Norimaki Synthesizer: Taste Display Using Ion Electrophoresis in Five Gels

This study describes the production of a novel taste display which uses ion electrophoresis in five gels containing electrolytes that supply controlled amounts of each of the five basic tastes to apply an arbitrary taste to the user's tongue, analogous to optical displays that produce arbitrary colors from lights of three basic colors. When applied to the tongue with no voltage, the user can taste all five tastes. However, when an electric potential is applied, the cations in the gel move to the cathode side and away from the tongue, so that the flavor is tasted weakly. In this way, we have developed a taste display that reproduces an arbitrary taste by individually suppressing the sensation of each of the five basic tastes (like subtractive synthesis.) Our study differs from previous work in that it uses an electric current for electrophoresis rather than electrically stimulating the tongue, and it does not involve ingestion of a solution to deliver the taste.