Russell Hausfeld, writing for Psymposia:
Could a liquid-delivery system meant to help maintain a personalized “scent bubble” quietly usher in the creation of wearable psychedelic microdosing technology? A U.S. patent for this system—just one among an increasing list of psychedelic-inspired intellectual properties—was awarded to Sensory Design & Technology LTD in 2019.
The bulk of the patent covers a product being developed for eScent—an “emotional” fashion company, which aims to redefine the way people use and wear perfumes. In short, the patent covers an AI-powered liquid-delivery device small enough to be integrated into “connected” jewellery and removable garment buttons for on-demand personalized perfumes or liquids. But, squeezed into a paragraph that lists other potential uses for the technology, the patent covers “microdosing psychedelic medicines (e.g. LSD, psilocybin) for therapeutic applications.”
So now there’s a patent for wearable microdoses. Again, this is more innovative psychedelic technology, but do we really need it? While some people would rather have microdoses prepared for them, is grinding up magic mushrooms or cutting up blotter paper really that difficult or inconvenient for the average person?
And will smell-able microdoses be as effective as when they are orally consumed or delivered via nasal spray? In fact, will they be effective at all? When it comes to microdosing, a ton of questions remain unanswered.
One cool thing about this patent is that it was inspired by Philip K Dick’s book Ubik:
The impetus for this technology was Philip K. Dick’s sci-fi thriller “UBIK.” The novel introduced eScent’s founder, Jenny Tillotson, to the notion of “reality-in-a-can”—a mystical substance of miracle properties (called UBIK) which is sprayed from a can and stabilizes reality. This appealed to her, as someone who has had to manage long-term bipolar and anxiety disorders, and she began developing eScent.
Through a “sensor-triggered, subscription-based” fragrance service, eScent’s wearable technology aims to dispense scents based on environmental and bodily triggers dictated by the user, according to their website.
Ubik is a great book by one of my favorite sci-fi writers. If you haven’t heard of it before then I highly recommend that you check it out.
There’s no final product yet and the system for microdosing smell-able psychedelics is still in its early exploratory phase. I’m simultaneously excited to see all of this exciting new innovation in the space and wondering if we’re perhaps unnecessarily complicating things.