Japanese researchers have just developed the first “eternal” chewing gum. Capable of simulating a flavor sensation by generating a very slight electric current, it would never lose its taste.
It may soon be over with perishable chewing gum, which loses its flavor after only a few minutes of chewing. Scientists from the Universities of Meiji and Tokyo, in Japan, have just developed the first “unlimited electric eraser”, capable of simulating a sensation of flavor thanks to small painless electric impulses.
Presented at the last ACM User Interface Software and Technology Symposium currently being held in Berlin, this technological feat could become the solution to fight against the pollution generated by used chewing gum.
The piezoelectric effect to simulate a flavor
To create this tasteless gum, which actually has no taste, the researchers used the piezoelectric effect. Greek “piezin” which means “squeeze”, this term the ability of certain materials to become electrically polarized under the action of a force, for example when they are twisted or deformed. In the case of this eraser, it is these small impulses which create the sensation of flavor by stimulating the taste receptors of the tongue.
As for the quartz watch, the lighter or the gas lighter, which also use the piezoelectric effect, the researchers therefore had to find an element capable of creating a very slight electric current, and therefore simulating the flavour. The one used in the experiment measured 15 millimeters and was wrapped in plastic to prevent short circuits due to saliva. “The minimum electrical current required to impart an electrical taste is 4 µA (micro-amperes)”, specify the researchers, quoted by The echoes.
5 flavors tested
Insensitive and painless, the unlimited electric eraser was tested by 80 guinea pigs, the vast majority of whom felt a taste. However, insist the scientists, the experiment is not yet to simulate a strawberry or fresh mint flavor since the range is still limited for the moment to 5 basic flavors: salty, sweet, acid, bitter and umami, a fifth flavor very present in Japanese gastronomy. According to the 80 participants, the taste of the chewing gum is reminiscent of chewing a niboshi, a small dried sardine.
Other flavors should soon be available, specially designed for Japanese consumers. Among them, fermented soy sauce, cheese and Shiitake mushroom. It remains to be seen whether the concept will one day make its appearance here and will appeal to chewing gum lovers.
These Japanese researchers are not at their first attempt. In 2016, they had already developed an electric fork using the piezoelectric effect to simulate the salty taste and thus prevent consumers from having their hands too heavy on the salt shaker.
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