Best Innovation Award at DOS 2024 for Breakthrough in Subtractive Odor Synthesis
At the 8th World Congress of the Digital Olfaction Society (DOS 2024) in Tokyo, Haruka Matsukura from the University of Electro-Communications and Hiroshi Ishida from Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Japan, were honored with the Best Innovation Award for their groundbreaking study, “Olfactory Diversity: Subtractive Mixing for Versatile Odor Creation.”
This innovative research tackled one of the most complex challenges in olfactory display technology: odor synthesis. Inspired by the phenomenon of “olfactory white,” the team proposed a novel subtractive odor synthesis method. Unlike traditional approaches that rely on adding components to create specific smells, their method removes selected components from a predefined “olfactory white” mixture, allowing for the creation of diverse odors.
Their developed system features a 40-component odor blender paired with an advanced electronic nose (e-nose). The team successfully reproduced the scent profiles of seven out of eight tested target odors, including banana, strawberry, and rose, demonstrating the potential of this method to generate a wide variety of scents with a limited set of components.
Dr. Matsukura stated to DOS: “Our subtractive odor blending method enables synthesis of various odors from a limited number of chemical components. The quality of the smells synthesized based on e-nose response are not so high as of now, so we are planning to use our nose to fine-tune the mixing ratio obtained by the electronic nose.”
This work represents a significant step forward in creating realistic and versatile olfactory experiences, paving the way for advancements in virtual reality and sensory applications. We congratulate Matsukura and Ishida on their achievement and look forward to seeing further innovations in this exciting field.
