Tasting the Future: How e-Taste is Turning VR Immersion Up to 11

Massive innovation continues across the virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) sectors. This technology has seen a boost in recent years as human-machine interfaces have become more creative. Now, a team of innovative researchers from Ohio State University seeks to take your virtual experiences up a notch with their latest invention, e-Taste.

A New Sensory Connection

When you envision next-generation experiences, you probably picture walking through a virtual metascape and interacting with digital items as if they were real. For most people, this vision is limited to sights, sounds, and even touch. However, there are some engineers that believe these strategies neglect two other vital senses, taste and smell.

Olfaction and Gustation

Olfaction and gustation are vital in how you perceive and experience the world. These senses have strong connections to your memory. That’s why you can remember exactly how your mom’s favorite dish tastes and smells decades later. Notably, these chemical sensing systems work together to ensure your diet is healthy and safe.

Gustation Study

Recognising the importance of these senses, a team of engineers from OSU has put forth a revolutionary new interface that enables users to taste virtual flavors. The study “A sensor-actuator–coupled gustatory interface chemically connecting virtual and real environments for remote tasting” was published in the journal Science Advances.  It delves into detail on how the team was able to digitally replicate flavors.

e-Taste

The research paper introduces the concept of virtual tasting via the use of a new interface called the e-Taste. The device is capable of replicating taste sensations across a huge selection of flavors. It accomplishes this task by using an array of chemical sensors that analyze real-world flavors and a bio-integrated microfluidic system that replicates those tastes using controlled ion release through hydrogels. These hydrogels store and dispense taste-related compounds, including Na+ for saltiness, glucose for sweetness, and glutamate for umami.

Scanning food

To utilize the e-Taste, you first need to run the desired flavor through the sensors. These custom-built sensors are specifically designed to recognize molecules that determine taste, like glucose and glutamate. They register these chemical levels and store the data in packets to be sent wirelessly.

Wireless Communication Modules

The device features two parts that communicate via modules. The sensor module initiates the communication after scanning new flavors. The taste data, captured through an electronic sensor array, is transmitted wirelessly via ESPNOW (short-range) or over the Internet (long-range). The remote actuator then replicates the taste by precisely releasing ions through the hydrogel-based gustatory interface. Notably, the arrangement allows the devices to share tastes across the country in real time.

Wearable Interface

The system introduces a wearable device that is designed to replicate the chemical composition that the sensors send. The two-part device includes an electronic pump and a small mouthpiece. It works by sending signals to the actuators that release the corresponding chemicals to replicate the flavors.

Notably, the e-Taste system utilizes electromagnetic microfluidic pumps that precisely regulate the release of tastant-infused hydrogels, allowing for controlled flavor replication. The vibrations drive the solution through the gel layer and into the user’s mouth.

Test for e-Taste

During the human testing phase of the project, the team set up a stage of trials to determine the effectiveness of the unit in sharing flavors. As part of the study, human test subjects were exposed to a range of flavors, including lemonade, chicken soup, fish soup, coffee, and roasted chicken. The system successfully replicated distinct taste profiles, with some variations in intensity.

Results and Capabilities

Testing demonstrated impressive results. For one, the test subjects achieved up to a 70% accuracy during the trial phases. Also, they found three e-Taste to be capable of simulating a massive range of flavor intensities and combinations.

Long Range Taste Testing

The engineers examined e-Taste’s range by setting up a test between Ohio and California. The device performed as expected, allowing a wearer in California to sample some flavors from Ohio without ever leaving their computer.

Potential Benefits for e-Taste

There are several benefits that make the e-Taste a revolutionary product. For one, the unit enhances the VR and AR experience. Providing people with the capability to taste virtually is new and game-changing. It will allow for new gaming, retail, and communication opportunities.

Tunability

The tunability of the e-Taste is a huge benefit the product offers. Engineers showed how key factors determine the overall flavor sensation. For one, the length of time that the solution interacts with this gel layer, alongside the intensity and strength of the chemical mixture, all play a vital role in the taste.

Versatility

The e-Taste enables developers to choose to release one or several different tastes simultaneously. This option allows you to create unique palettes that reflect certain scenarios alongside dishes.

Safety

Safety was another concern that the team focused on. The e-Taste utilizes all safe chemicals and materials that support full bio-integration. These steps are vital if the interface is to ever achieve legislative approval in the future.

Real-world Applications

There’s a long list of potential applications for virtual tasting interfaces. From advertising to teaching, these devices could one day help take your metaverse gameplay to another level. There are even scenarios where the device could help engineers and safety personnel discover leaks or other life-threatening scenarios. Here are just a few applications for e-Taste technology.

Better Games

Gaming is a billion-dollar industry that is constantly looking for ways to improve the immersiveness of their titles. The e-Taste would allow for an antioch level of immersion. Imagine walking into your favorite diner in an RPG and smelling the fresh soup or spilled beer of the local bar you frequent with virtual friends. This technology is sure to enhance the gaming experience.

Medical

The engineers have also touted how the technology helps further the understanding of how the human brain and gustation interact. Now, researchers seek to establish an intimate understanding of how the brain processes sensory signals from the mouth with the goal of helping those who suffer from disabilities, like loss of taste, in the future.

This technology could also help to make virtual spaces more accommodating and open to those with disabilities. Imagine a virtual dinner where you can smell the dining down the digital hallway before you enter.

Educational

Studies show that taste and smell directly correlate to the brain’s memory functionality. Understanding this, educators could leverage this technology to improve their approach. Imagine a classroom smelling the tea from the Boston Tea Party as they experience the key steps of the American revolution virtually.

e-Taste Researchers

Jinghua Li and a team of engineers from Ohio State University, Dalian University of Technology, National University of Singapore, and the Dalian Outstanding Young Talents in Science and Technology put the paper together. Specifically, the paper lists co-authors  Shulin Chen, Yizhen Jia, Tzu-Li Liu, Qi Wang, Prasad Nithianandam, Chunyu Yang. Also, Bowen Duan, Zhaoqian Xie, Xiao Xiao, Changsheng Wu, and Xi Tian participated in the research and testing.

Companies Leading Innovation in the VR Market

The rise in VR and AR products has fallen in line with the growing access to high-speed internet. Today, VR and AR options are available that may seem like sci-fi. However, they are just the beginning of the VR revolution. As such, there are many companies vying to be a top contender in this market. Here’s one firm that managed to carve out a niche in the highly competitive and fast-moving sector.

While e-Taste represents a breakthrough in virtual sensory integration, advancements in VR technology extend beyond gustation. Companies like Matterport are leveraging spatial mapping to enhance virtual experiences in entirely different ways

Matterport (MTTR +0%) entered the market in 2011 and is located in California. Its founders, Matthew Bell, David Gausebeck, and Michael Beebe, wanted to provide the market with a simple and elegant way to transform real-world locations into virtual representations. Today, the company is a leader in 3D spatial mapping.

Matterport’s main product is called digital twins. It utilizes a special camera to enable users to make 3D replicas of their locations with ease. The digital recreations serve many roles across a massive array of sectors, including construction, planning, real estate, military, and management operations.

In February of this year, Matterport was acquired by CoStar Group. The $1.6 billion transaction helped to boost MTTR over the last few days. These gains could represent only a portion of the company’s potential as its 3D mapping software continues to improve. In the future, AI systems, better interfaces, and other upgrades will make 3D spatial mapping even easier, helping to cement Matterport’s position in the economy.

Latest on Matterport Inc

e-Taste in the Future

When discussing the future of their e-Taste product, the engineers described plans to further their chemical research. They intend to improve both the sensors that track the flavor of items and the system that delivers the chemical mixtures to the recipient. They also stated plans to shrink the device down. Miniaturization would allow the unit to be more comfortable, portable, and usable.

Meet me in the Metaverse for Some Virtual Coffee.

The idea of being able to taste and smell in virtual environments opens the door for game-changing innovations. This research will play a vital role in helping to overcome the VR chemical interface deficit that has existed for so long. In the future, your virtual experience could encompass all of your senses, making it even more realistic.

Learn about other Cool VR Projects Now.

Studies Referenced:

^{1. Shulin Chen et al., A sensor-actuator–coupled gustatory interface chemically connecting virtual and real environments for remote tasting.Sci.  Adv.11,eadr4797(2025).DOI:10.1126/sciadv.adr4797}