Researchers develop 'wearable olfactory device' to bring smell into VR/metaverse

IT House News on May 16, "Nature Communications" published an interesting paper on May 9. The main author is Dr. Yu Xinge from City University of Hong Kong. The paper describes two wearable "olfactory interfaces," the first of which is Band-Aid-sized and sticks under the user's nose like a fake beard; the second is a more powerful mask-like version.

Both rely on heating paraffin wax patches soaked in various liquid scents. Smaller versions of the system use two such tiles, larger ones have nine. According to the researchers, they are able to produce scents such as mint or green tea in just 1.44 seconds. The mask-style nine patches can be combined to create hundreds of possible scents.

What stands out about these “olfactory interfaces” is that they are lightweight, compact and wireless. While the device wasn't directly tested with VR games, platforms, or specific devices, it can be used without complicated connections, meaning a more immersive experience.

The 1960 movie "Scent Of Mystery" tried to realize the concept of "combining movies and smells". The system is installed under the seats in the cinema. At key moments in the plot, it will emit 30 different smells - from the salty sea breeze to the aroma of wine. However, the actual experience of the audience is that these smells come too late or arrive too late. is too weak, and the latest research is another attempt at this concept.

It is worth noting that the latest product "ion3" of the Vermont startup OVR will be released later this year. This headset uses a refillable cartridge system, each cartridge can produce thousands of odor.

IT House hereby attaches the original address of Yu Xinge’s doctoral thesis. Interested readers can go and read it.

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