Samsung patents smartphone with breathalyzer capabilities

Samsung is potentially working on a smartphone with a built-in breathalyzer, reveals a patent turned up by Patently Apple.

The patent, published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in July 2017, was originally filed in June 2016.

Samsung’s diagrams showcase a smartphone with a slim microphone extending out of the side, with the company noting that it includes a gas sensor that “analyzes the exhalation” — which could serve to detect the estimated blood alcohol content of a user.

Later in the patent, Samsung brings up the possibility of housing the sensor in a “moving body” such as a “stylus pen,” which would mean the breathalyzer functionality would be a feature of the Note family, the only Samsung series to contain a stylus.

With impaired driving serving as the leading cause of criminal death in Canada and, according to MADD Canada, an average of four people killed daily in crashes involving alcohol and drugs, this innovation may be a welcome tool for safety if it hits the market.

Source: Patently Apple