Is it possible to make a phone that permits us to smell like we are able to hear and see? – Muneeba K., 10 years old, Pakistan
Imagine this: you choose up your phone to have a video call with a friend. Not only are you able to see their face and listen to their voice, but you can too smell the cookies they simply baked. It feels like something out of a sci-fi movie, but could it actually occur?
I’m a pc scientist and examines how machines perceive the world.
What phones can do today
When you hearken to music or discuss with someone on the phone, you possibly can hear the sound through the built-in speakers. These speakers convert digital signals into physical vibrations using a tiny component called a membrane. Your ears perceive these vibrations as sound waves.
Your phone also has a screen that displays pictures and videos. The screen uses tiny dots often called pixels that are made up of three primary colours: red, green, and blue. By mixing these colours in alternative ways, your phone can show you anything from beautiful beach scenes to cute puppies.
Smelling with phones
And what concerning the sense of smell? Smells are created by tiny particles called molecules that float through the air and reach your nose. Your nose then sends signals to your brain, which identifies the smell.
So could your phone be sending you these smell molecules? Scientists are working on it. Think about how your phone screen works. It doesn't have all the colours on this planet stored. Instead, it uses just three colours to create tens of millions of various hues and shades.
Now imagine something similar for smells. Scientists are developing digital scent technology that uses a small number of various cartridges, each containing a selected scent. Just as pixels mix three colours to create images, these scent cartridges could mix to create different smells.
Just as the pictures in your phone are made up of digital codes that represent mixtures of pixels, the smells of a future phone may be created using digital codes. Each smell could have a special recipe made up of various amounts of the ingredients within the cartridges.
When you receive a digital scent code, your phone can mix tiny amounts of the various scents from the cartridges to create the smell you wish. This mix is then released through a small opening on the phone so that you can smell. With just a number of cartridges, your phone can potentially create an enormous number of scents, just like how red, green and blue pixels can create countless colours.
Researchers And Pursue are already working on such digital smell makers.
The challenges of producing olfactory phones
There are several challenges involved in developing a phone that may produce smells. One is developing a system that may produce hundreds of various smells using just a number of cartridges. Another is controlling the intensity of a scent and the duration of its delivery. Additionally, phones must sense smells of their vicinity and convert them into digital codes in order that your pals' phones can send you smells.
The cartridges also must be easy to refill and the chemicals they contain must be inhalable. These hurdles make the sector of research a tough but exciting one.
A fragrant future
While it's not quite there yet, scientists and engineers are working hard to make smell phones a reality. Maybe someday you'll find a way to not only see and listen to your friend's celebration over the phone, but smell the candles they blew out too!
image credit : theconversation.com