Effective, Low Cost Ethanol Sensor System for Repeat DWI Vehicles, with Wireless "Police Alert" Features

Alcohol related crashes are a serious public health issue, resulting in an estimated 17,400 deaths and 292,000 injuries in 2003. Giner, Inc. proposes to combine innovative ethanol sensors, sampling techniques and wireless capabilities to provide a novel, inexpensive and convenient law enforcement tool for detecting alcohol use in the vehicles of repeat DWI offenders. The proposed sensor system has a three fold approach to identifying drivers operating illegally: 1)passive transdermal sensing of driver's blood alcohol level 2) sensing of the car environment for ethanol, and 3) retention of historical data over a 1-2 hour period so that despite last minute or short term measures to dissipate alcohol information is available on the presence of ethanol. A car-based unit will process the collected information with a RED level alert if the transdermal alcohol level is positive and/or the car environment level is positive. A YELLOW level alert will be issued if the transdermal and/or environmental levels had been positive in the past hour. The alert level and identifying car information would be wirelessly transmitted to police in advance of a DWI road check, with an audible alert for hands-free notification.