The booming virtual reality industry primarily relies on sight, sound and movement to recreate real-world impressions, yet most VR technologies fail to integrate the most primal mode of experiencing the world: the sense of smell.
That’s what Vermont-based startup OVR Technology is trying to change with its Olfactory Virtual Reality Platform based on its Architecture of Scent. The technology focuses on three main areas: hardware, software and scentware that work in conjunction to create a seamless experience.
Olfactory Virtual Reality
OVR’s hardware, called ION, consists of a novel piezoelectric atomization technology that outputs scent molecules with a quick response time, making it well-suited to XR. Plugins for Unity and Unreal software applications allow for realistic collision interactions that spatially represent odors. OVR Technology’s scents are developed in-house for the most realistic sensations that XR developers can then deploy along with objects and environments for a unique experience.
Compatible with many head-mounted display units such as Oculus and VIVE, and controlled via Wi-Fi or USB, ION uses the Architecture of Scent framework to translate VR movements and inputs into a scent output in real-time, causing a 0.1-millisecond burst of scent that can morph into a different scent within 20 milliseconds.
At 4.6 oz and with 6’’ x 2’’ x 1.5’’ dimensions, ION is a low-profile device that contains nine scent actuators with interchangeable cartridges. It’s powered by a rechargeable Li-ion battery, is equipped with 2.4GHz Wi-Fi connectivity and comes with a USB 2.0 connection.
OVR’s software relies on algorithms based on how different scents are perceived in various contexts that are being recreated. Two scent languages, one that’s understandable by humans and the other that computers can decipher, are then translated by the software.
The Smell of Virtual Reality
The potential applications of the technology are bountiful. According to Matt Flego, OVR Technology’s CTO, the company has gotten a range of interest for use in art, education, therapeutic purposes and the military. However, Flego said that to date, the most beneficial uses of the technology are in therapeutic settings where de-escalation and relaxation are essential to successful therapies.
“For those applications, scent seems to have this incredible ability to put people into a relaxed and more cooperative state of mind,” Flego said, adding that as a company, OVR seeks to apply its technology to meet human needs versus just as a theatrical device.
Flego said that exposure therapy is a primary application that the OVR team has been working on alongside several psychologists and neuroscientists since the company’s inception. As scent can be a powerful triggering mechanism for post-traumatic stress disorder, OVR has been working on contracts with the U.S. Army Research Laboratory and the Air Force on exposure therapy as well as the battlefield and situational awareness training.
A study conducted by researchers at the University of Vermont in collaboration with OVR and published in the Journal of Medical Research and Health Sciences revealed that stimulating the olfactory system with scent in therapeutic VR settings can elicit memories, cognition, and emotions may have therapeutic benefits in treating chronic pain, anxiety and mood disorders.
"OVR allowed patients whose circumstances excluded them from physical activity and exposure to nature to virtually experience physical activity in nature with similar sounds, sights and smells to a real-world scenario," said David Tomasi, lead author of the study, in a statement. “Those similar sensations evoked memories and responses that reduced anxiety and improved mood, just as the real experience would.”
Other applications include the broad field of sensory training in the workplace. For example, mixologists could use it to develop new scents, or those working in safety fields could use it to foster chemical awareness. Because scent can work in conjunction with memory and emotional training, Flego said that the technology could enhance educational content.
The OVR technology is also being employed to help people understand the effects of climate change. The team had worked on a Shifting Homes project with Australian artists trying to convey the existential threat climate change poses to residents of the Pacific Islands of Samoa. The XR experience is designed to communicate the issue with feelings beyond just hearing or reading about the plight of the island’s inhabitants. Adding scents to the experience elevates its visceral nature. What starts as a beach scene with a pleasant sea breeze aroma changes to pungent smells of stagnant water and devastation as a storm pummels the island.
Similarly, OVR is working with National Performance Review Project Director Robert Stone on a Virtual Mayflower Project that will use olfactory virtual reality to recreate the Mayflower’s 1620 journey from England to America. Flego said that the olfactory portion of experience helps convey the hardships and unsavory conditions of the voyage.
Interestingly, it’s the realm of conjuring some unpleasant smells that poses the most significant challenge to OVR. Some scents such as diesel fumes or ammonia aren’t fit for human consumption and can’t be easily reproduced by analogs.
“We can’t deliver these exact molecules because we want to keep the experience safe for anyone who uses it,” said Flego. “However, we are very creative in finding alternative molecules which do a great job, and we also play a lot of sleight of hand which works with the brain's natural plasticity.”
OVR abides by the International Fragrance Association’s standards for scent delivery with the primary purpose of avoiding introducing allergens and compounds that might trigger chemical sensitivities in people’s airways.
Developing Scentware
Although OVR doesn’t disclose all the details about how it develops its scentware, the team can reverse engineer scents by taking field samples and using a gas chromatography machine to analyze each molecular compound to recreate it as authentically as possible.
XR is still a burgeoning industry with much fine-tuning still underway to reach the high-fidelity experiences users crave. Within the field, OVR is a new venture with little competition. According to Flego, the company differentiates itself by focusing on serious commercial applications such as therapy and education versus gaming. Although commercial applications of olfactory virtual reality are in their early stages of development, the concept goes back decades.
A paper on the topic was published in 1999 by University of Washington industrial engineering researchers who chronicled some early forms of olfactory technologies such as an electronic nose used for automatic odor detection. Limitations cited for VR development were that the hardware must facilitate unencumbered motion and that dealing with physical scent substances posed difficulties to miniaturization compared to purely electronic equipment. The authors also noted that while the technology had great potential, there was little private sector demand for it. Now that 22 years have elapsed, it appears that great strides have been made to overcome both the unencumbered motion and miniaturization barriers and that demand is growing alongside the rest of the XR industry.
“We plan to grow our presence in the federal market where training and simulation are growing very rapidly for XR, and longer-term, we plan to be an embedded technology in all XR HMD's on par with sight and sound in terms of fidelity,” Flego said.