At the Digital Content Expo 2010, the Ikei Laboratory from Tokyo Metropolitan University exhibited the Five-Sense Theater. This is a system for experiencing an “ultra-daily” space using media for all five senses.

“Here, in particular, we’re providing a supernatural experience as content. This offers not just a visual experience within built-in content, but a variety of experiences and sensations. Specifically, users can experience scents, wind, and sensations of touch. In addition, the legs can move independently, or the body can enter a world with different dimensionality. The aim of this system is to create sensations like those.”

In this exhibit, the user plays a game linked to 3D pictures and sound. For each scene, a large amount of information is controlled by the computer, enabling the user to experience a variety of sensations.

“Sensory technologies are still not very sophisticated. One issue is how to present sensations and how to render them. From now on, I think five-sense rendering will become possible, using all kinds of technologies, including IT and robotics. So it’ll be possible to experience interactive content for the five senses, such as games, in the home. It could also be used in live video communication, so you experience not just visuals, but the atmosphere as well… It’s a bit hard to describe what I mean by “communicating the atmosphere,” but I think we’ll gradually become able to do that sort of thing.”

source: http://www.diginfo.tv/2010/11/04/10-0227-f-en.php