BioEssence is a wearable olfactory display that provides just-in-time release of scents based on the physiological state of the wearer. The device can release up to three scents and passively captures subtle chest vibrations associated with the beating of the heart and respiration through clothes.
Due to the wearable form factor, BioEssence facilitates real-life just-in-time olfactory interventions that consider the physiology of the user. This section describes some of the main mental wellbeing applications.
Odors modulate emotion and cognition and have been successfully used to treat certain psychological problems such as stress or anxiety. Lavender scent has been one of the most commonly used fragrances to reduce anxiety at the dentist or during test taking. As stress and anxiety tend to increase both heart rate and breathing rate, BioEssence offers the possibility of automatically detecting relevant episodes and triggering scents when most needed.
Several studies have explored the use of scent to help induce sleep due to its potential calming effects. For instance, Field et al. used lavender to help improve the quality of sleep. In a separate study, Schredl et al. demonstrated that certain smells can also be used to influence the emotional valence of dreams. In particular, they showed that the scent of roses during sleep yielded more positive dreams, while the scent of rotten eggs (H2S) resulted in negative ones. In this case, researchers used a 60 cm tube to connect the nose to a stationary olfactometer. As in the other scenarios, BioEssence could offer a more comfortable solution that is less likely to disrupt the person while sleeping. In addition, the on-board accelerometer could be used to track other parameters such as sleep stages.
Some studies have shown the possibility of using essential oils such as citrus fragrance [1] or rose scent [2] to relief depressive symptoms. Interestingly, there is some work suggesting how sweet-smells could be used to treat depression by “fooling” the brain glucose level sensors [3]. As in previous cases, BioEssence could facilitate the study of these effects in real-life and be used to provide more frequent interventions which are needed to achieve a long lasting effect.
[1] T. Komori, R. Fujiwara, M. Tanida, J. Nomura, and M. M. Yokoyama,“Effects of citrus fragrance on immune function and depressive states,”Neuroimmunomodulation, 1995.
[2] P. Conrad and C. Adams, “The effects of clinical aromatherapy for anxiety and depression in the high risk postpartum woman–a pilot study,” Complementary therapies in clinical practice, vol. 18, no. 3,pp. 164–168, 2012.
[3] M. A. O. Pereira and A. Pereira Jr, “On the effect of aromatherapy with citrus fragrance in the therapy of major depressive disorder,” Journal of Psychology and Psychotherapy, pp. 1–3, 2014.
Several studies have shown that odors can influence the perception of pain. For instance, Prescott and Wilkie [4] performed a study in which participants wore a mask covering the nose and mouth with different types of scents, and showed that those with sweet-smelling characteristics increased pain tolerance. Another study used lavender scent to significantly decrease women’s pain when giving birth [5] by manually rubbing their hands to let them inhale the essential oil. In addition of tracking relevant physiological parameters, BioEssence would enable a more passive scent delivery method that would be more appropriate when undergoing pain episodes.
[4] J. Prescott and J. Wilkie, “Pain tolerance selectively increased by a sweet-smelling odor,” Psychological Science, vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 308–311, 2007.
[5] M. Yazdkhasti and A. Pirak, “The effect of aromatherapy with lavender essence on severity of labor pain and duration of labor in primiparous women,” Complementary therapies in clinical practice, vol. 25, pp. 81–86, 2016.
Research Publication
International Engineering in Medicine and Biology Conference (EMBC)
The work presented here builds on top of an earlier prototype called "Essence," which provided a single scent and relied on external wearable devices to monitor physiological parameters. In contrast, BioEssence can deliver up to three scents simultaneously and provides a self-contained solution for physiological sensing. Therefore, the current form factor allows for a wider range of stimuli and comfortable monitoring of the physiology throughout the process.