Thursday 29th August 1957
US officials tested the ‘Drunkometer’, which measured the amount of alcohol on the breath. To use the drunk-o-meter, the person being tested blew into a balloon. The air in the balloon was then released into a chemical solution. If there was alcohol in the breath, the chemical solution changed colour. The greater the colour change, the more alcohol in the breath. The level of alcohol in a person’s blood could then be estimated by a simple equation.