63,212 research outputs found
Temporal-Difference Learning to Assist Human Decision Making during the Control of an Artificial Limb
In this work we explore the use of reinforcement learning (RL) to help with
human decision making, combining state-of-the-art RL algorithms with an
application to prosthetics. Managing human-machine interaction is a problem of
considerable scope, and the simplification of human-robot interfaces is
especially important in the domains of biomedical technology and rehabilitation
medicine. For example, amputees who control artificial limbs are often required
to quickly switch between a number of control actions or modes of operation in
order to operate their devices. We suggest that by learning to anticipate
(predict) a user's behaviour, artificial limbs could take on an active role in
a human's control decisions so as to reduce the burden on their users.
Recently, we showed that RL in the form of general value functions (GVFs) could
be used to accurately detect a user's control intent prior to their explicit
control choices. In the present work, we explore the use of temporal-difference
learning and GVFs to predict when users will switch their control influence
between the different motor functions of a robot arm. Experiments were
performed using a multi-function robot arm that was controlled by muscle
signals from a user's body (similar to conventional artificial limb control).
Our approach was able to acquire and maintain forecasts about a user's
switching decisions in real time. It also provides an intuitive and reward-free
way for users to correct or reinforce the decisions made by the machine
learning system. We expect that when a system is certain enough about its
predictions, it can begin to take over switching decisions from the user to
streamline control and potentially decrease the time and effort needed to
complete tasks. This preliminary study therefore suggests a way to naturally
integrate human- and machine-based decision making systems.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, This version to appear at The 1st
Multidisciplinary Conference on Reinforcement Learning and Decision Making,
Princeton, NJ, USA, Oct. 25-27, 201
SOTER: A Runtime Assurance Framework for Programming Safe Robotics Systems
The recent drive towards achieving greater autonomy and intelligence in
robotics has led to high levels of complexity. Autonomous robots increasingly
depend on third party off-the-shelf components and complex machine-learning
techniques. This trend makes it challenging to provide strong design-time
certification of correct operation.
To address these challenges, we present SOTER, a robotics programming
framework with two key components: (1) a programming language for implementing
and testing high-level reactive robotics software and (2) an integrated runtime
assurance (RTA) system that helps enable the use of uncertified components,
while still providing safety guarantees. SOTER provides language primitives to
declaratively construct a RTA module consisting of an advanced,
high-performance controller (uncertified), a safe, lower-performance controller
(certified), and the desired safety specification. The framework provides a
formal guarantee that a well-formed RTA module always satisfies the safety
specification, without completely sacrificing performance by using higher
performance uncertified components whenever safe. SOTER allows the complex
robotics software stack to be constructed as a composition of RTA modules,
where each uncertified component is protected using a RTA module.
To demonstrate the efficacy of our framework, we consider a real-world
case-study of building a safe drone surveillance system. Our experiments both
in simulation and on actual drones show that the SOTER-enabled RTA ensures the
safety of the system, including when untrusted third-party components have bugs
or deviate from the desired behavior
Spiking Neural Networks for Inference and Learning: A Memristor-based Design Perspective
On metrics of density and power efficiency, neuromorphic technologies have
the potential to surpass mainstream computing technologies in tasks where
real-time functionality, adaptability, and autonomy are essential. While
algorithmic advances in neuromorphic computing are proceeding successfully, the
potential of memristors to improve neuromorphic computing have not yet born
fruit, primarily because they are often used as a drop-in replacement to
conventional memory. However, interdisciplinary approaches anchored in machine
learning theory suggest that multifactor plasticity rules matching neural and
synaptic dynamics to the device capabilities can take better advantage of
memristor dynamics and its stochasticity. Furthermore, such plasticity rules
generally show much higher performance than that of classical Spike Time
Dependent Plasticity (STDP) rules. This chapter reviews the recent development
in learning with spiking neural network models and their possible
implementation with memristor-based hardware
Hierarchical Decomposition of Nonlinear Dynamics and Control for System Identification and Policy Distillation
The control of nonlinear dynamical systems remains a major challenge for
autonomous agents. Current trends in reinforcement learning (RL) focus on
complex representations of dynamics and policies, which have yielded impressive
results in solving a variety of hard control tasks. However, this new
sophistication and extremely over-parameterized models have come with the cost
of an overall reduction in our ability to interpret the resulting policies. In
this paper, we take inspiration from the control community and apply the
principles of hybrid switching systems in order to break down complex dynamics
into simpler components. We exploit the rich representational power of
probabilistic graphical models and derive an expectation-maximization (EM)
algorithm for learning a sequence model to capture the temporal structure of
the data and automatically decompose nonlinear dynamics into stochastic
switching linear dynamical systems. Moreover, we show how this framework of
switching models enables extracting hierarchies of Markovian and
auto-regressive locally linear controllers from nonlinear experts in an
imitation learning scenario.Comment: 2nd Annual Conference on Learning for Dynamics and Contro
Sciduction: Combining Induction, Deduction, and Structure for Verification and Synthesis
Even with impressive advances in automated formal methods, certain problems
in system verification and synthesis remain challenging. Examples include the
verification of quantitative properties of software involving constraints on
timing and energy consumption, and the automatic synthesis of systems from
specifications. The major challenges include environment modeling,
incompleteness in specifications, and the complexity of underlying decision
problems.
This position paper proposes sciduction, an approach to tackle these
challenges by integrating inductive inference, deductive reasoning, and
structure hypotheses. Deductive reasoning, which leads from general rules or
concepts to conclusions about specific problem instances, includes techniques
such as logical inference and constraint solving. Inductive inference, which
generalizes from specific instances to yield a concept, includes algorithmic
learning from examples. Structure hypotheses are used to define the class of
artifacts, such as invariants or program fragments, generated during
verification or synthesis. Sciduction constrains inductive and deductive
reasoning using structure hypotheses, and actively combines inductive and
deductive reasoning: for instance, deductive techniques generate examples for
learning, and inductive reasoning is used to guide the deductive engines.
We illustrate this approach with three applications: (i) timing analysis of
software; (ii) synthesis of loop-free programs, and (iii) controller synthesis
for hybrid systems. Some future applications are also discussed
Memristors for the Curious Outsiders
We present both an overview and a perspective of recent experimental advances
and proposed new approaches to performing computation using memristors. A
memristor is a 2-terminal passive component with a dynamic resistance depending
on an internal parameter. We provide an brief historical introduction, as well
as an overview over the physical mechanism that lead to memristive behavior.
This review is meant to guide nonpractitioners in the field of memristive
circuits and their connection to machine learning and neural computation.Comment: Perpective paper for MDPI Technologies; 43 page
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