US20100019639A1

US20100019639A1 - Refrigerator

Info

Publication number: US20100019639A1
Application number: US12/517,719
Authority: US
Inventors: Min-Gu Son
Original assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Current assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Priority date: 2007-01-08
Filing date: 2007-12-26
Publication date: 2010-01-28
Also published as: EP2102572A4; KR20080065096A; WO2008084928A3; EP2102572A2; WO2008084928A2; EP2102572B1; AU2007342786B2; AU2007342786A1

Abstract

The present invention provides a refrigerator having an appearance giving an excellent aesthetic feeling to a user. A refrigerator includes a refrigerator storage chamber, and a door for opening and closing the refrigerator storage chamber, and the door includes a steel sheet con

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator wherein a pattern is created on a refrigerator door by applying a crystal to between a refrigerator door glass and the refrigerator door.

BACKGROUND ART

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly, to a refrigerator wherein a pattern is created on a refrigerator door by applying a crystal to between a refrigerator door glass and the refrigerator door.
In general, a high-class refrigerator is partitioned off into left and right portions. One portion is used as a freezing chamber that is a space maintained at about −18° C. to freeze foodstuffs and keep them frozen, and the other portion is used as a refrigerating chamber that is a space maintained at about −1 to 3° C. to refrigerate foodstuffs and keep them cold.
A freezing chamber door and a refrigerating chamber door are installed on the freezing chamber and the refrigerating chamber respectively as sealing means to allow a user to put foodstuffs into each chamber and take them out of each chamber and to prevent cool air inside each chamber from being discharged to the outside.
Normally, the refrigerator doors are pivoted around hinge shafts in one direction to open and close each chamber.
Referring to a sectional view of FIG. 2, in a conventional refrigerator door 1 or 2, a glass 6 is covered on a top surface of a steel sheet 5 constituting a door main body 1 or 2, a printed layer 7 forming a pattern of the door 1 or 2 is mounted on a front surface of the glass 6, and a protection film 8 is coated on a top surface of the printed layer 7. Therefore, colors lack variety.
That is, in the appearance design of the conventional door 1 or 2, a predetermined pattern is printed on the surface of the glass 6 and seen outside of the door 1 or 2.
However, the conventional technique of expressing the pattern on the surface of the door 1 or 2 has a limitation to create the printed pattern. In addition, a product can not acquire a high-class appearance by the printing.
Accordingly, the conventional refrigerator does not give various aesthetic feelings to the user. It is contrary to a recent electric home appliance trend satisfying various demands of consumers through the multi-kind small-lot production and the high-quality strategy.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

Technical Problem

An object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator having an appearance giving an excellent aesthetic feeling to a user.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator having a high-class appearance by applying a crystal to an appearance of a refrigerator door.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerator having a variously-defined appearance by applying a printing layer and a crystal to a glass member of a refrigerator door.

Technical Solution

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a refrigerator, including: a refrigerator storage chamber; and a door for opening and closing the refrigerator storage chamber, wherein the door includes a steel sheet constituting a door main body, a door glass positioned in front of the steel sheet, and a crystal positioned between the steel sheet and the door glass.
According to another aspect of the present invention, the door further includes a guide plate for receiving the crystal between the steel sheet and the door glass.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, the guide plate includes a groove receiving the crystal therein.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, the groove is larger than the crystal by a predetermined size.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, an adhesive is applied between the groove and the crystal.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, the groove is formed in a plural number to define a predetermined pattern.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, a double-stick tape is adhered to an outer portion of the guide plate.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, a printing layer with a predetermined pattern is formed on a front surface of the door glass.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, a printed portion of the pattern of the printing layer is formed not to overlap with an upper portion of the crystal so that the crystal can be seen through the door.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, a protection film is formed on a surface of the printing layer.
In addition, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a refrigerator including a storage chamber for storing food, and a door for opening and closing the storage chamber, the refrigerator, including: a steel sheet forming a basic structure of the door; a door glass formed in front of the steel sheet; a guide plate positioned between the door glass and the steel sheet, and attached to a rear surface of the door glass; and a crystal inserted into the guide plate.
According to another aspect of the present invention, the refrigerator further includes: a printing layer formed on a front surface of the door glass; and a protection layer attached to a front surface of the printing layer.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, the refrigerator further includes a printing layer formed on a rear surface of the door glass.
Moreover, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a refrigerator including a storage chamber for storing food, and a door for opening and closing the storage chamber, the refrigerator, including: a steel sheet forming a basic structure of the door; a door glass formed in front of the steel sheet; a printing layer formed on a rear surface of the door glass with a predetermined pattern; a guide plate attached to a rear surface of the printing layer; and a crystal inserted into the guide plate, wherein a printed portion of the pattern of the printing layer is formed not to overlap with the crystal so that the crystal can be seen through the door glass.
According to another aspect of the present invention, the guide plate includes a groove so that the crystal can be inserted thereinto, and the crystal is adhered to the groove by means of an adhesive.
Further, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a refrigerator including a storage chamber for storing food, and a door for opening and closing the storage chamber, the refrigerator, including: a steel sheet defining a basic form of the door; a door glass formed in front of the steel sheet; a printing layer formed on a rear surface of the door glass with a predetermined pattern; a guide plate attached to a rear surface of the printing layer; and a crystal inserted into the guide plate, wherein the guide plate is attached to a pattern-formed portion in the way of that the crystal can be seen outside of the door glass.

Advantageous Effects

According to the present invention, as a crystal serves to reinforce a refrigerator door pattern and provide vivid and clear colors, the quality and the grace of a refrigerator can be improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a pattern printed on a surface of a conventional refrigerator door;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view illustrating a printed pattern-applying structure of the conventional refrigerator door;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating a crystal-attaching structure of a refrigerator door according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view illustrating a crystal-attaching structure of a refrigerator door according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view illustrating a crystal-attaching structure of a refrigerator door according to a third embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating one example of the refrigerator door implemented according to the present invention.

MODE FOR THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating a crystal-attaching structure of a refrigerator door according to a first embodiment of the present invention. A guide plate 13 with a groove 12 formed therein is staked on a steel sheet 10 so that a crystal 11 can be attached to the groove 12. The crystal 11 is inserted into the groove 12. A door glass 14 is stacked on the upper side of the crystal 11. A double-stick tape 15 is attached to an outer portion of the guide plate 13, so that the guide plate 13 and the door glass 14 are assembled firmly in a single body. A foaming member 16 made of polyethylene or the like is positioned in an outer wall portion of the guide plate 13 to limit a mounting space of the guide plate 13 and to fill the outer wall portion of the guide plate 13.
That is, the crystal 11 is attached to a predetermined position of the guide plate 13 by means of an adhesive, and the guide plate 13 is fixed to a rear surface of the door glass 14 by means of the double-stick tape 15. The double-stick tape 15 is attached to outer lines of the guide plate 13 to adhere the guide plate 13 to the door glass 14.
When seen on the front side of the door glass 14 (see FIG. 6), the crystal 11-attached portion is exposed visibly. Meanwhile, when seen on the rear side of the door glass 14, the crystal 11 is adhered to the groove 12 formed in the guide plate 13, and the double-stick tape 15 is applied to a predetermined outer portion of the guide plate 13 to attach the guide plate 13 to the door glass 14.
In order to express a color on the refrigerator door, the crystal 11 may have a color and the pattern of the door glass 14 may not have a color. In addition, the crystal 11 may not have a color and the pattern of the door glass 14 may have a color. Further, both the crystal 11 and the pattern of the door glass 14 may have colors.
In every case, as the transparent crystal 11 is applied to the lower side of the door glass 14 around the pattern printed on the door glass 14, the pattern printed on the refrigerator door can be seen vividly and clearly on the front side of the refrigerator door.
The crystal 11 can be implemented with crystal grains. The crystal grains may be connected to each other and inserted into the groove 12, or may be manufactured in a single body to be fitted into the groove 12 and inserted into the groove 12.
FIG. 4 is a sectional view illustrating a crystal-attaching structure of a refrigerator door according to a second embodiment of the present invention. As identical to the refrigerator door of the first embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerator door of the second embodiment of the present invention includes a steel sheet 10, a crystal 11, a guide plate 13, a groove 12, a door glass 14 and a foaming member 16. The refrigerator door further includes a printing layer 17 and a protection layer 18 formed in front of the door glass 14. The printing layer 17 forms a predetermined pattern according to a printing method such as a silk screen printing and a gravure printing, by using a material that can form a pattern on the door glass 14, such as an ink for glass, oil enamel and alcohol resin enamel. The printing layer 17 forms the pattern not to overlap with the crystal 11 so that the crystal 11 can be seen through the door glass 14 on the front side of the door glass 14. That is, the opaque pattern-forming material, such as an ink for glass, oil enamel and alcohol resin enamel is not coated on the door glass 14 corresponding to the crystal 11-positioned portion. In this configuration, a pattern giving a better aesthetic feeling can be formed by the combination of the general pattern and the crystal 11. For example, the printing layer 17 can print a flower pattern with the opaque pattern-forming material. When the flower pattern is printed, an ink or the like is not coated between petals. The guide plate 13 is attached to a rear surface of the door glass 14 in the way of that the crystal 11 can be positioned between the petals. Therefore, the crystal 11 can be seen through the non-ink coated portion between the petals through the door glass 14.
In addition, the protection layer 18 is formed on a front surface of the printing layer 17 to protect the printing layer 17. The protection layer 18 is made of a transparent material so that the pattern of the printing layer 17 and the crystal 11 can be seen on the front side. The protection layer 18 prevents the printing layer 17 from being scratched or worn off.
FIG. 5 is a sectional view illustrating a crystal-attaching structure of a refrigerator door according to a third embodiment of the present invention. As identical to the refrigerator doors of the first and second embodiments of the present invention, the refrigerator door of the third embodiment of the present invention includes a steel sheet 10, a crystal 11, a guide plate 13, a groove 12, a door glass 14 and a foaming member 16.
In the third embodiment, a printing layer 17 is formed on a rear surface of the door glass 14. A method of forming the printing layer 17 and a method of mounting the guide plate 13 are identical to those of the second embodiment. However, as the printing layer 17 is formed on the rear surface of the door glass 14 without being exposed to the outside, the printing layer 17 is not scratched or worn off. Accordingly, the protection layer 18 of the second embodiment may be omitted.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating one example of the refrigerator door implemented according to the present invention. As set forth in the first to third embodiments, the pattern of the printing layer 17 and the crystal 11 can be seen on the front side to improve the beauty of the appearance of the refrigerator. The pattern is formed on the front or rear surface of the door glass 14 by the printing layer 17. The pattern formed by the printing layer 17 is created by an ink or enamel-stained portion and a non-stained portion like a woodblock printing. The crystal 11 is inserted into and fixed to the guide plate 13, and then attached to the rear surface of the door glass 14. In a state where the crystal 11 is inserted into the groove (12; see FIGS. 3 to 5) of the glide plate 13, the glide plate 13 is attached to a predetermined position of the door glass 14 by means of an adhesion member such as the double-stick tape 15. Here, the glide plate 13 is attached to the door glass 14 so that the non-stained portion of the pattern of the door glass 14 can correspond to the crystal 11. Thereafter, the foaming member 16 is filled in the space between the door glass 14 and the steel sheet 10. The foaming member 16 not only improves the insulation effect of the door but also prevents the guide plate 13 from being separated from the attachment position of the door glass 14.
Although the present invention has been illustrated and described in connection with the accompanying drawings and the preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited thereto. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention defined by the appended claims. Such changes and modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A refrigerator, comprising:

a refrigerator storage chamber; and

a door for opening and closing the refrigerator storage chamber,

wherein the door comprises a steel sheet constituting a door main body, a door glass positioned in front of the steel sheet, and a crystal positioned between the steel sheet and the door glass.

2. The refrigerator of claim 1,

wherein the door further comprises a guide plate between the steel sheet and the door glass, for receiving the crystal.

3. The refrigerator of claim 2,

wherein the guide plate comprises a groove receiving the crystal therein.

4. The refrigerator of claim 3,

wherein the groove is larger than the crystal by a predetermined size.

5. The refrigerator of claim 3,

wherein an adhesive is applied between the groove and the crystal.

6. The refrigerator of claim 2,

wherein the groove is formed in a plural number to define a predetermined pattern.

7. The refrigerator of claim 2,

wherein a double-stick tape is adhered to an outer portion of the guide plate.

8. The refrigerator of claim 1,

wherein a printing layer with a predetermined pattern is formed on a front surface of the door glass.

9. The refrigerator of claim 8,

wherein a printed portion of the pattern of the printing layer is formed not to overlap with an upper portion of the crystal so that the crystal can be seen on the front side of the door.

10. The refrigerator of claim 8, wherein a protection film is formed on a surface of the printing layer.

11. A refrigerator including a storage chamber for storing food, and a door for opening and closing the storage chamber, further comprising:

a steel sheet forming a basic structure of the door;

a door glass formed in front of the steel sheet;

a guide plate positioned between the door glass and the steel sheet, and attached to a rear surface of the door glass; and

a crystal inserted into the guide plate.

12. The refrigerator of claim 11, further comprising:

a printing layer formed on a front surface of the door glass; and

a protection layer attached to a front surface of the printing layer.

13. The refrigerator of claim 11,

further comprising a printing layer formed on a rear surface of the door glass.

14. A refrigerator including a storage chamber for storing food, and a door for opening and closing the storage chamber, further comprising:

a steel sheet forming a basic structure of the door;

a door glass formed in front of the steel sheet;

a printing layer formed on a rear surface of the door glass with a predetermined pattern;

a guide plate attached to a rear surface of the printing layer; and

a crystal inserted into the guide plate,

wherein a printed portion of the pattern of the printing layer is formed not to overlap with the crystal so that the crystal can be seen through the door glass.

15. The refrigerator of claim 14,

wherein the guide plate comprises a groove so that the crystal can be inserted thereinto, and the crystal is adhered to the groove by means of an adhesive.

16. A refrigerator including a storage chamber for storing food, and a door for opening and closing the storage chamber, further comprising:

a steel sheet forming a basic structure of the door;

a door glass formed in front of the steel sheet;

a guide plate attached to a rear surface of the printing layer; and

a crystal inserted into the guide plate,

wherein the guide plate is attached to a pattern-formed portion of the printing layer in the way of that the crystal can be seen outside the door glass.