Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39394479›Full record

ArticleCommunications engineering2024

Multi-channel portable odor delivery device for self-administered and rapid smell testing.

Richard Hopper, Daniel Popa, Emanuela Maggioni, Devarsh Patel, Marianna Obrist, Basile Nicolas Landis, Julien Wen Hsieh, Florin Udrea

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Communications engineering, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. The Need to Promote Olfactory Health in Public Health Agendas Across the Globe.Clinical otolaryngology : official journal of ENT-UK ; official journal of Netherlands Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology & Cervico-Facial Surgery · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Richard HopperOWidgets Ltd. - OW Smell Made Digital, London, E1 1DU, UK. richard@owidgets.co.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1863-9008
Daniel PopaDepartment of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0FA, UK. dp387@cam.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5708-743X
Emanuela MaggioniOWidgets Ltd. - OW Smell Made Digital, London, E1 1DU, UK. emanuela@owidgets.co.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6816-1025
Devarsh PatelOWidgets Ltd. - OW Smell Made Digital, London, E1 1DU, UK.
Marianna ObristDepartment of Computer Science, University College London, London, NW1 2AE, UK.
Basile Nicolas LandisRhinology-Olfactory Unit, Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, 1205, Switzerland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6034-3724
Julien Wen HsiehRhinology-Olfactory Unit, Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, 1205, Switzerland.
Florin UdreaDepartment of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0FA, UK.

Funding

Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève (Geneva University Hospitals) n/a
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

To improve our understanding of the perception of odors, researchers are often required to undertake experimental procedures with users exposed to multiple odors in a variety of settings, including to diagnose smell loss in clinics and care homes. Existing smell tests are typically administered using multiple sniffing pens, manually presented to patients by a highly specialized nurse using a time-consuming and complex testing paradigm. Automated odor delivery devices, such as olfactometer systems, exist but are expensive, bulky and typically lab based, making them difficult to use for on the ground odor delivery. Here we have developed a portable, affordable, odor delivery device that can deliver 24 odors through individual channels with high temporal precision and without cross-contamination. The device allows for the rapid, flexible sequencing of odors via digital control using a mobile application and has been experimentally validated in the lab, as well as tested on patients. The design provides several advantages for investigating olfactory perception and offers the possibility that users can one day self-administer smell tests in a range of settings, including at home, allowing smell healthcare services to evolve and become part of a routine practice and self-care culture.

Identifiers

PMID39394479
PMCPMC11470141

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.