CS158-2 Activity #4

Artificial Intelligence creates Electronic Noses

Articles:

How a Computer Chip Can Smell without a Nose

https://newsroom.intel.com/news/how-computer-chip-smell-without-nose/

What is a chemical sensor?

https://www.fierceelectronics.com/electronics/what-a-chemical-sensor

This digital 'nose' could make your coffee smell better and improve your cooking
https://www.zdnet.com/article/this-digital-nose-could-make-your-coffee-smell-better-and-improve-your-
cooking/

Artificial Intelligence Has a Strange New Muse: Our Sense of Smell

https://www.wired.com/story/artificial-intelligence-has-a-strange-new-muse-our-sense-of-smell/

AI can pick out specific odors from a combination of smells

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2237534-ai-can-pick-out-specific-odours-from-a-combination-of-
smells/

Computers That Smell: Intel’s Neuromorphic Chip Can Sniff Out Hazardous Chemicals
https://newsroom.intel.com/news/computers-smell-intels-neuromorphic-chip-sniff-hazardous-chemicals/
#gs.p1y9ww

'Digital smell' technology could let us transmit odors in online chats

https://www.nbcnews.com/mach/science/digital-smell-technology-could-let-us-transmit-odors-online-
chats-ncna940121

AI is acquiring a sense of smell that can detect illnesses in human breath

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/ai-artificial-intelligence-smell-detect-illness-science-
technology-a8394706.html
Instructions:
From above articles, answer the questions below:

1. Please explain on how an AI can have a sense of smell.

According to the articles, the AI system mimics how the brain works by employing its sense of smell. It has
an algorithm that uses electric pulses to simulate the human brain's olfactory system before analyzing the data on
smells. The AI can categorize distinct smells since it has a database of them. With the help of devices and software
that can recognize chemical odors and translate them into digital information, it is now possible for an AI to develop
a sense of smell. Transducers and receptors can be used to carry out this action. When a receptor comes into contact
with chemical data, it analyzes it while transducers turn it into electronic data. After going through several programs
and pieces of code, the data are read by artificial intelligence. One may create a program that flawlessly replicates
the brain data by modeling how the human brain functions when sniffing. However, it is not yet flawless. It might
take years of experimentation and failure to duplicate the sense of smell fully.

2. What industries or businesses can benefit from this technology? Please cite three examples and provide
explanation for each industry or business.

This AI invention can be helpful for industries such as law enforcement, fire protection, and the food
industry. This technology will aid law enforcement in cases involving the identification of substances like drugs and
bombs without endangering the lives of police dogs while they search the ground. Additionally, as it can detect a
distinct threat smell from gas tanks and dangerous gas, it can be utilized to protect against fires by warning people
more quickly. Lastly, it can also be advantageous for food scientists to gain from this product. They may employ
artificial intelligence sensors as they examine the elements and state of a particular dish to determine whether it is
spoilt, flavorful, etc. When deteriorated, some foods give off a very subtle stench. However, if you were to deploy
artificial intelligence that can handle such little data, it would undoubtedly decrease the chances of someone
consuming unsafe food.

3. What are the possible challenges of e-Noses? (e.g. Distance from subject and AI, you may use this but
provide another challenges)

Since e-Noses mimic how our olfactory systems work, they can be mistaken for other scents with the same aroma.
These smells have the power to deceive even people. With external and instrumental elements that affect its
calibration, such as weather, humidity, age, and temperature, might also offer erroneous data. Some goods might
smell bare at all. The artificial intelligence will be unable to identify the scent source if a particular volume of data
and odor compounds are required. Alternatively, combining two different chemical odor sources could produce
inaccurate and unreliable findings because of artificial intelligence's limited capability and skill.
Given that most artificial intelligence sensors have a range limit of 10 meters or less, distances should also be
considered. This depends on the type of artificial intelligence being used. Currently, it is improbable that artificial
intelligence will be able to detect large quantities of chemical scents. For instance, a gas leak happened during a
downpour. Everyone could be put at risk if the Artificial detects the chemical odor from the moist soil but ignores
the gas.

4. How close are we now on having an AI that can smell as good as humans?

Given that there are still more difficulties that an AI must overcome, I believe we are halfway there with
50%. Nevertheless, there may be other technology that is more advanced than 50. Therefore, it might still take a
while, and more effort to equal or surpass what humans do entirely. While some AIs have achieved higher levels,
some only have accuracy levels of 52%. According to studies, humans have 400 different odor receptors and a
trillion various sorts of scents to sense and discriminate; however, a particular artificial intelligence can only tell
apart ten other odors. The contrast between the two is considerable and is not even 3% close to the human sense. It
will take a lot of trial and error for us to recreate the human sense of smell fully, so expect a long road ahead.
However, not all people have 400 scent receptors that are fully functioning, so if we ignore the enormous number of
scent receptors that people can hardly use, I will estimate artificial intelligence are on the verge of duplicating
around a third of the partially functional sense of smell.

5. Do you think that AI will have better smell senses than humans after 25 years?

No. As I've already mentioned, humans can identify a trillion different fragrances. Since it is improbable
that someone will be able to manufacture a fully working brain, replicating this skill is incredibly difficult. Consider
it as an individual or group attempting to develop an artificial brain. If it isn't already "completely" impossible, it not
only sounds impossible but will also take a lot of time, money, and labor to duplicate what only humans could have.
Given that the sense of smell in humans has a wide range of skills, it is practically hard for scientists and medical
professionals to produce a thorough report and precisely analyze it. As a result, I think it's also impossible for
engineers and computer scientists to duplicate it and make it superior to humans.