physics

Sensory analysis

Sensory analysis is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Sensory analysis rather than just read about it. In short: Sensory analysis (or sensory evaluation) is a scientific discipline that applies principles of experimental design and statistical analysis to the use of human senses (sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing) for the purposes of evaluating consumer products. This method of testing products is generally used during the marketing and advertising phase.

Key takeaways

Sensory analysis belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Sensory analysis to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Sensory analysis from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Sensory analysis (or sensory evaluation) is a scientific discipline that applies principles of experimental design and statistical analysis to the use of human senses (sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing) for the purposes of evaluating consumer products. This method of testing products is generally used during the marketing and advertising phase. The discipline requires panels of human assessors, on whom the products are tested, and recording their responses. By applying statistical techniques to the results it is possible to make inferences and insights about the products under test. Most large consumer goods companies have departments dedicated to sensory analysis. Sensory analysis can mainly be broken down into three sub-sections:

Analytical testing (dealing with objective facts about products) Affective testing (dealing with subjective facts such as preferences) Perception (the biochemical and psychological aspects of sensation) Sensory analysis is a core component of organoleptic testing, dating back to the famous treatise De architectura by Vitruvius.

Analytical testing This type of testing is concerned with obtaining objective facts about products. This could range from basic discrimination testing (e.g. Do two or more products differ from each other?) to descriptive analysis (e.g. What are the characteristics of two or more products?). The type of panel required for this type of testing would normally be a trained panel. There are several types of sensory tests. The most classic is the sensory profile. In this test, each assessor describes each product by means of a questionnaire. The questionnaire includes a list of descriptors (e.g., bitterness, acidity, etc.). The assessor rates each descriptor for each product depending on the intensity of the descriptor he perceives in the product (e.g., 0 = very weak to 10 = very strong). In the method of Free choice profiling, each taster builds his own questionnaire. Another family of methods is known as holistic as they focus on the product's overall appearance. This is the case of the categorization and the napping.

Affective testing Also known as consumer testing, this type of testing concerns obtaining subjective data, or how well products are likely to be accepted. Usually, large (50 or more) panels of untrained personnel are recruited for this type of testing, although smaller focus groups can be utilized to gain insights into products. The range of testing can vary from simple comparative testing (e.g. Which do you prefer, A or B?) to structured questioning regarding the magnitude of acceptance of individual characteristics (e.g. Please rate the "fruity aroma": dislike|neither|like). Affective testing is generally used by larger companies distributing products on a larger scale, such as cereal brands, clothing brands, and accessories used in daily life. For example, a small company on the verge of a breakthrough for a specific medicine wouldn't use wide-scale affective testing to see if the medicine would work. Companies such as this would use a specific panel of judges who require this medicine to test whether or not it would work.

See also European Sensory Network Food Quality and Preference Journal of Sensory Studies Just-About-Right scale Pangborn Sensory Science Symposium

Notes and references

Bibliography ASTM MNL14 The Role of Sensory Analysis in Quality Control, 1992 ISO 16820 Sensory Analysis - Methodology - Sequential Analysis ISO 5495 Sensory Analysis - Methodology - Paired Comparisons ISO 13302 Sensory Analysis - Methods for assessing modifications to the flavour of foodstuffs due to packaging Sensory Evaluation Techniques- Morten C. Meilgaard, Gail Vance Civille, B. Thomas Carr - 4th edition, 2007

External links ISO 67.240 – Sensory analysis – A series of ISO standards Sensory evaluation practice; Herbert Stone, Joel L. Sidel

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Sensory analysis

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Sensory analysis claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Sensory analysis before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Sensory analysis ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Sensory analysis

In research: Sensory analysis appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Sensory analysis in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Sensory analysis is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Product testing, Psychophysics, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Sensory analysis outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Sensory analysis in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Sensory analysis means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Sensory analysis out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sensory analysis in simple terms?

Why does Sensory analysis matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Sensory analysis?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Sensory analysis.