Developing a technology that can share tastes without the risk of infection: Prof. MIYASHITA Homei has developed a taste display that expresses an arbitrary taste

Dr. Homei Miyashita, Professor at the Department of Frontier Media Science, School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences, Meiji University has developed a taste display that can express an arbitrary taste. In this study, a set of five gels, each of which contains an electrolyte that causes the tongue to sense the five basic tastes (sweet, acidic, salty, bitter, and umami) is applied to the tongue. The application of different voltages to these gels make ions within them move and thus the amounts of different ions that touch the tongue can be controlled. That makes it possible to freely adjust the proportions of the five basic tastes sensed by the tongue (patent pending). This technology only allows for the communication of taste information without the need for the movement of people or food and drink. Therefore various applications are expected in the future, including sharing of tastes without the risk of infection.