An overall framework for neurorehabilitation robotics: Implications for recovery

This chapter introduces the concepts of hierarchical architecture and synergistic functioning of the motor system for the development of successful robotics applications with rehabilitation purposes. Basic principles to be considered when postulating how voluntary human motor behavior emerges from a computational perspective are discussed, together with the rational underpinning of the recovery process after lesion of the central nervous system. Classification and principles of different rehabilitation modalities are proposed, together with available recent evidence on their effectiveness.