Wearable sensor pinpoints level of alcohol consumption

The device, developed at the University of California San Diego, can be worn on the skin and could be used by doctors and police officers for continuous, non-invasive and real-time monitoring of blood alcohol content.

The device is said to consist of a temporary tattoo -- which sticks to the skin, induces sweat and electrochemically detects the alcohol level -- and a portable flexible electronic circuit board, which is connected to the tattoo by a magnet and can communicate the information to a mobile device via Bluetooth. The work, led by nanoengineering Prof Joseph Wang and electrical engineering professor Patrick Mercier, both at UC San Diego, was published recently in the journal ACS Sensors.

"This technology provides an accurate, convenient and quick way to monitor alcohol consumption to help prevent people from driving while intoxicated," Wang said in a statement. The device could be integrated with a car's alcohol ignition interlocks, or friends could use it to check up on each other before handing over the car keys, he added.