Perfume-Tech, a Slovenian start-up, has teamed up with glassmaker Hrastnik 1860 to launch what it calls a "smart" perfume bottle. The innovation involves both the way the fragrance is dispensed and the marketing opportunities it offers. First off, there is no actuator; the spray is activated by simply touching a tactile area on the cap’s surface. Based on capacitive sensor technology, which is also used for smartphone screens, this presupposes the presence of an electrostatic field where a finger’s touch will create a distortion that is processed by an electronic controller. These invisible electrical exchanges trigger the integrated pump and, as if by magic, dispense the fragrance.An electronically controlled pump was specially developed that is both accurate and capable of generating high pressure while consuming little energy. The bottle also connects via Bluetooth to a smartphone app, allowing brands the option of personalizing the fragrance by mixing perfumes in different proportions. Through a digital platform, brands can communicate with the end user, process usage data, fight counterfeits and sell directly to consumers. The fruit of eight years of research, this bottle concept is patent pending.
