Alc-Mobile Aims to Prevent Drunk-Driving

Japanese mobile operator KDDI Corp. is presenting Alc-Mobile, a mobile phone with a breathalyzer, mainly targeting bus and cab companies, alerting them each and every time any of their employees aren't fit for driving.

As the drivers blow into a tube, the device will measure if and exactly how drunk they are, and will send the results directly to the company's computer. If the employee is unfit to drive at the moment, the boss will immediately be alerted. And just to be sure that the driver doesn't ask someone else to blow into the tube instead, a snapshot taken by the cell phone's camera is transmitted, as well as the person's exact location by using Global Positioning System.

"Before, devices to measure intoxication were stationed at taxi and bus stations, so companies could only see a driver's state when he left the station in the morning or when he returned at the end of the day," said KDDI's Takeshi Ariizumi, who engineered the product with Tokai Electric.

The main purpose of the cell phone with an attached breathalyzer is to discourage people from getting behind the wheel after drinking. According to the National Police Agency, over 14,000 drunken driving accidents occurred in Japan throughout last year with 707 being killed.

"This isn't in itself a device to snag a driver when he is in a drunken state, but more a warning signal to prevent him from picking up a can of beer during the lunch-hour," Ariizumi said.

The cell phone and breathalyzer have a price of 89,000 yen ($750), while the software is an extra 58,000 yen.

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