Two 3rd year female students of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering of the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), Tarkwa, namely: Mercy Adoley Quaye and Irene Okai have displayed ingenuity by developing an alcohol detecting device that will help curb drink-driving. The device was showcased at the 4th Innovation and Career Fair organised for students of the University.
According to Mercy Adoley Quaye and Irene Okai, they developed the device because driving under the influence of alcohol has caused and is still causing much danger to lives and property in the society. They also believe that drunk driving does not only put the driver at risk but also innocent passengers, pedestrians and other road users. According to the two students, the device has a mechanism that detects the presence of alcohol and takes measures when the Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) crosses the acceptable threshold. A Short Message Service (SMS) would then be sent to relatives or the station master (in the case of commercial vehicles), when the presence of alcohol crosses the threshold value. The system will then lock the engine and prevent it from starting when the presence of alcohol is detected.