An Overview of Olfactory Displays in Education and Training

This paper describes an overview of olfactory displays (human-computer interfaces that generate and diffuse an odor to a user to stimulate their sense of smell) that have been proposed and researched for supporting education and training. Past research has shown that olfaction (the sense of smell) can support memorization of information, stimulate information recall, and help immerse learners and trainees into educational virtual environments, as well as complement and/or supplement other human sensory channels for learning. This paper begins with an introduction to olfaction and olfactory displays, and a review of techniques for storing, generating and diffusing odors at the computer interface. The paper proceeds with a discussion on educational theories that support olfactory displays for education and training, and a literature review on olfactory displays that support learning and training. Finally, the paper summarizes the advantages and challenges regarding the development and application of olfactory displays for education and training.