Last updated: 2020-03-16
Requirements
The requirements necessary for replacement sense-of-taste functionality involve the following high-level elements.
Flavor Compound Detection
Status: Viable
Organic Model: specialized cells react chemically with flavor compounds.
Engineered Models: there are man-made sensors that are capable of detecting one or more than one flavors simultaneously. However, at this time there are no known sensors capable of sensing the vast variety of flavors the organic tongue’s receptors can collectively. It may be possible to build an array of engineered sensors that could cover the same range of flavors as the organic model.
Physical Temperature Detection
Status: Viable
Organic Model: specialized cells, when exposed to different temperatures, produce a chemical reaction which results in being able to produce a neural signal.
Engineered Models: there are many well-understood, commonly employed sensors that allow accurate sensing of physical temperature.
Chemical Temperature Detection
Status: Viable
Organic Model: cells normally meant to produce neural signals for other aspects of “taste” are exposed to certain chemicals; these chemicals cause the cell to react as if it had been exposed to the actual stimuli for which it is primarily intended.
Engineered Models: as the phenomena of spiciness or “coolness” is more or less a trick of other sensor receptors in the organic model, producing an engineered replacement would likely involve a flavor sensor which produces a signal that feeds to the brain as a temperature sensation.
Texture Detection
Status: Research
Organic Model: specialized cells are able to react to mechanical pressure changes, which can arise from either movement or the variation of the depression caused by a physical object contacting a series of cells.
Engineered Models: the fundamental functionality here is the same as that of normal touch feedback sensors, which are detailed here.
Neural Translation
Status: Research Phase
Organic Model: the various sensory cells that, combined, constitute the ability to “taste” in all aspects of the word, each produce their own neural signals.
Engineered Models: while there are many examples in prosthesis solutions today that allow an electrode to stimulate a nerve ending, there are no known examples specific to this application, that of translating the electrical signal from a taste sensor to the nerves that carry those signals to the brain.
Neural Transmission
Status: Research Phase
Organic Model: neural signals which compose the sense of “taste” are carried to the brain by multiple different types of nerve bundles, many of which are shared by other organs, such as the face muscles and nerves in the nasal cavity.
Engineered Models: there are no existing engineered replacements for the various nerves responsible for conducting taste signals to the brain at this time.
Available Devices
None
There are no devices that could be used for a taste sensory prosthesis at this time. However, there are emerging examples of specific engineered tasting devices, such as alcohol tasting. What is lacking is the specific application of these technologies for direct use by a human being, high-resolution tactile sensors, as well as engineered sensors that are intended to cover at least a comparable range of flavors versus the organic model.
