New car technology can stop drunks from driving
New car technology can stop drunks from driving Automotive Government officials have given a tentative thumbs up to a new technology for cars that would render the concept of driving while drunk a non-starter — literally. On Friday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and David Strickland, head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, were on hand when researchers publicly demonstrated a car-embeddable sensor system that cleverly locks down the engine if it detects that the driver’s blood alcohol level was above the legal limit. Through the use of strategically placed sensors in places like the steering wheel and door locks, the North America Driver Alcohol Detection Systems for Safety , created by QinetiQ, a research facility in Waltham, Massachusetts, would analyze a driver’s skin or breath to determine a driver’s level of intoxication. The system is being promoted as an alternative to alcohol ignition interlock systems that force drivers to blow into a breatha