Developing multisensory olfactory and auditory perception methods for a dynamic market environment

This study examines multisensory communication in urban contexts through an empirical analysis of the Honghai Morning Market in Northeast China. The market demonstrates how communications among people, goods, and space generate a dynamic sensory landscape shaped by auditory, olfactory, and visual experiences. Focusing on applying research methods in studying sensory communication beyond the visual. To capture these dynamics, it integrates soundwalks, smellwalks, and sensory maps, operationalized into seven stages. On this basis, the study develops a dual-route strategy of structured and organic routes, combined with the overlaying of sensory maps. Drawing on cross-modal correspondence theory, auditory and olfactory data were visualized, and three spatial patterns were identified: sensory co-located zones, interlaced zones, and obscured zones. These results advance the analytical focus from static sensory backgrounds to dynamic sensory events, providing a framework for urban sensory analysis. Furthermore, links sensory research with spatial planning by proposing sensory-guided layout principles and management standards – including stall arrangement, noise control, and ventilation optimization – and by offering design guidelines for environmental improvement and historic district preservation. This article contributes to urban sensory studies by integrating data collection, visualization, and planning practice, highlighting the value of sensory perspectives in designing and managing dynamic urban environments.