ARTIFICIAL MOUTH SIMULATING CHEWING, AND A METHOD FOR ANALYSING COMPOUNDS THAT LEAD TO SENSORY PERCEPTION, IN PARTICULAR FLAVOURS, USING ONE SUCH ARTIFICIAL MOUTH

摘要

The invention relates to an artificial mouth including a hermetically sealed chamber (1) in which food (6) is placed between two plates (4, 5) which move relative to one another and which are designed to break down the food by simulating chewing. A flexible membrane (19), linked to the movement of one of the plates, mimics the inflation of the cheeks and, combined with a constant gas stream, promotes the release from the food of volatile compounds responsible for the flavour of said food. The artificial mouth, which simulates both human chewing and breathing, can be connected to an olfactory cone (24) and/or to a trapping device and/or to a chromatograph, allowing analysis of the compounds that lead to the sensory perception of flavours.