With the summer setting in, there have been a lot of talks concerning kids being left in hot cars and how we need to prevent that from happening no matter what. Baby products maker Evenflo and Walmart saw an opportunity here, so they created what could make for a world first - a child car seat with a built-in alarm. The real question is whether or not parents should get to the point they need it.
There have been a lot of talks concerning hot cars. The latest thing we can think of is that NFL player who starred in a public service announcement where he locks himself inside a Chevrolet Equinox. The temperature outside was 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius). That may seem bearable, but the greenhouse of the vehicle amplifies that to 120 degrees (48 Celsius). Eight minutes were more than what the sportsman could stand, as he’d look close to fainting after that time.
Sure, that test was referring to people who forget their dogs in hot cars, and it was PETA’s way to make a statement. You’d think kids imply a whole different level of responsibility, which is why parents should never, and we mean never, forget their children in hot cars.
Unfortunately, it does happen, and sometimes it leads to tragedies. Whether or not we should need these child seats, is a discussion we’ll have another time, so let’s get back to the gadget itself.
In just a couple of words, the baby car seat alerts the driver if the seat is occupied when the car's ignition is turned off. The Evenflo Advanced Embrace with SensorSafe has a retail price of approximately $150, which is similar to regular child seats currently on the market. The seat has a wireless sensor in the chest clip that secures the two shoulder straps in place on the child.
Since the sensor communicates with a device that plugs into the car’s onboard diagnostic (OBD) port, it shouldn’t be difficult to integrate into most vehicle’s systems.
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