arXiv:2511.07904cs.LGcs.AI2025-11AAAI

用测试函数替代传统奖励函数,让强化学习更易设计且支持多目标。

Test-driven Reinforcement Learning in Continuous Control

  • 拆分任务为通过/失败测试与指示性测试,分别定义目标和引导学习
  • 实验表明性能媲美甚至超越手工奖励,在连续控制任务中更稳定
  • 适合需要简化设计、多目标优化的机器人控制场景

强化学习(RL)在机器人控制中表现强大,但通常依赖人工设计的奖励函数来定义目标并引导学习,导致任务表征不优。为此,受满足理论启发,本文提出测试驱动强化学习(TdRL)框架:使用多个测试函数表示任务目标,分为通过/失败测试(定义最优目标)和指示性测试(引导学习过程),从而简化任务定义。理论上证明,若轨迹回报函数对靠近最优轨迹集的路径赋予更高回报,则基于最大熵的策略优化可逼近最优策略集。进一步提出字典序启发式方法,用于比较轨迹与最优轨迹集的距离关系,以学习回报函数。实现的TdRL算法在DeepMind Control Suite基准上表现优异,性能匹配或超越手工奖励方法,且设计更简单,天然支持多目标优化。本文认为,该框架为解决强化学习中的奖励设计难题提供了新视角。

原文摘要 · Abstract (English)

Reinforcement learning (RL) has been recognized as a powerful tool for robot control tasks. RL typically employs reward functions to define task objectives and guide agent learning. However, since the reward function serves the dual purpose of defining the optimal goal and guiding learning, it is challenging to design the reward function manually, which often results in a suboptimal task representation. To tackle the reward design challenge in RL, inspired by the satisficing theory, we propose a Test-driven Reinforcement Learning (TdRL) framework. In the TdRL framework, multiple test functions are used to represent the task objective rather than a single reward function. Test functions can be categorized as pass-fail tests and indicative tests, each dedicated to defining the optimal objective and guiding the learning process, respectively, thereby making defining tasks easier. Building upon such a task definition, we first prove that if a trajectory return function assigns higher returns to trajectories closer to the optimal trajectory set, maximum entropy policy optimization based on this return function will yield a policy that is closer to the optimal policy set. Then, we introduce a lexicographic heuristic approach to compare the relative distance relationship between trajectories and the optimal trajectory set for learning the trajectory return function. Furthermore, we develop an algorithm implementation of TdRL. Experimental results on the DeepMind Control Suite benchmark demonstrate that TdRL matches or outperforms handcrafted reward methods in policy training, with greater design simplicity and inherent support for multi-objective optimization. We argue that TdRL offers a novel perspective for representing task objectives, which could be helpful in addressing the reward design challenges in RL applications.

强化学习机器人控制任务定义多目标优化

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