Philips Developing Hand Held Dope Scanner

Recreational drug users and dealers beware, the dope scanner is here. Well, at least that is what Philips will try to come up with later this year. According to Technology Review, the company is trying to develop a type of hand held electronic device that will be able to detect five different drug groups using nanotechnology. It is being intended for use by law enforcement agencies to help in their fight against illegal drugs.

The new device will include a disposable plastic cartridge and a hand held analyzer. The cartridge contains a saliva collector and a measurement chamber that contains magnetic nanoparticles which binds into the five different drug groups , namely, cocaine, heroin, cannabis, amphetamine and methamphetamine. The saliva sample is then fed into the analyzer to detect these substances .

The test using the new device will take 90 seconds to analyze and detect the drugs and their concentrations on the saliva sample. It may be the first time that a hand held drug testing device has been developed since previous devices require larger machines to conduct such tests. With the device being hand held, this would surely be quite helpful for police and other law enforcement agencies to make use in the field while fighting the drug menace.

Image Source: Technology Review

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