Tokyo Institute of Technology (Japan) has successfully developed a device that can store scents and “release” them at any time. They hope this system will be effective in online stores, allowing customers to experience the aroma of products before purchasing them.
Moreover, it could enable users to follow new-style TV programs or assist doctors in recreating the smell of blood, bile, or urine for remote diagnostics.
Research team leader Pambuk Somboon stated that scented products have been on the market for a long time but have not succeeded commercially due to the limited variety of scents.
In Somboon’s system, 15 electronic sensors will capture different types of odors and “process” them from 96 chemical substances available in the device. In recent experiments, the device successfully generated the scents of apple, orange, lemon, banana, and melon.
Stephen Brewster, a computer scientist at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, believes that in the long run, digital images could also be equipped with scent-releasing mechanisms to allow users to distinguish images without opening them.
