Odor Presentation with a Vivid Sense of Reality: Incorporating Fluid Dynamics Simulation into Olfactory Display

Abstract

The results of our current multidisciplinary research efforts on the development of an olfactory display system are demonstrated. To present odors with a vivid sense of reality, we propose to use computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation in conjunction with the olfactory display system. In this demonstration, an odor is released with a movie clip using the olfactory display. A CFD solver is employed to calculate the turbulent airflow field in the given environment and diffusion/advection of odor molecules from their source. The olfactory display system generates an odor with the concentration determined by the calculated odor distribution. The user is assumed to be a small animal slowly walking through a virtual room, and experiences the spread of the odor in the room.