Place Task Research Articles

Interactive MATLAB based project learning in a robotics course: Challenges and achievements

<p style="text-indent:20px;">This paper illustrates the conducted efforts for deploying an interactive project-based learning for robotics course using MATLAB. This project is part of a first course on robotics at the graduate level. The course combines both the theoretical and practical aspects to achieve its goals. The course consists of a set of laboratory sessions ends with a class project, these labs experimentally illustrate the modeling, simulation, path-planning and control of the Robot, using the robotics toolbox under MATLAB tools as well as physical interaction with the different robot platforms. The interaction between the student and the physical robot platforms is finally addressed in the class project; in this project, two tasks are considered. The first one is to control a 5DoF robot manipulator to perform a pick and place task. Initially the task is simulated under MATLAB robotics toolbox; the robot is commended to pick objects from initially known poses and stacks them in target poses. Furthermore, the robot manipulator in the second part of the project, with the aid of a vision system, is commended to work as an autonomous robotic arm that picks up colored objects, and then places them in different poses, based on their identified colors. The demonstrated results from the course evolution and assessment tools reflect the benefits of high-level deployment of robot platform in interactive project based learning to increase the students' performance in the course, about 100% and 75% of the student groups successfully completed the required tasks in the project first part and second part respectively.

Low-cost pick and place anthropomorphic robotic arm for the disabled and humanoid applications

This paper presents the design and development of a new low-cost pick and place anthropomorphic robotic arm for the disabled and humanoid applications. Anthropomorphic robotic arms are weapons similar in scale, appearance, and functionality to humans, and functionality. The developed robotic arm was simple, lightweight, and has four degrees of freedom (DOF) at the hand, shoulder, and elbow joints. The measurement of the link was made close to the length of the human arm. The anthropomorphic robotic arm was actuated by four DC servo motors and controlled using an Arduino UNO microcontroller board. The voice recognition unit drove the command input for the targeted object. The forward and inverse kinematics of the proposed new robotic arm has been analysed and used to program the low cost anthropomorphic robotic arm prototype to reach the desired position in the pick and place operation. This paper’s contribution is in developing the low cost, light, and straightforward weight anthropomorphic arm that can be easily attached to other applications such as a wheelchair and the kinematic study of the specific robot. The low-cost robotic arm’s capability has been tested, and the experimental results show that it can perform basic pick place tasks for the disabled and humanoid applications.

The Effect of Short-Term Feeding of a High-Coconut Oil or High-Fat Diet on Neuroinflammation and the Performance of an Object-Place Task in Rats.

The consumption of high-fat and high-sugar diets, in the form of junk food, and binge eating are now common. Increasing evidence suggests that a high-fat diet (HFD) can induce neuroinflammation and alter behavior. I aimed to study the effects of diets of differing fat content on neuroinflammation and spatial memory using an object-place (OP) task. Thirty-two adult male rats were allocated to four groups and fed a regular diet (Regular diet), a control diet (Control diet), an HFD (60% of calories from lard), or a high-coconut oil diet (HCOD; 60% of calories from coconut oil) for 3 days. Their water intake, food consumption, body mass, and metabolic variables were measured. HFD-fed rats showed significantly poorer performance on the OP task, as assessed using the discrimination index (- 0.208 ± 0.094), than the Regular (0.462 ± 0.078; P < 0.0001) and Control (0.379 ± 0.081; P = 0.0003) groups. However, no significant difference was observed in spatial memory between the HCOD and Regular groups. The concentrations of neuroinflammatory markers (interleukin [IL]-1β, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor α, and nuclear factor κB) were also measured in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. HFD-fed rats showed significantly higher levels of neuroinflammatory markers than the Regular and Control diet-fed groups. HCOD feeding did not induce neuroinflammation in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex compared with the Regular and Control groups.

Hippocampal spatial memory representations in mice are heterogeneously stable.

The population of hippocampal neurons actively coding space continually changes across days as mice repeatedly perform tasks. Many hippocampal place cells become inactive while other previously silent neurons become active, challenging the idea that stable behaviors and memory representations are supported by stable patterns of neural activity. Active cell replacement may disambiguate unique episodes that contain overlapping memory cues, and could contribute to reorganization of memory representations. How active cell replacement affects the evolution of representations of different behaviors within a single task is unknown. We trained mice to perform a delayed nonmatching to place task over multiple weeks, and performed calcium imaging in area CA1 of the dorsal hippocampus using head-mounted miniature microscopes. Cells active on the central stem of the maze "split" their calcium activity according to the animal's upcoming turn direction (left or right), the current task phase (study or test), or both task dimensions, even while spatial cues remained unchanged. We found that, among reliably active cells, different splitter neuron populations were replaced at unequal rates, resulting in an increasing number of cells modulated by turn direction and a decreasing number of cells with combined modulation by both turn direction and task phase. Despite continual reorganization, the ensemble code stably segregated these task dimensions. These results show that hippocampal memories can heterogeneously reorganize even while behavior is unchanging.

Biomechanical fidelity assessment of a pick and place task with haptic feedback in virtual reality

The development of virtual reality technologies has accelerated in the last years, leading to increasingly powerful and affordable solutions. It particularly allows low-cost solutions for studying ...

Design and Modeling of Soft Continuum Manipulators Using Parallel Asymmetric Combination of Fiber-Reinforced Elastomers

Abstract Soft continuum arms (SCAs) have a large workspace, dexterity, and adaptability, but at the cost of complex design construction highlighted by concatenating several serial segments. In this paper, we propose a new design architecture for SCAs composed of a parallel combination of pneumatic actuators. The BR2 SCA featured in this work is asymmetric as it combines one soft bending (B) actuator and two soft rotating (R2) actuators as opposed to state of art symmetric architectures that adopt bending segments. Spatial deformation is obtained by combining the bending and rotating feature of the individual actuators. This paper also formulates an approximate forward analysis method based on Kirchhoff rod equations to predict the spatial deformation under external loads with an accuracy less than 9% of the SCAs length. In addition, the model also takes into account the “coupling effect” inherent to the asymmetric parallel combination, where actuating rotating actuator attenuates the bending performance and vice versa. Consequently, this work also refines the design of the SCA that minimizes the coupling effect. A detailed performance study of the refined BR2 manipulator on a swiveling base demonstrates larger workspace and higher dexterity when compared with state of art single section SCAs. The performance of the design is validated through different tasks like obstacle avoidance, pick and place task, and whole arm grasping. These performance attributes surpass any other single segment soft module and is a potential building block for constructing customized SCAs.

Short-Term Effects of Single-Session Split-Belt Treadmill Training on Dual-Task Performance in Parkinson's Disease and Healthy Elderly.

Background: Dual-tasking is challenging for people with Parkinson's disease and freezing of gait (PD+FOG) and can exacerbate freezing episodes and falls. Split-belt treadmill training (SBT) is a novel tool to train complex gait and may improve dual-task (DT) walking and turning.Objective: To investigate the single-session effects of SBT on DT walking and DT turning performance in PD+FOG and older adults (OA), compared to regular treadmill training.Methods: Forty-five PD+FOG and 36 OA participated in a single training session (30 min). They were randomized into one of four training groups: (A) SB75—steady belt speed ratio 0.75:1; (B) SB50—steady belt speed ratio 0.5:1; (C) SBCR—changing belt speed ratios between 0.75:1 and 0.5:1; and (D) Tied-Belt (TBT). Over-ground straight-line gait and an alternating turning in place task combined with a cognitive dual-task (DT) (auditory Stroop) were assessed pre- and post-training, and the following day (retention). Constrained longitudinal data analysis was used to investigate the training effects for all participants and for PD+FOG alone.Results: DT gait speed improved at post-training for all groups (p < 0.001). However, SBT (SB50 and SBCR) led to larger post-training improvements compared to TBT, which were still visible at retention (SB50). For mean DT turning speed and Stroop response time while walking, only SBT groups showed significant improvements at post-training or retention. DT stride length, peak DT turning speed, and Stroop performance index while walking also showed larger gains in SBT compared to TBT. Results for PD+FOG alone showed similar effects although with smaller effect sizes.Conclusions: A single session of SBT in PD+FOG and OA showed larger short-term effects on DT walking and turning compared to TBT. Cognitive DT performance was also improved in SBT, likely due to reduced cortical control of gait. These results illustrate the potential for SBT to improve DT during complex gait and possibly reduce fall risk in clinical and healthy populations.

Instrumental Assessment of Stepping in Place Captures Clinically Relevant Motor Symptoms of Parkinson's Disease.

Fluctuations of motor symptoms make clinical assessment in Parkinson’s disease a complex task. New technologies aim to quantify motor symptoms, and their remote application holds potential for a closer monitoring of treatment effects. The focus of this study was to explore the potential of a stepping in place task using RGB-Depth (RGBD) camera technology to assess motor symptoms of people with Parkinson’s disease. In total, 25 persons performed a 40 s stepping in place task in front of a single RGBD camera (Kinect for Xbox One) in up to two different therapeutic states. Eight kinematic parameters were derived from knee movements to describe features of hypokinesia, asymmetry, and arrhythmicity of stepping. To explore their potential clinical utility, these parameters were analyzed for their Spearman’s Rho rank correlation to clinical ratings, and for intraindividual changes between treatment conditions using standard response mean and paired t-test. Test performance not only differed between ON and OFF treatment conditions, but showed moderate correlations to clinical ratings, specifically ratings of postural instability (pull test). Furthermore, the test elicited freezing in some subjects. Results suggest that this single standardized motor task is a promising candidate to assess an array of relevant motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. The simple technical test setup would allow future use by patients themselves.

Association of Diet, Quality of Life and Premenstrual Syndrome; A Review

Premenstrual syndrome is a disorder experienced by the females of reproductive ages. The etiology of this common condition is unknown. The presentation of symptoms is highly variable all over the world. The variability in the presentation of symptoms could be linked to social and cultural effects of environment. There can be psychological, physical or behavioral characteristic manifestations linked to premenstrual syndrome. The presentation of premenstrual syndrome can effect a female’s life. Household chores, work place tasks and interpersonal relationships are effected gravely. Dietary intake of the individuals is associated with the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome symptoms. Intake of diet loaded with whole grains, fish, fruits, vegetables, micronutrients like vitamin B1, D and E have shown to have protective effects against the development and severity of premenstrual syndrome symptoms. Intake of harmful food items like refined sugar, fast food, sweetened drinks, alcohol and chocolates are associated with increase in severity of the condition.

Dose-dependent effects of testosterone on spatial learning strategies and brain-derived neurotrophic factor in male rats

Studies suggest that males outperform females on some spatial tasks. This may be due to the effects of sex steroids on spatial strategy preferences. Past experiments with male rats have demonstrated that low doses of testosterone bias them toward a response strategy, whereas high doses of testosterone bias them toward a place strategy. We investigated the effect of different testosterone doses on the ability of male rats to effectively employ these two spatial learning strategies. Furthermore, we quantified concentrations of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (pro-, mature-, and total BDNF) in the prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and striatum. All rats were bilaterally castrated and assigned to one of three daily injection doses of testosterone propionate (0.125, 0.250, or 0.500 mg/rat) or a control injection of the drug vehicle. Using a plus-maze protocol, we found that a lower testosterone dose (0.125 mg) significantly improved rats’ performance on a response task, whereas a higher testosterone dose (0.500 mg) significantly improved rats’ performance on a place task. In addition, we found that a low dose of testosterone (0.125 mg) increased total BDNF in the striatum, while a high dose (0.500 mg) increased total BDNF in the hippocampus. Taken altogether, these results suggest that high and low levels of testosterone enhance performance on place and response spatial tasks, respectively, and this effect is associated with changes in BDNF levels within relevant brain regions.

Image-Based Estimation, Planning, and Control of a Cable-Suspended Payload for Package Delivery

This letter presents an image-based approach that enables an aerial robot with a cable-suspended mechanism to find a payload with unknown mass, pick it up, transport it, and then put it down at a new location. The pick and place task is performed with minimum cable-swing angle. A new process is presented for state estimation, trajectory planning, and dynamic control using a single onboard camera and inertia measurement unit (IMU). Specifically, a new nonlinear observer, which does not require localization information from external sensors (such as a motion capture system), is created for controlling the robot's velocity. The outer position-control loop is designed in terms of the invariant image feature which is decoupled from the robot's attitude and is proved to be the flat outputs of the system. The combined estimation and control scheme is shown to be asymptotically stable in the Lyapunov sense, where damping due to air contributes to stabilizing the rates of the swing angle. The optimal trajectory of the Euclidean homography is efficiently generated to obtain dynamically-feasible trajectories for the image features. A least-square identification technique is employed to estimate the mass of each payload, and the input shaping technique is implemented to reduce payload swing motion. Finally, a practical package-delivery task is performed to validate the process, where it is shown that the robot can effectively pick up and deliver payloads on command with minimum cable-swing angle.

Towards a Low-Cost Solution to Learn Robot Manipulator Control

Learn a robot manipulator in university requires a physical robot so students can learn to program it straight away. However, it is expensive and not affordable by most universities in Indonesia. We turn to a ROS-based solution for an open source, free and advanced robotic software system. Using ROS and Gazebo simulator, we develop a low-cost solution where students can learn an advanced robot manipulator such as Baxter. We divide our labwork into five sections: controlling the arm w.r.t. joints position, controlling the arm based on its inverse kinematics, object detection by a camera attached in robot’s wrist, executing a simple plan: pick and place task, and enabling a robot to perform a tool-use task. By gradually increasing the complexities of the labwork material we expect students get a better understanding in controlling a robot manipulator. We provide an affordable solution for students to learn robot manipulator control.

DESIGN OF THE HANDLING PROCESS AT THE WORKPLACE WITH ABB ROBOT AND MODULAR CONVEYOR

Urgency of the research. The use of robotic Pick &amp; Place operations in industry is currently gaining in importance due to increasing productivity in the workplace. Deployment of such robotic workplaces in the food industry, where it is necessary to handle a large number of products, allows to maintain the competitiveness of the producers of these products. The ability to carry out demonstrations and trainings at workplaces that are not directly part of production allows students and workers to try out these processes without the need to shut down production. Target setting. The aim is to design a functional workplace, whose task will be to implement demonstrations of work in a robotic workplace. The designed workplace will also serve in the educational process, where students will have the opportunity to improve their knowledge in programming Pick &amp; Place tasks using a parallel robot. At the same time, students will be able to program the logic of pallet movement on a modular conveyor and synchronize this movement with the robot's movement.Actual scientific researches and issues analysis. Automation or robotization would not be possible without the use of modern conveyor systems. Therefore, it is necessary to constantly try to modify the currently used systems so as to increase their productivity while maintaining the required quality. This can be achieved not only by optimizing processes, but also by using modern modular conveyor systems. Uninvestigated parts of general matters defining. Increasing the competence of employees and students in the programming of robotic workplaces improves their application on the labour market. This cannot be achieved only by theoretical preparation, it is necessary to have real training workplaces equipped with appropriate technology. The research objective. The aim was to design such a robotic workplace where it will be possible to increase the potential ofemployees or students and develop their creative thinking. The use of the proposed objects for manipulation has only a demonstration task and assumes that students will come up with their own design solution to the given problem during the training process. The statement of basic materials. Deployment of parallel robots in various operations has an ever-increasing trend. The preparation of suitable workers for the optimal use of such robotic workplaces is therefore also important due to the transition to Industry 4.0. Conclusions. The article describes the modification of a modular conveyor for the needs of a robotic workplace equipped with a parallel robot. The workplace is equipped with an IRB 360/3 - 1130 robot, a Bosch modular conveyor equipped with pallets and a belt conveyor of its own production. The parallel robot is equipped with a suction cup enabling the removal of parts weighing up to 300 g. The proposed handling process envisages the transfer of cube-shaped parts from a modular conveyor to a belt conveyor. When designing the workplace, it was necessary to replace the damaged control unit in the modular conveyor, equip the conveyor with a system of additional sensors and program the workplace. The proposed workplace will serve as a demonstration workplace on the university, as well as for training students in programming robots and a modular conveyor

A study on picking objects in cluttered environments: Exploiting depth features for a custom low-cost universal jamming gripper

Abstract Robotics solutions in the industrial sector are moving towards higher degrees of flexibility. In such a context, the latest research is focused on grasping technologies for material handling. The aim of this work is to study a possible way to overcome current limitations on the existing robotic solutions for picking objects in cluttered environments. Pick and place task is of fundamental relevance in automated manufacturing companies. Many industrial processes, have bin-picking as the preliminary phase task. The challenge is to handle mixed bins that contain multiple different types of parts with complex configuration to grasp in a more flexible way. Using intelligent autonomous robots for picking different kinds of objects allows industries to handle a wide assortment of parts without the need for any change in the hardware structure and design. In this manuscript, a collaborative robotics system is presented. It integrates a classical two-finger gripper and a custom designed soft-robotics end-effector in a commercial robot. In this work, 3D perception technologies are employed in order to select suitable geometries that exploit at best the advantages of the universal jamming gripper (UJG) in picking objects of different shapes. A custom algorithm that selects a suitable picking point, solving the perceptual issues posed by cluttered environments, is introduced. Grasping tests to assess the capabilities of the custom gripper have been conducted. The objects selected to test the performance of the proposed system do not consider just a specific manufacturing scenario but are meant to be more general, not limiting the analysis to a single case. Furthermore, a comparative study of the algorithmic performance of the proposed method with respect to state-of-the-art techniques is presented. The proposed system is shown to be able to grasp novel objects in a cluttered environment with a competitive success rate, determining a suitable grasping target in short time.

Detection of eye closing/opening from EOG and its application in robotic arm control

Detection of eye closing/opening from alpha-blocking in the EEG of occipital region has been used to build human-machine interfaces. This paper presents an alternative method for detection of eye closing/opening from EOG signals in an online setting. The accuracies for correct detection of eye closing and opening operations with the proposed techniques were found to be 95.6% and 91.9% respectively for 8 healthy subjects. These techniques were then combined with the detection of eye blinks, the accuracy of which turned out to be 96.9%. This was then used to build an interface for robotic arm control for a pick and place task. The same task was also carried out using a haptic device as a master. The speed and accuracy for these two methods were then compared to assess quantitatively the ease of using this interface. It appears that the proposed interface will be very useful for persons with neurodegenerative disorders who can perform eye closing/opening and eye blinks.

Predictable real-time constraints reveal anticipatory strategies of coupled planning in a sequential pick and place task.

Planning a sequence of two motor elements is much more than concatenating two independent movements. However, very little is known about the cognitive strategies that are used to perform fluent sequences for intentional object manipulation. In this series of studies, the participants' task was to reach for and pick to place a wooden cylinder to set it on a place pad of three different diameters, which served to modify terminal accuracy constraints. Participants were required to perform the sequences (1) at their preferred speed or (2) as fast as possible. Action kinematics were recorded with the Qualisys motion-capture system in order to implement a real-time protocol to get participants to engage in a true interactive relation. Results revealed that with low internal constraints (at preferred speed), low coupling between the two elements of the motor sequence was observed, suggesting a step-by-step planning strategy. Under high constraints (at fastest speed), an important terminal accuracy effect back propagated to modify early kinematic parameters of the first element, suggesting strong coupling of the parameters in an encapsulated planning strategy. In Studies 2 and 3, we further manipulated instructions and timing constraints to confirm the importance of time and predictability of external information for coupled planning. These findings overall sustain the hypothesis that coupled planning can take place in a pick and place task when anticipatory strategies are possible. This mode of action planning may be the key reason why motor intention can be read through the observation of micro variations in body kinematics.

Advantages of using 3D virtual reality based training in persons with Parkinson\u2019s disease: a parallel study

BackgroundParkinson’s disease (PD) is a slowly progressive neurodegenerative disease. There are mixed reports on success of physiotherapy in patients with PD. Our objective was to investigate the functional improvements, motivation aspects and clinical effectiveness when using immersive 3D virtual reality versus non-immersive 2D exergaming.MethodsWe designed a randomized parallel study with 97 patients, but only 20 eligible participants were randomized in 2 groups; the one using 3D Oculus Rift CV1 and the other using a laptop. Both groups participated in the 10-session 3 weeks training with a pick and place task in the virtual world requiring precise hand movement to manipulate the virtual cubes. The kinematics of the hand was traced with Leap motion controller, motivation effect was assessed with modified Intrinsic Motivation Inventory and clinical effectiveness was evaluated with Box & Blocks Test (BBT) and shortened Unified Parkinson’s disease rating scale (UPDRS) before and after the training. Mack-Skilling non-parametrical statistical test was used to identify statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) and Cohen’s U3 test to find the effect sizes.ResultsParticipants in the 3D group demonstrated statistically significant and substantially better performance in average time of manipulation (group x time, p = 0.009), number of successfully placed cubes (group x time, p = 0.028), average tremor (group x time, p = 0.002) and UPDRS for upper limb (U3 = 0.35). The LCD and 3D groups substantially improved their BBT score with training (U3 = 0.7, U3 = 0.6, respectively). However, there were no statistically significant differences in clinical tests between the groups (group x time, p = 0.2189, p = 0.2850, respectively). In addition the LCD group significantly decreased the pressure/tension (U3 = 0.3), the 3D did not show changes (U3 = 0.5) and the differences between the groups were statistically different (p = 0.037). The 3D group demonstrated important increase in effort (U3 = 0.75) and perceived competences (U3 = 0.9).ConclusionsThe outcomes of the study demonstrated that the immersive 3D technology may bring increased interests/enjoyment score resulting in faster and more efficient functional performance. But the 2D technology demonstrated lower pressure/tension score providing similar clinical progress. A study with much larger sample size may also confirm the clinical effectiveness of the approaches.Trial registrationThe small scale randomized pilot study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03515746, 4 May 2018

Kinesthetic Guidance Utilizing DMP Synchronization and Assistive Virtual Fixtures for Progressive Automation

SUMMARYThe progressive automation framework allows the seamless transition of a robot from kinesthetic guidance to autonomous operation mode during programming by demonstration of discrete motion tasks. This is achieved by the synergetic action of dynamic movement primitives (DMPs), virtual fixtures, and variable impedance control. The proposed DMPs encode the demonstrated trajectory and synchronize with the current demonstration from the user so that the reference generated motion follows the human’s demonstration. The proposed virtual fixtures assist the user in repeating the learned kinematic behavior but allow penetration so that the user can make modifications to the learned trajectory if needed. The tracking error in combination with the interaction forces and torques is used by a variable stiffness strategy to adjust the progressive automation level and transition the leading role between the human and the robot. An energy tank approach is utilized to apply the designed controller and to prove the passivity of the overall control method. An experimental evaluation of the proposed framework is presented for a pick and place task and results show that the transition to autonomous mode is achieved in few demonstrations.

Indexes for flotation and circling, two non-search behaviors in the water maze, sensitive to d-galactose–induced accelerated aging and Alzheimer’s disease

The study of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) has been largely neglected in most experimental research on Alzheimer’s disease (AD) classically focused on cognitive symptoms. The aquatic environment of the Morris water maze (MWM) implies a stressful condition for mice leading to cognitive performances with presence of other behaviors related to emotionality. This can be critical in models such as the 3xTg-AD mice that exhibit a noticeable BPSD-like profile. The present work is aimed to provide a quantitative (number of episodes and duration) and qualitative (prevalence) analysis of flotation and circling, the most common ‘non-searching behaviors’ elicited in the MWM. We studied the expression of these behaviors in 6-month-old gold-standard wildtype C57BL/6 mice (genetic background) and 3xTg-AD mice (onset of disease) and when both genotypes were submitted to chronic d-galactose induced accelerated aging. Elicitation of floating and circling was recorded during three standard MWM paradigms: visual perceptual learning, place task for spatial reference memory and a final probe trial for short-term memory. In view of the results, we demonstrate that the index of ‘flotation’, characteristic of non-transgenic performance, is sensitive (reduction) to accelerated aging and AD. Conversely, circling behavior, characteristic of 3xTg-AD mice, can be an additional tool for evaluating BPSD-like symptoms in AD-models while its index unveils bizarre behavior induced by d-galactose induced aging. These results can be useful in relation to preventive and/or therapeutical interventions targeting AD but they may also be suitable in the evaluation of the potential risk factors in animals with normal aging.

Increases in Theta Oscillatory Activity During Episodic Memory Retrieval Following Mindfulness Meditation Training.

Mindfulness meditation has been shown to improve episodic memory and increase theta oscillations which are known to play a role in episodic memory retrieval. The present study examined the effect of mindfulness meditation on episodic memory retrieval and theta oscillations. Using a longitudinal design, subjects in the mindfulness meditation experimental group who underwent 4 weeks of mindfulness meditation training and practice were compared to a waitlist control group. During the pre-training and post-training experimental sessions, subjects completed the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) and studied adjectives and either imagined a scene (Place Task) or judged its pleasantness (Pleasant Task). During the recognition test, subjects decided which task was performed with each word (“Old Place Task” or “Old Pleasant Task”) or “New.” FFMQ scores and source discrimination were greater post-training than pre-training in the mindfulness meditation experimental group. Electroencephalography (EEG) results revealed that for the mindfulness meditation experimental group theta power was greater post-training than pre-training in right frontal and left parietal channels and changes in FFMQ scores correlated with changes in theta oscillations in right frontal channels (n = 20). The present results suggest that mindfulness meditation increases source memory retrieval and theta oscillations in a fronto-parietal network.