An odor is composed of molecules, each of which has a specific size and shape. Each of these molecules has a correspondingly sized and shaped receptor in the human nose. When a specific receptor receives a molecule, it sends a signal to the brain and the brain identifies the smell associated with that particular molecule.
The e-nose works in a similar way, except that it uses sensors instead of receptors and transmit signals to a program instead of the brain.
A
couple of years ago, scientists have figured out how to build the
e-nose so that it could control for temperature/humidity, recognize body
odors from perfume/deodorants, etc., and distinguish scents from two
different individuals.They've also discovered how to make the e-nose very tiny and wireless. The chip on the left is
2117µm x 21117µm, thanks to nanotechnology.
The receptors on the e-nose chip are also made of black carbon polymers.
The
odor molecules move through the sensor stage, get analyzed in the
signal processing stage, and the move to the database stage.
