Portable insulated container with temperature indicator

A portable insulated container comprising:

• a plurality of pliable panels that define a shaped compartment having a body and a mouth opening, said mouth opening being defined by an upstanding peripheral lip of a defined height, each of said pliable panels having pliable thermal insulation means, said insulated container further including a cover member for selectively opening and closing said mouth opening;
• closure means for securing said cover member to said body of the insulated container, said closure means selectively joining or disjoining less than the full periphery of the cover member of the body of the insulated container, the remainder of said full periphery of the cover member being hingedly attached to said body of the insulated container;
• said cover member of the insulated container is pliable and has a side wall extending the full periphery of the cover member, said cover member has a multi-layered end panel that includes an outside layer of sheet material, an inside layer of sheet material and an insulator sheet that is thicker than and is intermediate of said outside sheet and said inside sheet, said body being defined between an outside edge of the cover member and said closure means, said body having a periphery larger than that of the peripheral lip so as to cover the outside surface of and overlap said peripheral lip, and said side wall of the cover member having a height approximating said defined height of said upstanding peripheral lip;
• said upstanding peripheral lip projects above and extends beyond and outside of said closure means, and said side wall of the cover member generally overlies said upstanding peripheral lip when said cover member is in a closed orientation, whereby said cover member, once opened, will be engaged to interact with said closure assembly in order to allow the cover member to remain open and clear of the mouth opening;
• and,
• a temperature level indicating assembly indicating the relative temperature of the interior of the compartment without the necessity of opening said cover member including a visually perceptible temperature indicator mounted on said cover member, said visually perceptible temperature indicator including a thermochromatic ink adapted to undergo a change in color at a predetermined temperature range, said visually perceptible indicator connected by a thermally conductive retainer to a heat source/cold source member, and disposed within said cover member, said visually perceptible temperature indicator measures the relative heat transfer to or from said heat source/cold source member, and said retainer member holds said visually perceptible temperature indicator in direct contact with said heat source/cold source member.