Journal of Bionic Engineering (2022) 19:853–876 https://doi.org/10.1007/s42235-022-00181-5 

A Comprehensive Review: Recent Developments of Biomimetic Sensors 

Xu Ye1  · Yuanyuan Li1  · Yan Zhang1  · Ping Wang1 

1 National Engineering Laboratory for Modern Silk, College of Textile and Clothing Engineering, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China

Abstract With the fast development of Internet of Things, fexible and extensible sensors have undergone a great revolution. Because of the limited functions of traditional fexible sensors, more and more researchers begin to develop biomimetic sensors inspired by nature, which introduce unique structures of various natural creatures into sensors through a simple and lowcost process, endowing them with excellent comprehensive properties. By imitating structures, compositions, biological mechanisms of natural organisms, these faws can be overcome, making sensors have a variety of functions, such as hydrophobicity, discoloration and so on. In this paper, biomimetic objects used in sensors are summarized from three perspectives, plants (lotus leaves), animals (butterfy wings) and components (enzymes). And then, the common preparation methods of biomimetic materials are described in detail, such as template method, hydrothermal method, lithography. Furthermore, the current applications of biomimetic sensors in wearable felds like electronic skin, human health detection and human motion detection, are also generalized. Finally, the difculties and limitations of sensors, eforts to improve properties of materials, as well as likely future developments were discussed. Hence, it is highly promising to provide readers with a quick glimpse into the research landscape of this feld. 

Keywords Biomimetic sensors · Template · Lithography · Wearable devices