We all got pretty excited about Google’s latest Beta product, Google Nose, until we found out that it was just a part of Google’s notorious and regularly-schedule April Fools’ Day series of pranks.  But would you believe that the technology for Google Nose is already in the works, and a product like Google Nose could very well become part of our future?

Cyrano Sciences, a California-based company, has developed a technology called the electronic nose, which makes machines capable of smelling.  With the use of chemical sensors, the electronic nose is capable of sniffing out explosives, food contaminants, identify or verify solvents or chemicals, and even identify some medical conditions.

The technology was developed in 1997, commercialized as Cyranose 320 in 2000, and in 2012, the sensor technology and products were licensed exclusively to Intelligent Optical Systems, Inc.  which has developed the eNose Sensor, a device that uses Nanocomposite Array (NCA) Sensors, to help in smell detection.

Though the technology is for identifying smells, it still could be used in mobile devices to help people identify the environment around them.  For instance, if you’re unsure if there’s a gas leak, you could use this “smell-o-meter” technology to save yourself from potential danger.  And since there’s already a database for scents, people can also use their mobile devices to learn what other things smell like.  But how would that be possible?

For identifying smells, mobile devices could be equipped with a small vacuum to suction a sample of the air or smell, then if you want to know what something smells like, there’s an exhaust valve that gives off the smell sample obtained from the database.  The idea is to offer a seamless experience that would work because of this smartphone’s composite sensors, polymers, conducting particles and valves present in the mobile device.

Beyond the nose

.

Since we’re talking about enhancing the mobile experience by introducing new features to the phone, let’s consider the possibility of touch improvement.  Most devices now are touchscreen devices, which means we use our fingers to do things.  For a full touchscreen experience, why not make things on the screen actually palpable?  For example, shapes getting embossed on the screen, or texture described in an article can actually be felt by the reader.

This might one day become a reality with flexible LCD and flexible glass, like Samsung’s Youm and Corning’s Willow Glass.  This technology would not only enhance the mobile experience, but help people with visual impairments better interact with content and media as well.