Deep Q-Networks (DQN) are a powerful class of reinforcement learning algorithms that have been successfully used in various applications, such as robotics, game playing, and finance. However, one challenge with DQNs is their lack of robustness to uncertainties in the environment, which can result in suboptimal or unsafe decisions. In this blog post, we will discuss how to quantify the uncertainty in DQNs using Bayesian deep learning, and how to use this uncertainty to make more robust decisions.
Bayesian Deep Learning
Bayesian deep learning is a framework that combines deep learning with Bayesian inference to quantify the uncertainty in neural network models. In Bayesian deep learning, we treat the weights of the neural network as random variables, and we define a prior distribution over these weights. We then use Bayes' rule to update the prior distribution to a posterior distribution, given the observed data. The posterior distribution represents our updated belief about the weights, given the data.
Uncertainty in DQNs
In DQNs, the uncertainty arises from two sources: the stochasticity of the environment, and the uncertainty in the neural network model. The stochasticity of the environment refers to the randomness in the outcomes of the actions taken by the agent, due to the inherent randomness in the environment. The uncertainty in the neural network model refers to our uncertainty about the optimal actions given the current state of the environment, which is represented by the Q-values predicted by the neural network.
Bayesian DQN
To quantify the uncertainty in DQNs, we can use Bayesian deep learning to model the uncertainty in the neural network weights. Specifically, we can use a Bayesian neural network (BNN), which is a neural network with weights treated as random variables. We can then use Monte Carlo dropout (MC dropout) to approximate the Bayesian inference process. MC dropout involves adding dropout at test time and sampling multiple predictions from the network to estimate the distribution of the predictions.
The loss function for training the Bayesian DQN is the negative log-likelihood of the observed data, which includes the rewards received and the transitions between states. The loss function is modified to include a penalty term for the entropy of the distribution over the Q-values, which encourages exploration and reduces overconfidence in the predictions.
Python Implementation
To implement a Bayesian DQN in Python using TensorFlow, we can start with the standard DQN implementation and modify it to use a BNN and MC dropout. The following code shows an example of how to modify the Q-network in a DQN to use a BNN and MC dropout:
class BayesianQNetwork(tf.keras.Model):
def __init__(self, num_actions, num_hidden_units):
super(BayesianQNetwork, self).__init__()
self.num_actions = num_actions
self.dense1 = tf.keras.layers.Dense(num_hidden_units, activation='relu')
self.dense2 = tf.keras.layers.Dense(num_hidden_units, activation='relu')
self.logits = tf.keras.layers.Dense(num_actions)
def call(self, inputs):
x = self.dense1(inputs)
x = self.dense2(x)
logits = self.logits(x)
return logits
def sample_predictions(self, inputs, num_samples=10):
outputs = []
for _ in range(num_samples):
outputs.append(self(inputs))
return tf.stack(outputs)
In this code, the Q-network is defined as a BNN with two hidden layers and a softmax output layer. The sample_predictions
function is used to sample predictions from the network using MC dropout.
To modify the loss function to include the penalty term for entropy, we can use the following code:
def bayesian_loss(model, states, targets, num_samples=10):
"""
Computes the Bayesian loss of a model given the states and targets.
Arguments:
model -- the deep Q-network model
states -- a batch of input states (numpy array of shape (batch_size, state_size))
targets -- a batch of target Q-values (numpy array of shape (batch_size, num_actions))
num_samples -- the number of samples to draw from the posterior distribution (default 10)
Returns:
The Bayesian loss (scalar).
"""
# Compute the predicted Q-values and log variance for each state-action pair
q_values = []
log_variances = []
for i in range(num_samples):
q_values_i, log_variances_i = model(states, sample=True)
q_values.append(q_values_i)
log_variances.append(log_variances_i)
q_values = tf.stack(q_values) # shape: (num_samples, batch_size, num_actions)
log_variances = tf.stack(log_variances) # shape: (num_samples, batch_size, num_actions)
# Compute the mean and variance of the predicted Q-values and log variances
q_mean = tf.reduce_mean(q_values, axis=0) # shape: (batch_size, num_actions)
q_var = tf.math.reduce_variance(q_values, axis=0) # shape: (batch_size, num_actions)
log_var_mean = tf.reduce_mean(log_variances, axis=0) # shape: (batch_size, num_actions)
# Compute the Bayesian loss
precision = tf.exp(-log_var_mean)
loss = 0.5 * precision * tf.reduce_sum(tf.square(targets - q_mean), axis=-1) + \
0.5 * tf.math.log(1 + q_var * precision) # shape: (batch_size,)
loss = tf.reduce_mean(loss) # take the mean over the batch
return loss