Soft self-healing resistive-based sensors inspired by sensory transduction in biological systems

Sensory receptors in biological systems are an essential part of natural organisms to perceive, understand and adapt to their environment and evaluate their internal state. They are interlinked with the senses of living organisms and are an important tool for the survival and evolution of species. Researchers have implemented the biomimetic receptor approach into the development of artificial sensors, in an attempt to mimic the sensory transduction of organisms, like self-healing ability and flexibility. However, aspects of biological transduction like selectivity and multi-sensing are still underdeveloped in the field of soft self-healing sensors (SSHS). The multi-sensing aspect is discussed in this review paper, focusing on resistive-based SSHS for detecting different stimuli, like strain, pressure, tactile, temperature, chemical species and structural damage. The inspiration from sensory transduction of biological systems will be a key factor for the further development of SSHS and their application in soft robotics, electronic skin, smart wearables and haptic devices.