Scentronic: An artificial intelligence-assisted olfactory interface for remote odor sharing and transmission

Recent years have witnessed the surge of human-machine interfaces (HMIs) for various applications. Olfaction is a fundamental chemical sense crucial to perception, memory, and emotion. Current limitations arise from the difficulty of accurately capturing, transmitting, and reproducing odor signals, and the lack of standardized, network-enabled platforms. This work presents an internet of things (IoT)-enabled olfactory interface for remote odor sensing and stimulation. The system integrates an artificial intelligence-assisted odor sensing platform with a wearable piezoelectric olfactory actuation system. We demonstrate the design, characterization, and application of this framework, which integrates devices, circuit architecture, and software algorithms. Applications in medical contexts include psychophysical testing to study olfactory pathways and evaluate sensory loss. We further showcase multisensory stimulation through integrated olfactory and gustatory interfaces for enhanced immersion. This study establishes a scalable framework for IoT-based olfactory interaction, advancing HMIs toward a future that includes the long-overlooked chemical senses.