Self-powered sensing for health monitoring and robotics

Self-powered sensing technology plays a key role in autonomous and portable systems, with applications in health monitoring and robotics. These sensors, which do not rely on external power sources, offer stable, continuous data acquisition for real-time monitoring and complex interactions. For instance, triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have enabled self-powered wearable sensors to monitor vital signs like heart beat rate and respiration by converting body movement into electrical energy, eliminating the need for batteries. Despite their advantages, challenges remain in large-scale manufacturing, miniaturization, and multifunctional integration. Overcoming these challenges may require innovative advances in novel materials, intelligent algorithms, and multifunctional integration strategies. This perspective summarizes recent advances and existing challenges in self-powered sensing technologies for health monitoring and robotics applications, and provides an outlook on their future development.