Dayton Engineer

Ron Waldorf always had an interest in how and why our eyes move. He was the first to develop and receive funding for the use of infrared computer image processing of eye movements for vestibular function medical applications — vertigo, dizziness, associated brain tumors — that affect our sense of balance.

40 years ago, he heard that law enforcement was using eye movement as part of the National  Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) roadside Standardized Field Sobriety Test and Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) protocols. These, along with the newer Advance Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE) protocols, are international programs administered by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP).

Waldorf joined forces with an officer with the Los Angeles Police Department who is credited as being the founder of the DRE program. Together, they created a simple product that solved a not-so-simple problem – providing evidence of the eye signs that the officer saw when doing a roadside test.

The DAX Evidence Recorder is a device that allows law enforcement officers to manually test the eye movements according to the National Highway NHTSA/IACP Manuals. The video and audio responses of the suspected impaired driver are recorded while directly observing and capturing responses in a ‘live’ video. The subject’s captured responses can then be stored and played back as evidence of impairment or for instructor critique in training.

During the pandemic, Waldorf moved from California to Springfield, Ohio to be closer to his daughter and grandkids. He connected with professionals at the Small Business Development Centers in Springfield and the Entrepreneur’s Center at The Hub in downtown Dayton.

Looking to reduce costs and prepare the DAX product for mass production, Waldorf connected with the Innovation Center in the School of Engineering to become a sponsor of a senior design project.

The challenge Waldorf was wanting to solve? The DAX was utilizing GoPro cameras. They can be costly and he would have to change his product’s tooling everytime GoPro changes models. He was looking to senior engineering students to research possible replacements that were better, cheaper and could easily move video to the cloud for storage.

Creating a better camera system wasn’t the only thing students had to think about. Video recording conditions were also a factor. Not every camera would work well in low light conditions, like if an officer pulled someone over during the middle of the night on an unlit road. They had to first find a camera, like a doorbell camera.

The first capstone group in Spring 2023 tested several options and settled on a Raspberry Pi single-board computer and associated video sensor. In Fall 2023, a second capstone group took the system and added it to Waldorf’s already existing DAX tooling.

“The capstone is a great help for startup companies, and even restart companies like mine,” Waldorf said. 

With the help of students from the School of Engineering's Innovation Center, under the mentorship of the Innovation Center’s faculty, Waldorf is ready for mass production of the DAX recorder.

The DAX device can be used for more than field sobriety tests of impaired drivers — it’s also an essential tool to test workers in safety-sensitive positions and even testing athletes for head injuries in contact sports. 

“It all deals with our sense of balance,” Waldorf said. “Coaches, especially in youth sports, are not doctors. The beauty of having something like this is that when a concussion is suspected, the data can be streamed to an expert.”

He’s excited to grow DAX in Ohio, a state that is focused on safety and creating jobs. The state of Ohio’s Department of Traffic Safety has recently purchased three DAX recorders, and Waldorf hopes to grow this number.

“My whole goal of bringing the California company here is to create jobs,” Waldorf said. 

There are more than 400,000 police cars and motorcycles in the world that can benefit from the DAX recorder, and Waldorf is ready to show them just how impactful it is. 

“It’s not just about illegal drugs. It’s safety,” Waldorf said. “In court, they just had to go off of testimony of the officer that pulled you over. Now, there’s video evidence for other officers and even judges and juries to review in a case. The DAX evidence has prevailed in appellate-level legal challenges.”

“I look forward to a continuing association with the University of Dayton and the Innovation Center for further enhancements to the DAX,” Waldorf said.