Sony - FUTURE PROOF : What is the future of the Science of Scent
Upbeat music plays. A Japanese man and his toddler aged son sit at a table together. On the table is a small machine, a lemon, a pineapple, and a green vegetable. The boy holds an apple and smiles at the man. The boy holds his nose up to the machine on the table. He looks at the apple the man is holding and nods.
ONSCREEN TEXT: SONY
SHUJI FUJITA
“The sense of smell plays a crucial part in experiencing emotions such as being moved or feeling a sense of relief.”
Now two women appear in half moons video chat windows on a green background. The woman on the left, Annika, has curly hair and wears a yellow button-up. The woman on the right, Hana, has straight shoulder-length hair and a navy blue sweater.
ONSCREEN TEXT: Annika Hansteen-Izora
Creative Technologist
Hana Jacobsen
Designer & Artist
As Hana speaks in Japanese, subtitles appear.
HANA
“Our sense of smell is so magical and underutilized.”
Annika responds in English.
ANNIKA
“I use smell every day. Whenever I'm homesick, I'll light a candle, and I'm instantly transported to the forests in Portland.”
HANA
“It's connected so deeply to our brain and emotions, it literally changes the way we experience the world.”
ANNIKA
“I think being able to design scents could be a whole new way to experience stories.”
The machine from the previous footage appears inside a half circle. A wheel inside the machine oscillates. A bluish glow indicates the presence of smell.
ONSCREEN TEXT: What is the future of
The Science of Scent?
A man writes on a white board while another man and a woman stand at a table and look on. The woman points to the white board. The man indicates a figure on the white board with a marker. A Japanese man speaks Japanese in an interview setting and a translation appears in small yellow subtitles at the bottom of the screen.
ONSCREEN TEXT: Yukito Inoue
Development Manager
Olfactory Business Development Office
Sony Corporation
YUKITO
“We heard from the olfactory research community that there's a need for technology that can disperse and quickly switch between a range of scents.”
Yukito and two of his colleagues, a man and a woman, are working in a conference room around the NOS-DX1000, the machine that has been displayed in previous footage. The machine is disassembled and they are pulling vials out of it and replacing them with other vials.
ONSCREEN TEXT: NOS-DX1000
Now Yukito’s female colleague is being interviewed in the same interview set up.
SAYAKA KINOSHITA
“We developed a technology called NOS-DX1000 that can present a smell to someone who will report whether or not they could perceive it or indicate what they smelled.”
ONSCREEN TEXT: Sayaka Kinoshita
Product Planner
Olfactory Business Development Office
Sony Corporation
The male colleague is being interviewed in the same set up.
ONSCREEN TEXT: Shuji Fujita
Head of Olfactory Business Development Office
Sony Corporation
SHUJI
“In simple terms, Tensor Valve technology is designed to release a range of subtle and strong scents on demand and then to remove a scent completely when no longer needed.”
A digital representation of the Tensor Valve technology shows the mechanics inside of the machine, including a high tech black valve with coils.
ONSCREEN TEXT: Tensor Valve ™
The valve releases a bluish glow indicating scent, which swirls in the machine. The wheel inside the machine oscillates and the bluish glow appears. The glow moves within a digital representation of the machine up toward the nose piece, where we saw the child inserting his nose earlier.
SAYAKA
“The NOS-DX1000 contains 40 different smells and it can quickly switch between different scents without cross contamination.”
The blue hue representing scent is then drawn back into the machine, closing it off to prepare for the next scent. Shuji Fujita speaks in an interview setting.
SHUJI
“One of the areas in which NOS-DX1000 is expected to be useful is in hospitals.”
In a hospital setting the NOS-DX1000 sits on a table. A Japanese man holding a tablet walks up to the machine which is releasing scent. The man puts his nose in the machine and closes his eyes. The man in the lab scrolls through images on the tablet. He chooses an image of a pineapple. Yukito interviews.
YUKITO
“It's well-known that certain nervous system disorders that occur in the brain cause people to lose their sense of smell 10-15 years before the onset of other symptoms. So the NOS-DX1000 can be used for early detection of those disorders.”
In the conference room, Shuji is testing out the NOS-DX1000. He pulls away, smiles, and nods.
SHUJI
“Previously, it took a long time to add and remove an odor in a smell test. With the NOS-DX1000, an entire test can be done in about 5 to 10 minutes, so it is expected to be an easy and convenient part of health checkups.”
Shuji Fujita, Sayaka Kinoshita, and Yukito Inoue stand at a table and use the NOS-DX1000 machine. They smile and laugh. Sayaka Kinoshita uses the machine and then presses the chocolate picture on the tablet. Next, she holds an apple up to her nose. Yukito Inoue holds a pineapple up to his nose. He sniffs different parts of the pineapple. He sniffs a jar of honey. Shuji Fujita sniffs a lemon, then holds his nose up to the machine. He speaks in an interview setting.
SHUJI
“It makes sense to utilize smell, a sense which is deeply connected to human emotions, to create excitement. That's why Sony is developing technology related to scent.”
In a new office setting with orange walls, a woman sniffs a glass of red wine. She selects an option on the tablet. She puts her nose up to the machine and nods. A man holds the glass of red wine and sniffs. He selects an option on the tablet, then puts his nose up to the machine. The woman sniffs the glass of wine, then the machine. The man holds the tablet and gives a thumbs up. Yukito Inoue speaks in an interview setting.
YUKITO
“As for Tensor Valve technology's potential, its use is not limited to healthcare and medicine. It can also be used in the VR space to simultaneously produce video and scent, or create a different scent in a small space at an event venue. There are so many possibilities of creating new forms of entertainment with scent.”
Now Hana and Annika reappear in the video chat. They are smiling at each other as they speak.
ONSCREEN TEXT: Annika Hansteen-Izora
Creative Technologist
Hana Jacobsen
Designer & Artist
HANA
“I love how technology can help us explore our sense of smell.”
ANNIKA
“Yeah, and smell can unlock secret parts of our brain.”
HANA
“I'm excited by all the ways this might be used in the future. Any ideas?”
ANNIKA
“For sure, I've got a few.”
Two brown semi-circles appear against a green background. Text in the left semi-circle reads “FUTURE PROOF” above Kanji. Text in the right semi-circle reads “SONY.” With a chime and a flash of light, the Sony logo appears against a black background.