Automatic scent creation by cheminformatics method

AbstractThe sense of smell is fundamental for various aspects of human existence including the flavor perception, environmental awareness, and emotional impact. However, unlike other senses, it has not been digitized. Its digitalization faces challenges such as the lack of reliable odor sensing technology or the precise scent delivery through olfactory displays. Its subjective nature and context dependence add complexity to the process. Moreover, the method of converting odors to digital information remains unclear. This work focuses on one of the most challenging aspects of digital olfaction: automatic scent creation. We propose a method that automatically creates a desired odor profile with the addition of one specific odor descriptor. It is based on a deep neural network that predicts odor descriptors from the multidimensional sensing data, such as mass spectra and an odor reproduction technique using odor components. The results demonstrate that the proposed method can successfully create a scent with the desired odor profile and that its performance depends on the accuracy of the underlying odor predicting method. This opens up the possibility of automatic scent creation, allowing for the presentation of scents with specific odor profiles with an olfactory display.