A document from the International Transport Forum shows that, on average, we lose 1.25 million people each year from road crashes, and they recognize that drunk driving is among one of its chief “risk-increasing factors.” It is thus important for us to recognize and address these concerns, as steps we take now can save the lives of many down the road.
Luckily for us, scientists from Japan’s National Institute for Advanced Industrial Science and Technology are on the case, and they’ve figured out a pretty ingenious way of dealing with this unfortunate statistic that takes the lives of thousands each year. Their proposed solution, whose results were published in the journal ACS Applied Electronic Materials, is placing pressure sensors under the driver’s chair, and identifying if the person driving is driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol based on the driver’s movements as they sit on the “rigged” chair.
These sensors actually go under both the seat proper and the backrest. The backrest sensor can read a driver’s heart rate and rate of respiration, while a pair of sensors that go under the seat itself can identify where the driver sitting on them is leaning—a sign of the driver dozing off while on the wheel.
The sensors themselves are made of piezoelectric materials, which produce electrical currents when under mechanical stress. (A similar technology was used in prior news surrounding potential “self-powered” hearing aids of the future.)
The research team made use of a zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film prepared directly onto a polyimide surface, which was then screen-printed on with a silver (Ag) paste on both sides. This entire assembly would function as the piezoelectric component of the sensor, and was mounted onto the sensor setup while sandwiching a cable within it that can detect electrical currents.
The pressure readings these sensors receive, which are expected to be sourced from any driver that may sit on a seat that contains them, are gathered from current readings from the piezoelectric components.
Future research from the team involves field tests of their novel technology with an actual car, followed by actual road tests.
References
- Coxworth, B. (2021, December 8). Pressure-sensing seat may one day detect drunk drivers. New Atlas. https://newatlas.com/automotive/pressure-sensing-seat-drunk-drivers/
- Impaired-driver sensor could pave the way for safer vehicles. (n.d.). American Chemical Society. Retrieved 9 December 2021, from https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/presspacs/2021/acs-presspac-december-8-2021/impaired-driver-sensor-could-pave-way-for-safer-vehicles.html
- Nagase, T., Nonaka, K., Koishi, Y., Ishida, S., Tabaru, T., & Sato, Y. (2021). Heat-resistant, flexible piezoelectric sheet sensors based on solution-processed zinc oxide films for in-vehicle driver monitoring applications. ACS Applied Electronic Materials, 3(11), 4743–4756. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsaelm.1c00603
