Would you lick the screen?

Professor Homei Miyashita from Japan's renowned Meiji University has created a prototype television that, in addition to displaying an image, also recreates or imitates the tastes of various foods. If there is, say, a hamburger or chocolate in the picture, you can also taste them by licking the screen. And how is that possible?

All in all, it's actually quite... Well, yes, judge for yourself. The essence of the device, called Taste the TV (TTTV), is a built-in "carousel" with ten containers containing liquids of different flavors. A sort of “taster” RGB or CMYK if you will. The computer that controls the device also controls the mixing/spraying mechanism, through which it sprays a combination of said liquids onto a special sterile foil that moves over the screen, which, after mixing with each other, give the taste of what's on the screen.

According to Professor Miyashita, one of the goals of the project is to allow people to experience something like, say, eating at a restaurant on the other side of the world, even while staying at home. If you are interested in the taste of kimchi, for example, as it is eaten in South Korea, you will be able to visit the website of a local restaurant, see how the dish looks, and then experience its taste by licking the screen... And how much could such a preparation cost? According to the good professor's estimations, Taste the TV, if it ever comes to a commercial implementation, could cost around €800.

The idea is certainly quite bizarre, but not useless. Quite a few companies in the food industry are reportedly interested in its mixing/spraying mechanism, as it could enable the application of various flavors to toasted breads, pizzas and the like.

Source: Reuters

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