ACS improves in-vehicle energy consumption with the introduction of Low-Sleep-State (LSS) power levels – exceeding CENELEC automotive quiescent current standards.

TORONTO, November 13, 2019

Alcohol Countermeasure Systems (ACS), a global leader in the development and manufacturing of alcohol interlocks and breath alcohol testers to prevent impaired driving, announces improvements to their alcohol interlock technology, including the introduction of Low-Sleep-State (LSS) consumption levels – exceeding CENELEC automotive quiescent standards.

For commercial vehicle operators, telematics and other on-board electronic monitoring functions are making increasingly higher demands on vehicle battery power. As a result, the management of current consumption during vehicle operation is moving into greater focus for automotive engineers. Reducing the electrical energy consumption through temporary deactivation, or low quiescent current, is increasingly a requirement of ever-evolving automotive standards. The CENELEC requirement for automotive quiescent current is 5 milliamps.

Accelerating the transition to energy-efficient solutions will continue to be critical for automotive suppliers. Current methodologies for ECU current consumption, without consideration of load currents, could enable the entire ECU or some functionality within an ECU to be temporarily deactivated. Additionally, in a fully electric vehicle, energy efficiency directly influences mileage; a very real and visible factor to an operator.

“With limited battery supply coupled with the increased introduction of vehicles with pure electrical drive trains, extending battery life requires mastery of low quiescent current”, states Felix J.E. Comeau, President & CEO of Alcohol Countermeasure Systems. “With the introduction of our Low-Sleep-State power levels, ALCOLOCK alcohol interlocks are able to operate at less than one milliamp, which means significant energy savings are realized compared to the status quo today.”

According to Mr. Comeau, “ACS looks forward to continuing to work closely with our suppliers in the area of automotive quiescent current standards and to further improvements in energy consumption levels of our ALCOLOCK alcohol interlock products.”

About ACS

Alcohol Countermeasure Systems is an international group of companies with over 40 years of experience developing innovative technology to prevent impaired driving. A technology leader and manufacturer of alcohol interlocks and breath alcohol testers, ACS provides products and services to law enforcement, automotive, industrial, public and personal safety markets. We improve global road safety through innovative design, manufacturing and customer support services. Please visit www.acs-corp.com