Flexible proximity-tactile sensors have attracted significant attention for enhancing robotic perception. Among them, capacitive flexible proximity–tactile dual-mode sensor arrays are rapidly becoming a key solution. However, existing sensor arrays are limited by their physical configurations and electrical interconnects, making it difficult to achieve high resolution and large detection depth simultaneously. To overcome the limited detection depth of traditional capacitive sensor arrays, this work introduces a novel tri-mode architecture with a distance-sensing mode, extending the maximum detection depth by up to 104.56% compared to a single sensor unit. Inspired by near-pupil reflection, a pupil-like layer was integrated into the traditional dual-mode sensor to realize high-resolution and tunable detection depth simultaneously. By introducing a fractal electrode design to enhance the fringing field, the sensitivity of proximity and tactile sensing is significantly improved. Additionally, sacrificial template methods are used to fabricate microporous structures in the electrodes and dielectric layers, enabling high sensitivity (3.38 × 10^–2 pF·kPa^–1) over a broad pressure range (0 − 22.7 kPa), a wide detection limit (0 – 400 kPa), and large capacitance variation (>2.8 pF). The sensor array achieves high resolution and tunable detection depth (24.36 − 49.83 mm) and a large sensing distance (>90 mm). By stacking the proposed sensor array, the sweeping robot and humanoid robot demonstrate multi-level safety perception, obstacle recognition, gesture detection, and proximal target localization. This work addresses the fundamental trade-off between resolution and detection depth in capacitive flexible dual-mode proximity–tactile sensors, advancing robotic perception and interaction capabilities and paving a broad pathway for the practical deployment of future multi-mode sensors.

Scorpions, through ruthless survival of the fittest, evolve the unique ability to quickly locate and hunt prey with slit receptors near the leg joints and a sharp sting on the multi-freedom tail. Inspired by this fantastic creature, we herein report a dual-bionic strategy to fabricate microcrack-assisted wrinkle strain sensor with both high sensitivity and stretchability. Specifically, laser-induced graphene (LIG) is transferred from polyimide film to Ecoflex and then coated with silver paste using the casting-and-peeling and prestretch-and-release methods. The shape-adaptive and long-range ordered geometry (e.g., amplitude and wavelength) of dual-bionic structure is prestrain-tuned to optimize the superfast response time (~ 76 ms), high sensitivity (gauge factor = 223.6), broad working range (70%–100%), and good reliability (> 800 cycles) of scorpion-inspired strain sensor, outperforming many LIG-based materials and other bionic sensors. The alternate reconnect/disconnect behaviors of slit-organ-like microcracks in the mechanical weak areas initiate tremendous resistance changes, whereas the scorpion-tail-like wrinkles act as a “bridge” connecting the adjacent LIG resistor units, enabling reversible resilience and unimpeded electrical linkages over a wide strain range. Combined with the self-developed miniaturized, flexible, and all-in-one wireless transmission system, a variety of scenarios such as large body movements, tiny pulse, and heartbeat are real-time monitored via bluetooth and displayed in the client-sides, revealing a huge promise in future wearable electronics.