Adaptive multi-robot team reconfiguration using a policy-reuse reinforcement learning approach

Prithviraj Dasgupta, Ke Cheng, Bikramjit Banerjee

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

We consider the problem of dynamically adjusting the formation and size of robot teams performing distributed area coverage, when they encounter obstacles or occlusions along their path. Based on our earlier formulation of the robotic team formation problem as a coalitional game called a weighted voting game (WVG), we show that the robot team size can be dynamically adapted by adjusting the WVG's quota parameter. We use a Q-learning algorithm to learn the value of the quota parameter and a policy reuse mechanism to adapt the learning process to changes in the underlying environment. Experimental results using simulated e-puck robots within the Webots simulator show that our Q-learning algorithm converges within a finite number of steps in different types of environments. Using the learning algorithm also improves the performance of an area coverage application where multiple robot teams move in formation to explore an initially unknown environment by 5∈-∈10%.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationAdvanced Agent Technology - AAMAS 2011 Workshops, AMPLE, AOSE, ARMS, DOCM3AS, ITMAS, Revised Selected Papers
Pages330-345
Number of pages16
DOIs
StatePublished - 2012
EventInternational Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems, AAMAS 2011 - Taipei, Taiwan, Province of China
Duration: May 2 2011May 6 2011

Publication series

NameLecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)
Volume7068 LNAI
ISSN (Print)0302-9743
ISSN (Electronic)1611-3349

Conference

ConferenceInternational Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems, AAMAS 2011
Country/TerritoryTaiwan, Province of China
CityTaipei
Period5/2/115/6/11

Keywords

  • Q-learning
  • coalition game
  • multi-robot formation

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Theoretical Computer Science
  • General Computer Science

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Adaptive multi-robot team reconfiguration using a policy-reuse reinforcement learning approach'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this