Smell-O-Vision
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Smellable VR is coming whether you want it or not
Modern virtual reality is a treat for the senses. Well, two of them at least. "Sight and sound have been the staple of VR environments," Benjy Li, a postdoctoral researcher with Stanford's Virtual Human Interaction Lab, told Engadget. Haptic feedback is starting to allow for basic touch, but the next radical evolution in VR could actually come via your nose (and/or mouth).
The Daily Roundup for 05.13.2013
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
This TV stinks. No, really!
Once upon 1981, John Waters tried to engage his cult-ish fans with a scratch-and-sniff "Odorama" card to complement the film Polyester. This TV is not that -- in fact, it's a decidedly higher-tech approach to true Smell-O-Vision. Devised by a team of Japanese researchers at the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology and demoed in prototype form at IEEE's Virtual Reality conference, the set uses four corner-mounted fans to break the fourth wall and create an immersive olfactory experience. By merging and adjusting vapors fed through these four airflows, the team can somewhat realistically trick viewers into believing the scent is coming from localized areas of the screen. We can just hear parents of the future now: "Stop sitting so close to the screen, Johnny. You're gonna pass out from the fumes." Ah, the future...
Scent generator threatens to waft Odorama into the 21st century
Finally, an invention John Waters can get behind. When the harbinger of filth brought the odiferous experience to screenings of Polyester, he took the scratch-and-sniff route -- including scents like glue and feces -- now a team of researchers at the University of California in San Diego are expanding on the smell-what-you-see concept, albeit in a much more high-tech fashion. In collaboration with the Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, the team has developed a method for generating odors that could pack the appropriate hardware into a device "small enough to fit on the back of your TV." Basically, scents are produced by an aqueous solution, like ammonia, which is heated by a thin metal wire, and eventually expelled, as an odorous gas, from a small hole in its silicone elastomer housing -- and, bam! You've got Smell-O-Vision. The team has tested its method using perfumes by Jennifer Lopez and Elizabeth Taylor, but have yet to create a working prototype. For the sake of innocent noses everywhere, let's hope Mr. Waters doesn't get a whiff of this.
Keio University developing 'olfactory printer,' AromaRama due for a resurgence
We're not entirely sure why people keep trying to bring back Smell-O-Vision, although Keio University's success in printing scents using a modified printer gives us hope that this sort of thing might someday be somewhat feasible -- and useful. It works by using an off-the-shelf Canon printer that's been given a "scent jet," Kenichi Okada told New Scientist. "We are using the ink-jet printer's ability to eject tiny pulses of material to achieve precise control." The scent dissipates quickly, after one or two human breaths. And while specific scents can be printed, there is as of yet no way to build a general purpose device. According to the University of Glasgow's Stephen Brewster: "We don't yet know how to synthesize all the scents we want. There is no red-green-blue for smell -- there are thousands of components needed." That's OK with us. In our experience, it's usually better that people keep their smells to themselves.
Army tank sim in need of Smell-O-Vision?
Even at roughly $1.6 million a pop, one of the world's most expensive video game platforms is still missing a key component of immersion: smell. The US Army's M1 Abrams tank simulators offer valuable training exercises for troops stationed at Fort Carson in Colorado -- and they're fuel efficient. What these sims lack however is that 'authentic' tank stench. No plans for a patch have been announced.How long before Nintendo attempts Smell-O-Vision in one of its consoles?
Forget Smell-O-Vision, USB Aroma Geur lets you smell the radio!
We've secretly yearned for and yet simultaneously feared Smell-O-Vision for most of our waking life. The dual promise and threat of that kind of immersion into our entertainment is enough to drive a man wild, which is why we're glad they're taking some baby steps towards the future in Japan with the new "Aroma Geur" radio device. The USB-pluggin' sphere, due for launch in October, is designed to work with the Tokyo FM internet radio station, and has six oil-based scents which it can mix on demand. For extra wow-factor, the sphere lights up with random LED lights, and everything is synced up to the currently playing song for setting just the right mood. Of course, that mood will cost you 49,900 Yen (about $430 US), so it had better be some dang good mood.
Researchers developing odor recorder
It looks like Japan is leading the way on yet other technology front, first introducing Smell-O-Vision to movie theaters, and now developing an odor recorder that'll let you grab a smell and enjoy it any time you like. The device, developed by engineers at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, works by using 15 chemical-sensing microchips that pick up aromas which it converts into a sort of "digital recipe" that can be reproduced at any time with the help of 96 chemicals that can be mixed, heated, and vaporised at will, resulting in sweet, sweet emissions the human nose can recognize. So far, the researchers say they've replicated the smell of oranges, lemons, apples, bananas, and melons -- even distinguishing between green and red apples. In addition to recording smells for the fun of it, the researchers see the system as a potential boon to online shopping, letting consumers check out fragrances and food before buying them. We're just glad we're not around for the pranks at that laboratory.
Japanese movie theaters to get Internet-controlled "Smell-O-Vision"
In yet another gimmicky attempt to revitalize sagging box office sales, NTT Communications Corp will be installing fragrance-releasing equipment (think: giant Glade Plug-Ins) in several Japanese theaters that mixes different herbs and oils to create aromas that supposedly enhance key on-screen plot elements. According to Kyodo News, NTT "will use the Internet" to synchronize the scent generators -- which are located under what we assume to be more-pricey "aroma premium seats" -- during seven scenes of the multi-theater April 22nd premier. Colin Farrell lovers will be pleased to learn that the first movie to get this 21st century "Smell-O-Vision" treatment is the actor's 2005 film, 'The New World," whose tale of love between Pilgrims and Native Americans will no doubt result in a heavy odor of turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin pie lingering in the theaters for weeks.
