Description
This work has improved the quality of the solution to the sparse rewards problemby combining reinforcement learning (RL) with knowledge-rich planning. Classical
methods for coping with sparse rewards during reinforcement learning modify the
reward landscape so as to better guide the learner. In contrast, this work combines
RL with a planner in order to utilize other information about the environment. As
the scope for representing environmental information is limited in RL, this work has
conflated a model-free learning algorithm – temporal difference (TD) learning – with
a Hierarchical Task Network (HTN) planner to accommodate rich environmental
information in the algorithm. In the perpetual sparse rewards problem, rewards
reemerge after being collected within a fixed interval of time, culminating in a lack of a
well-defined goal state as an exit condition to the problem. Incorporating planning in
the learning algorithm not only improves the quality of the solution, but the algorithm
also avoids the ambiguity of incorporating a goal of maximizing profit while using
only a planning algorithm to solve this problem. Upon occasionally using the HTN
planner, this algorithm provides the necessary tweak toward the optimal solution. In
this work, I have demonstrated an on-policy algorithm that has improved the quality
of the solution over vanilla reinforcement learning. The objective of this work has
been to observe the capacity of the synthesized algorithm in finding optimal policies to
maximize rewards, awareness of the environment, and the awareness of the presence
of other agents in the vicinity.
Details
Title
- Combining learning with knowledge-rich planning allows for efficient multi-agent solutions to the problem of perpetual sparse rewards
Contributors
- Nandan, Swastik (Author)
- Pavlic, Theodore (Thesis advisor)
- Das, Jnaneshwar (Thesis advisor)
- Berman, Spring (Committee member)
- Arizona State University (Publisher)
Date Created
The date the item was original created (prior to any relationship with the ASU Digital Repositories.)
2022
Subjects
Resource Type
Collections this item is in
Note
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Partial requirement for: M.S., Arizona State University, 2022
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Field of study: Computer Science