Patent ID: 7677581

Claim:
A portable cooler assembly, comprising: (a) a base; and (b) a collapsible container subassembly including, (i) collapsible sidewalls, and (ii) a rigid rim for receiving a lid of the portable cooler assembly, said rim being attached to said collapsible sidewalls; (c) wherein said base defines a container receiving recess within which a bottom portion of said collapsible container subassembly is received; (d) wherein, when the portable cooler assembly is in a first configuration, (i) said collapsible sidewalls extend outwardly from the container receiving recess, and (ii) said rim is not received within the container receiving recess; and (e) wherein, when the portable cooler assembly is in a second configuration, (i) said collapsible sidewalls are received within the container receiving recess in a collapsed condition, and (ii) at least an outer peripheral edge of said rim is at least partially received within the container receiving recess, the container receiving recess having a sufficient depth to accommodate both said collapsible sidewalls and said outer peripheral edge of said rim that is partially received within the container receiving recess.