The human olfactory system is an evolutionary ancient and highly efficient sensory system. In contrast to the visual and auditory system, many basic rules guiding this sophisticated and complex sensory system remain obscure.
Our approach will enable new types of sensors, which can be helpful in the development of tools for an olfactory-based detection of illnesses in patients and may enhance the development of medical devices for the treatment of olfactory loss.
An artificial nose must be able to include perception - the interpretation of sensation in the light of experience. Evolving current sensors towards the level of biological organisms is only possible in an interdisciplinary and coordinated effort.
Human olfaction is a very efficient sensory system, which has inspired the search for an electronic analog. Early on it was recognized that such an artificial nose requires the inclusion of perception – the interpretation of sensation in light of experience. This type of evaluation is achieved by using methods of machine learning and artificial intelligence. A breakthrough in perceptive electronics (short:perceptronics) can only happen in a concerted effort of science, engineering, and medicine that stringently builds on recent advances in each discipline.
The proposed research group will work in this spirit as an interdisciplinary team on topics of perceptronics for olfaction. The intended planning phase will be used to gather leading experts in the fields of (nano) sensorics, olfaction, perception, and machine-learning to facilitate cooperation and prepare a qualification program to bridge the different disciplines.
Prof. Cuniberti has a longstanding expertise in material science and nanotechnology. He gave seminal contributions to the fields of molecular electronics, the development of novel sensors, and the computational modelling of nano-scale devices. He leads the Dresden Center for Computational Materials Science (DCMS).
Prof. Hummel is a leading expert in human olfaction. The "smell and taste center" headed by him is equipped with the necessary facilities and leading expert knowledge, to study olfactory perception in humans.
Prof. Croy coordinates the pilot study of human perception (CROWN), which is conducted in cooperation with Prof. Hummel. In 2020, she was appointed as Chair of Clinical Psychology (W3) at the FSU Jena. Her recognized work focuses on how various sensory input is transferred from human sensation into perception.
Dr. Croy's research mainly focuses on computational efforts, especially machine learning techniques and simulations for the development and description of nanomaterials. He recently became affiliated with the Chair of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, which is headed by Prof. Stefanie Gräfe, as Akademischer Rat ("assistant professor/lecturer").
Dr. Ibarlucea has been working in the group of Prof. Cuniberti since 2013. In 2019, he took over the leading position of the Nanobiosensors Group from Dr. Larysa Baraban. The group's research focuses on exploiting the high sensitivity of nanomaterials for the development of electrical and label free sensors in healthcare applications. Dr. Ibarlucea coordinates the activities of the pilot study to develop a proof of principle demonstrator for odor detecting sensors.
M. Eng. Shirong Huang joined the chair of Prof. CUniberti as a PhD student in October 2017. His research is focused on two-dimensional nanomaterials for novel sensor devices and biomedical applications. For the Olfactorial Perceptronics project, he is conducting a research on graphene-based sensors for odor detection as well as classification approaches to discriminate different odor stimuli. Those sensors have already successfully been used as a proof of principle demonstrator.
M. Sc. Antonie Bierling joined the team in June 2020. In addition to organiziation support, she was involved in writing the full proposal and conducts the pilot study of human olfactory perception (CROWN). For her dissertation, she is investigating the influence of molecular odor properties on perception and interpersonal factors that influence interindividual differences in odor perception.
Maria Rommel joined the Perceptronics team in June 2021. She studies medicine at the Technische Universität Dresden and supports the project in the pilot study of olfactory perception. For her dissertation, she investigates the perception of odors in healthy participants and patients with olfactory disorders.
I February 22, 2022, 3 p.m. I Asifa Majid completed her undergraduate degree and PhD in psychology at the University of Glasgow with an intermediate year at the University of Edinburgh where she was awarded Read more…
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I November 25, 2021, 1 p.m. I Olfaction is perhaps the most fundamental among senses in the animal kingdom. It plays a crucial role in almost all relevant aspects of life such as finding food Read more…