Abstract: The development of the bionic olfactory systems（BOS） is lagged other biomimetic research of biological senses. This article reviews the research progress of BOS, elaborates how a human olfactory system works and how to emulate the biological olfaction with BOS. Current status and problems of BOS, including gas sensors and data processing systems, are expounded, application scenarios of BOS are discussed, and the future development of BOS is expatiated as well.