Cross-Modal Digital Scent in Augmented Reality

Abstract

Digital media increasingly enables sensory experiences to be simulated, extended, and reinterpreted beyond the limits of physical perception. This project developed a series of neuroscience-informed augmented reality (AR) interfaces to translate olfactory experiences into visual and interactive digital forms for the launch of Sephora Collection France’s Do Not Drink fragrance line. The work addressed a fundamental challenge in digital commerce and communication: how to represent scent, an inherently non-visual and embodied perceptual modality, within screen-based environments. Drawing on research in multisensory perception, crossmodal correspondences, and affective neuroscience, the project designed AR filters that used abstract digital objects, colours, textures, and motion to evoke fragrance qualities through visual and embodied interaction. These representations were informed by established relationships between sensory attributes and perceptual associations, including the linkage between taste, smell, and visual form, as well as shape–flavour correspondences.

Three interactive AR filters were created and deployed across social media platforms, enabling users to “wear” and experience perfume through immersive digital overlays that functioned as perceptual proxies for scent. Rather than depicting literal ingredients, the system used abstract symbolic representations designed to evoke stronger sensory memory and emotional resonance. The project demonstrated how computational media can extend multisensory communication by leveraging perceptual inference and crossmodal integration to simulate sensory experiences beyond traditional modalities. Campaign deployment and evaluation showed measurable improvements in user engagement, recall, and purchase intent compared to conventional digital advertising approaches.

This work establishes a novel framework for digital sensory design, demonstrating how AR systems informed by perceptual neuroscience can function as synthetic sensory interfaces. The findings contribute to emerging fields including multisensory human–computer interaction, neurodesign, and immersive media, highlighting the potential for digital technologies to augment sensory communication, reshape experiential marketing, and expand the boundaries of human–machine perceptual interaction. Show more