The device was created by Hound Labs and provides instant results
It was bound to happen sooner or later. While there has been substantial debate regarding whether or not breathalyzers are an effective tool for measuring the amount of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in the body, there has still been a push for some type of THC measuring device to be created for law enforcement so they have a proper field tool at their disposal. Now, a company out of Oakland, CA has created the first dual-purpose breathalyzer that can be used to measure levels of either alcohol or THC in the body.
Hound Labs created the device, which can reportedly give law enforcement – as well as employers, where legal – an instant measurement of the amount of alcohol or THC in a person. According to company co-founder and CEO Mike Lynn, “In breath where marijuana only stays for a couple of hours there is no legal precedence yet for it. What will happen is that we give objective data to the police officer at the roadside or to the employer at the workplace that says ‘Hey that person you just measured has THC in their breath.’”
Hound Labs has already received considerable venture capital to develop the device, which Lynn says will be ready for commercial purchase later this year. He explains, “Multiple law enforcement agencies have tested it, and we are in the process of commercializing it so that it’ll be out on the streets and in the workplace later this year.”
Hound Labs has reportedly tested its devices with the assistance of the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). The breathalyzer, as confirmed by researchers at the university, was able to measure THC in pictograms (parts per trillion), the finest measurement to date for any portable breathalyzer.
UCSF associate professor of laboratory medicine Dr. Kara Lynch states, “The ability to capture breath and measure such low concentrations of molecules represents a significant breakthrough and we hope to continue to collaborate with Hound Labs on clinical studies to advance the field of breath diagnostics.”