TS-5000Z Taste Sensing System

Measure sourness, bitterness, saltiness, astringency, richness and sharpness
Measure both initial taste and aftertaste

The taste sensing system TS-5000Z employs the same mechanism as the human tongue and converts the taste of various food, beverage and pharmaceutical substances into numerical data.

The surface of the human tongue is formed of a lipid bilayer with its own specific electrical potential. This electric potential varies according to the electrostatic interaction or hydrophobic interaction between various taste substances and the lipid. The amount of change is perceived by the brain as taste information, an activity referred to as taste judgement.

The taste sensors on the TS-5000Z imitate this taste reception mechanism. Each sensor consits of an artificial lipid membrane (similar to that of the human tongue) that causes electrostatic or hydophobic interactions with various taste substances, allowing them to sense "taste."

The taste sensors evaluate two types of taste, namely initial taste, the taste perceived when food first enters the mouth, and aftertaste, the persistent taste that remains in the mouth after the food has been swallowed. Using a refernce solution as zero, the difference in potential with the sample liquid is measured as initial taste. The sensors are then lightly washed and the difference in potential with the reference solution is measured as aftertaste. The data is transferred to a connected Unix server and can be visualized in many different ways through a rich array of graphing tools that are available.

Features

• Multi-channel artificial lipid membrane sensors employ same mechanism as the human tongue
• Interprets taste reception of food and pharmaceuticals as numerical data
• Quantification of taste data is handled via original algorithms
• Taste data collected can be displayed through a rich array of graphing tools
• Measures initial taste and aftertaste