Scent Peripherals

The first problem with that idea as far as I can see is quickly and conveniently being able to give that to the player at the right time.

I think that it's possible, however, but I would rather clip something to my ears (say, where people clip earrings, or something) and smell that way - like the "seeing tongue" that made the news some years ago.

Stimulation via arduino would make an effective case for alternative forms of VR sensing.

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/148657-tongueduino-how-arduino-and-tongues-can-help-the-blind-see

while some projects have been made in that area, the devices are normally large and cumbersome, making them less than ideal for the consumer market, not to mention another thing a game developer would need to worry about developing for. Indie game designers who don't have a department devoted to every special detail they want in a game would have a very difficult time with this. Don't get me wrong, the more immersion the better. However, at the moment there isn't the availability or demand to make this feasible, though if there weren't people like us asking about it no one would know that the demand, though small at the moment, does exist. I hope this provides you some perspective, as well as helps to open that door down the road.

Thank you for your input. I'm aware it could involve another layer of work for developers, so for now I'm more concerned about things the end user can do to enhance his own experience regardless of the general demand.

Also, with the scent devices that use digital signal triggers, maybe one can integrate a heuristic mapping function that reads the most prominent color in the video feed (or middle of the screen if it's steady for several seconds), and requests a blend of smells that user chooses to associate with that color, and his nose might focus on the component that makes the most sense to the context. So staring at brown will associate to dirt/wood, green with grass/foliage, yellow with banana/lemon/buttercup, red with blood/roses/berries, gray with metal/stone, etc. Or maybe you can stare at an orange uniform just to get a whiff of tangerine.

Sorry for my ignorance here but I can't possibly see the upside of being able to smell in a vr experience using a rift compared to the challenges. I hate smells though so maybe its just me. Are there particular things where smell would be a good thing. I guess smelling the sea air in dear Esther, but what else?

Mike

"mscanfp" wrote:
Sorry for my ignorance here but I can't possibly see the upside of being able to smell in a vr experience using a rift compared to the challenges. I hate smells though so maybe its just me. Are there particular things where smell would be a good thing. I guess smelling the sea air in dear Esther, but what else?

Mike

1) Smelling the glorious redwood forest that you're in,
2) The fresh or musty materials smell of the inside of a spacesuit or cockpit,
3) The smell of something burning (actually, nevermind, that would be very bad if you got used to a smell like that -- need to keep that reserved for real life!),
4) The smell of a woman's perfume.

:)

Sorry, but I feel the lack of smell makes for better than reality. To each their own.

"mscanfp" wrote:
Sorry for my ignorance here but I can't possibly see the upside of being able to smell in a vr experience using a rift compared to the challenges.

The sense of smell is tied very tightly to memory and emotion. People with no sense of smell are often deeply depressed. As an example of smell, VR, and memory, PTSD treatment with VR and smell is more effective.

Basically, VR smell would make experiences more realistic and memorable.

I tried a scent-machine at GDC call the GameSkunk. Honestly it was not that impressive.

Granted, it was able to deliver certain specific scents (like lemon, chocolate, etc.). But it was difficult to tell what smell was what, and the device could only hold a limited amount of scents at a time (maybe like 6 or 8). Though the idea is good in concept.

If it were able to produce a wide variety of smells, say in the hundreds, than that would be a different story. But needing to load up only a few scents at a time is not very useful unless in the most narrow of situations.

Actually I want to take back what I previously said about simulating Olfactory experiences.

After a little digging it looks like I can't really compare on/off/depth simplicity that you get with types of sight and feel with smell. Smell is enormously complex and direct electronic stimulation (even if you could identify and activate the correct receptors from the very fingers of the olfactory reception area, assuming everyone's nose was consistent - which would be like saying the rocks in my neighbor's gravel driveway are the same unique size, shape and orientation at the same parts of the driveway as my own gravel driveway) it would have to be through a protective system of never-ending mucus (keeping accurate and consistent electric stimulation a large challenge).

I don't think a version of the Brainport with current consumer tech would be sufficient to be an effective olfactory stimulator. :(

Best bet would probably be working with the same R&D that is used for consumer smelling devices (perfume, deodorant, etc.) I'm reminded of the movie PERFUME (o_o)

Michio Kaku did a video about VR, where he said a realistic sense of smell peripheral would need canisters to contain 10,000 different scents. Our ability to smell relies on our brain's neurons actually being exposed to the outside world, where they come into contact with scent molecules inside our nasal passages. Each smell (molecular shape) activates a different neuron (like lock and key), and that would be difficult to simulate with current technology. Each game would need to come with a small selection of gas cartridges for the collection of scents and odors that are important clues for that game.

There is also the Madeleine scentography (smell) camera:



For less-expensive but limited use, a scent peripheral could contain a electromechanical scratcher to activate "Scratch and Sniff" strips that come with a game. The VR POV Porn fans may be happy to know that Hustler magazine published "Scratch and Sniff" porn back in August 1977, July 1982 and again in September 1993. It was reported that Playboy magazine also published "Scratch and Sniff" issues. Although there was a popular myth that Hustler magazine relied heavily on a "fishy" smell, it has been reported that they actually used a variety of perfumes in their magazines. You can find old copies for sale on the interwebs, so anybody with enough curiosity could buy one and report their findings here. How many scents would VR Porn POV need, anyway?