arXiv:2604.18161cs.LGcs.AI2026-04

提出轻量级方法提升非光滑环境下的策略梯度学习效率。

Does "Do Differentiable Simulators Give Better Policy Gradients?'' Give Better Policy Gradients?

论文配图:Does "Do Differentiable Simulators Give Better Policy Gradients?'' Give Better Policy Gradients?
图 1 · 摘自论文原文
  • 引入DDCG检测不连续区域并切换梯度估计器,仅需一个超参数。
  • 在可微机器人任务中,IVW-H通过逆方差控制稳定梯度方差。
  • 实际部署中,方差控制比检测间断更关键,适合强化学习工程应用。

在策略梯度强化学习中,可微分模型支持一阶梯度估计,加速学习进程,但不连续动态会引入偏差,削弱一阶估计器效果。现有方法通过构建REINFORCE零阶梯度估计的置信区间来检测不连续性,但该估计器噪声大,需任务特定调参且样本效率低。本文探究偏差是否为主要障碍及最小修复方案。首先,重新审视标准不连续设置,提出轻量级测试DDCG,可在非光滑区域切换估计器,仅需单一超参数,性能稳健且小样本下可靠。其次,在可微机器人控制任务中,提出每步逆方差实现IVW-H,无需显式检测间断即可稳定方差,取得优异结果。研究显示,虽估计器切换能提升受控实验中的鲁棒性,但实际部署中精细方差控制往往更为重要。

原文摘要 · Abstract (English)

In policy gradient reinforcement learning, access to a differentiable model enables 1st-order gradient estimation that accelerates learning compared to relying solely on derivative-free 0th-order estimators. However, discontinuous dynamics cause bias and undermine the effectiveness of 1st-order estimators. Prior work addressed this bias by constructing a confidence interval around the REINFORCE 0th-order gradient estimator and using these bounds to detect discontinuities. However, the REINFORCE estimator is notoriously noisy, and we find that this method requires task-specific hyperparameter tuning and has low sample efficiency. This paper asks whether such bias is the primary obstacle and what minimal fixes suffice. First, we re-examine standard discontinuous settings from prior work and introduce DDCG, a lightweight test that switches estimators in nonsmooth regions; with a single hyperparameter, DDCG achieves robust performance and remains reliable with small samples. Second, on differentiable robotics control tasks, we present IVW-H, a per-step inverse-variance implementation that stabilizes variance without explicit discontinuity detection and yields strong results. Together, these findings indicate that while estimator switching improves robustness in controlled studies, careful variance control often dominates in practical deployments.

强化学习策略梯度可微模拟器方差控制

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