cooling operation is k (k is a positive number), and the operating duration, in the n-th cycle (n is a positive integer), of the standstill-cooling operation is tn, the operating duration tn, in the n-th cycle (n is a positive integer), of the standstill-cooling operation is set in such a way as to meet the equation tn=t 1 +((n(1)×k).  
   
   
       4 . The food processor according to  claim 1 , wherein, given that the total duration of the cooling process is T, that the operating duration, in the first cycle, of the standstill-cooling operation is t 1 , that the operating duration of the mixing-cooling operation is t 2 , that the prolonged duration for the operating duration of the standstill-cooling operation is k (k is a positive number), and that the operating duration of the standstill-cooling operation is prolonged in m (m is a positive integer) incremental steps within the total duration, by calculating the average cycle duration Cave of cycles in the m-th step, through the equation Cave=t 2 +(t 1 ×m+m(m−1)×k/2)/m, by calculating with the average cycle duration Cave total cycle number n in the total duration T of the cooling process, through the equation n=T/Cave, the operating duration of the standstill-cooling operation is prolonged every n/m cycles that is obtained by multiplying the total cycle number n by 1/m.  
   
   
       5 . The food processor according to  claim 1 , wherein, given that the total duration of the cooling process is T, that the operating duration, in the first cycle, of the standstill-cooling operation is t 1 , that the operating duration of the mixing-cooling operation is t 2 , that the prolonged duration for the operating duration of the standstill-cooling operation is k (k is a positive number), and that the operating duration of the standstill-cooling operation is prolonged in m (m is a positive integer) incremental steps within the total duration, the total operating duration in the m-th step Tm is given by Tm=T/m; the operating duration of one cycle in the m-th step Cm is given by Cm=(t 1 +((m−1)×k))+t 2 ; and the cycle is recurrently carried out (Tm/Cm) times within each of the operating duration Tm.  
   
   
       6 . The food processor according to  claim 1 , wherein the controlling means comprises a mixing process for mixing the cooked rice through the mixing means, without sending air into the container.  
   
   
       7 . The food processor according to  claim 1 , wherein a maturing process in which both the mixing means and the cooling means stop is included between the mixing process and the cooling process.