INTERACTIVE BLOOD-ALCOHOL CONTENT TESTER

• US 20120157871A1
• Filed: 12/13/2011
• Published: 06/21/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IPH LLC (Vistra Corp.)
• Original Assignee: IPH LLC (Vistra Corp.)
• Inventors: Walden, Eugene D., Walden, Whitney B., Walden, Ryan B.
• Granted Patent: US 8,814,804 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/532
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/097 Devices for facilitating collection of breath or for directing breath into or through measuring devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4845 Toxicology, e.g. by detection of alcohol, drug or toxic products A61B5/4848 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/4972 Determining alcohol content for vehicle safety devices B60K28/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute

Abstract

A blood-alcohol content (BAC) tester for use at a facility serving alcohol. The BAC tester includes a breath-sampling unit having an air-chamber unit defining a closed position and an open position. The air-chamber unit has a first air-chamber block and a second air-chamber block, the first air-chamber block and the second air-chamber block defining an air chamber for receiving air exhaled from a user. The breath-sampling unit also includes a drive unit coupled to the second air-chamber block and an alcohol sensor. The BAC tester also includes a sensor circuit communicatively coupled to the drive unit and the alcohol sensor. The sensor circuit is configured to cause the drive unit to move the second-air chamber block relative to the first air-chamber block so as to cause the air-chamber unit to be in the closed or the open position.

Claims

1. An improved accuracy, rapidly-clearing blood-alcohol content (BAC) tester for use at a facility serving alcohol having high-volume usage with minimal wait-time between tests, the BAC tester comprising:

a breath-sampling unit, the breath-sampling unit including;

an air-chamber unit defining a closed position and an open position, the air-chamber unit having a first air-chamber block and a second air-chamber block, the first air-chamber block and the second air-chamber block defining an air chamber for receiving air exhaled from a user;

a drive unit operably coupled to the second air-chamber block;

an alcohol sensor for sensing the presence of alcohol in the air exhaled from the user; and

a fan configured to direct airflow to a vicinity of the air-chamber unit when the air-chamber unit is in the open position so as to remove residual air exhaled from the user, thereby rapidly clearing the air-chamber; and

a sensor circuit communicatively coupled to the drive unit and the alcohol sensor;

wherein the sensor circuit is configured to cause the drive unit to move the second-air chamber block relative to the first air-chamber block so as to cause the air-chamber unit to be in the closed or the open position.

2. The BAC tester of claim 1, wherein the first air-chamber block defines a generally planar surface, the second air-chamber block defines a generally planar surface, and the generally planar surface of the first air-chamber block is adjacent to, and in contact with, the generally planar surface of the second air-chamber block when the air-chamber unit is in the closed position.

3. The BAC tester of claim 1, wherein the second air-chamber block comprises a generally flat plate covering a cavity of the first air-chamber block when the air chamber unit is in the closed position, thereby forming the air chamber.

4. The BAC tester of claim 1, wherein the sensor circuit is further configured to cause the drive unit to move the second-air chamber block in a direction transverse to the first air-chamber block so as to cause the air-chamber unit to be in the open position.

5. The BAC tester of claim 1, wherein the drive unit includes a motor and a threaded drive shaft, the drive shaft rotatably coupled to the motor and to a coupling unit attached to the second air-chamber block.

6. The BAC tester of claim 5, wherein the drive shaft projects perpendicularly to an inside, generally planar surface of the first air-chamber block, and the second air-chamber block is configured to move parallel to an axis of the drive shaft when the drive shaft is rotated.

7. The BAC tester of claim 1, further comprising a coupling unit attached to the second air-chamber block, the coupling unit including a central, threaded aperature engaging a threaded drive shaft of the drive unit.

8. A method of encouraging use of a blood-alcohol content (BAC) tester having an alcohol sensor, an air-chamber, and a display, the method comprising:

offering a reward to a user of the BAC tester in exchange for accurately predicting a BAC of the user;

receiving from the user the user'"'"'s estimate of the user'"'"'s blood alcohol content;

receiving in an air chamber exhaled air from a user of the BAC tester;

measuring with the alcohol sensor an alcohol content of the air exhaled from the user of the BAC tester;

determining an actual blood-alcohol content of the user of the BAC tester based on measurements of the alcohol sensor; and

comparing the user'"'"'s estimate of the user'"'"'s blood alcohol content with the actual blood-alcohol content of the user.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising displaying both the user'"'"'s estimate of the user'"'"'s blood alcohol content and the actual blood-alcohol content of the user.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising providing the reward to the user if the user'"'"'s estimate is substantially the same as the actual blood-alcohol content of the user.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the reward comprises an activation code that enables the user to receive a subsequent BAC test at no charge.

12. The method of claim 8, further comprising receiving instructions from a remotely-located computer to display information to a user.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the information comprises an ad selected from an ad group.

14. The method of claim 8, further comprising determining a number of BAC tests performed by the BAC tester and transmitting the number of BAC tests performed by the BAC tester to a remotely-located computer over a communication network.

15. The method of claim 8, further comprising displaying a transportation request button to the user of the BAC tester, the transportation request button configured to transmit a request for transportation to a remotely-located transportation company over a communication network coupled to the BAC tester when activated by the user, the request for transportation including a location of the BAC tester as stored in a memory device.

16. An interactive blood-alcohol content (BAC) tester for connection to a remote-management system that includes a communications network and a remotely-connected server, the BAC tester comprising:

an air-chamber configured to receive air exhaled from a user of the interactive BAC tester;

an alcohol sensor coupled to the air chamber and configured to sample a portion of the air exhaled from the user of the interactive BAC tester;

a sensor circuit communicatively coupled to the alcohol sensor and to receive a signal from the alcohol sensor, the signal indicative of an alcohol content of the air exhaled from the user and sampled by the alcohol sensor;

a display configured to display selected information to the user of the interactive BAC tester; and

a computer communicatively coupled to the sensor circuit and the display, the computer configured to communicate with a remotely-located computing device over a communication network;

wherein the computer is configured to transmit usage data indicating the number of times that the BAC tester was used over a predetermined time period, and configured to receive instructional data from the remotely-located computing device, the instructional data determining the selected information that is displayed by the computer on the display to the user of the interactive BAC tester.

17. The interactive BAC tester of claim 16, wherein the remotely-located computing device comprises a server operated by a system administrator, the server storing the usage data and the instructional data.

18. The interactive BAC tester of claim 16, wherein the remotely-located computing device is connected to a second interactive BAC tester over the communication network.

19. The interactive BAC tester of claim 16, wherein the computer is further configured to transmit a request for transportation to a transportation company connected to the communications network.

20. The interactive BAC tester of claim 16, wherein the selected information displayed is an advertisement.