Monday, January 2, 2012

"Sound Perfume": Glasses Emitting Personal Scent & Sound to Help Human Bonding

How would you like the concept of wearing a pair of glasses that transmits scent and sound and upon contact with another (with similar glasses on), the specs would trigger personal sound and smell to them? Sounds mad or another trick to bring people closer together by making a good first impression? Apparently scientists working on smell are developing just that. It works on wireless mobile communication with attachable modules on the glasses.

New Scientist explains how Sound Perfume works:
Sound Perfume consists of a pair of glasses fitted with speakers and odour emitters located behind the ears, along with an app running on a smartphone that connects to the glasses via Bluetooth. The idea is that you use the app to choose a personal sound and smell for others to experience when you meet them.
Infrared sensors in the glasses detect when you meet someone else using Sound Perfume and your cellphone sends your name, contact number and sound/smell preferences to their handset, which then triggers the appropriate response in their glasses. The current set-up makes use of eight different perfumes in the form of hard blocks that melt and release an aroma when gently heated by a wire to 46°C.

Whatever happens with this particular project, there's no doubt that communicating scent through electronic means is the way of the future.

via The Next Web


  1. Interesting concept, although it doesn't appeal to me personally. I wonder if one has the chance to pick which 8 scents to be used? Imagine meeting dozens of people all emitting of the same 8 smells. Boring!

  2. Morticia20:01

    Is nothing sacred anymore. Technology is starting to really scare me. :/

  3. Wear these and risk arrest by the fashion police. I don't think they could have made them any geekier! And imagine wearing this "mask" in all of your pictures! The greek word "mourohavlo" comes to mind

  4. Anonymous19:39

    ya know, if you stick your plastic frames in an eyeglass case along with a freshly scented strip of paper, the plastic will pick up the perfume and release it later when you wear your glasses.

    i wrote about this years ago on my old blog - scent signals - when i discovered my sunglasses emitting delicious fumes (i'd stuck a scent strip in the case while i was testing perfumes at the mall).

    anyway, you don't need fancy technology to have fun with your frames - just DIY with your favorite scents! it's quite lovely to have them waft around you as you move your head.


  5. TFC,

    I suppose they have targeted a generic 8 notes list which should apply for most situations. PLease imagine this to be non perfumista friendly. I doubt they were thinking of complex stuff; most probably generic single fruit notes or "clean" stuff etc.

  6. L,

    the region of human bonding has been pervaded by technology for long. Just look at Facebook. ;-)

  7. K,

    LOL!! "Mourohavlo" DOES come to mind. Very apt!

    *belly laugh*

  8. Minette,

    an ingenious little trick! Thanks!

    But in this case I think they're going for scents "guaranteed" to please, which should be along the clean/fruity/fresh type and single-notes at that. (because just how many people disagree on what smells nice?) I doubt they have devised Arpege-scented glasses or a pair emitting wafts of Equipage.


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