Messages, alerts and more could soon be delivered through the sense of smell, thanks to a new device developed by researchers from Bristol University. 

SensaBubble creates a soap bubble, filling the sphere with scented gases. As the bubbles float in the air, the device can project colors or images onto their surface. When they burst, the smells are released into the air. A soap bubble reflecting an advertisement for apple pie could fill the area with the scent of freshly-baked fruit and crust. 

"Accurate tracking of the generated bubbles is necessary for individualized data to be projected onto each bubble. We used a Kinect to track the bubbles and an off-the-shelf projector," researchers wrote in a research paper detailing the invention. 

SensaBubble could also be employed to alert users to new emails or social media updates. Today, many people instinctively hear the familiar sounds of a tweet or Facebook notification being posted to their page. This new development could mean notifications arriving in the form of familiar smells. These scents could even be customized by sender, informing users of the sender of the message, using scent. 

Gas within the bubbles is opaque, allowing for improved viewing of the projected images. 

"SensaBubble uses the concept of chrono-sensory experiences where layers of information are presented via different senses for variable length of times, each attracting different types of interest from the user," researchers wrote in a press release announcing the invention. 

Sriram Subramanian of Bristol University led the group that created the device. The size of bubbles, as well as the rate at which they are produced, can be controlled by users. 

"There are many areas in which bubble-based technology like SensaBubble could be applied, such as a SensaBubble clock that releases the number of scented bubbles corresponding to the hour or SensaBubble Maths, an educational game for children, which incorporates smell as feedback on their success," Subramanian said in the statement. 

A paper officially announcing the SensaBubble will be delivered at the CHI 2014 conference held in Toronto, beginning 26 April. 
Museums could begin offering viewers the option to smell exhibits, as well as view them. Such a device could also be used for gaming, or in nightclubs.

Someday soon, retail stores and other businesses may be competing on Main Street and in shopping malls, to capture the olfactory attention of customers.