In-car blood-alcohol level test in development

Two motoring companies have teamed up to develop a device to check a driver's blood alcohol level through their skin.

The aim of Takata Motor Safety Systems and TruTouch is to create an engine ignition button that can detect alcohol and prevent the car from being started.

A grant of $2.25 million (£1.43 million) has been provided to the firms to make their current 'breadbox-sized' device smaller, cheaper and less obtrusive in a vehicle so that it can be incorporated into a start button, Kirk Morris, Takata's vice president of business development, explained.

They are also working to reduce processing time from several seconds to a matter of milliseconds.

Mr Morris said that the main aim of the investigation is to take impaired drivers off the road by testing their blood alcohol level.

"Breathalyzers are invasive. You have to blow into a tube. If this technology is to be used on a daily basis, we want it to be non-invasive, non-intrusive. Drivers pushing a button wouldn't even know it's there," he added.

Still in the development stage, the technology could be in cars within the next decade.