Shelf assembly for refrigerator and manufacturing method thereof

A shelf assembly for a refrigerator, comprising:

• a supporting plate made of tempered glass;
• upper and lower frames disposed at upper and lower parts of the supporting plate to enclose a peripheral edge of the supporting plate, and fusion-bonded to each other;
• a sealing member receiving part generated by the upper and the lower grooves recessed along peripheries of the upper and the lower frames, respectively, to receive part of the peripheral edge of the supporting plate;
• an adhesive-type sealing member sealed and bonded to at least one of the peripheral edge of the supporting plate, the upper frame and the lower frame;
• at least one position fixing protrusion protruded from one side of an inner wall of the sealing member receiving part toward an end of the supporting plate;
• and
• locking parts formed respectively at the upper and the lower frames to fix the upper and the lower frames in a preassembled state before the frames are fusion bonded.

A manufacturing method of a shelf assembly for a refrigerator, comprising:

• preparing a supporting plate, and upper and lower frames each including a groove to receive a sealing member;
• fixing any one of the upper and the lower frames;
• applying the sealing member in the groove of the fixed frame;
• seating the supporting plate on an upper part of the fixed frame so that a peripheral edge of the supporting plate is partially received in the groove of the fixed frame;
• placing the other frame which is not yet fixed, on the upper part of the fixed frame including the supporting plate seated thereon, and fixedly preassembling the upper and the lower frames;
• and
• fusion-bonding the preassembled supporting plate, and the upper and the lower frames to one another.

A shelf assembly for a refrigerator comprising a shelf to support an article laid on the shelf, and a shelf supporting member to support the shelf, the shelf assembly being detachably mounted to a storage chamber, wherein:

• the shelf comprises a supporting plate, an upper frame enclosing an upper part of a peripheral edge of the supporting plate, and a lower frame enclosing a lower part of the peripheral edge of the supporting plate;
• the upper frame comprises an upper groove formed between an upper supporting stage extended downward toward the supporting plate and a sealing member leakage prevention stage extended downward while being spaced apart from the upper supporting stage, and an upper cover flange extended downward from a peripheral edge of the upper frame while being spaced apart from the upper sealing member leakage prevention stage;
• the lower frame comprises a lower groove formed between a lower support stage extended upward toward the supporting plate and a stepped stage fusion-bonded to the upper sealing member leakage prevention stage, and a lower cover flange extended upward from a peripheral edge of the lower frame such that the lower cover flange is inserted between the sealing member leakage prevention stage and the upper cover flange, the lower cover flange being fusion-bonded to the upper frame;
• and
• a sealing member receiving part is defined by the upper and the lower grooves, and the sealing member comprises a sealing member sealed and bonded to at least one of the supporting plate, the upper frame and the lower frame.