Model-Free Reinforcement Learning
The central question is whether the agent has a model that can infer what may happen next, or whether it learns directly from trial-and-error interaction without such a model.
Before the Environment Responds
An agent does not always have to choose an action and then wait for the real environment to respond before considering what might happen. Some reinforcement learning systems include a model of the environment. The model supports inferences about how the environment may behave, allowing the agent to consider possible consequences before those situations are actually experienced.
The central question is whether the agent has a model that can infer what may happen next, or whether it learns directly from trial-and-error interaction without such a model.
The Model Query
The basic model query pairs a current state with an action. The model receives that state-action pair and produces a prediction of the next state and the next reward. In symbols from the source example, an agent in state S1 considers action A1; the model predicts that the environment may move to state S2 and provide reward R1.
Reading a Model Query
An agent is currently in state S1 and is considering action A1. What does the model provide?
- 1Form the query
The model receives the pair consisting of state S1 and action A1.
- 2Read the prediction
The model predicts that the environment may move to state S2 and provide reward R1.
- 3Interpret the result
The prediction describes a possible consequence. The real environment has not been moved by this query.
The model maps the state-action pair S1 and A1 to a predicted next state S2 and predicted next reward R1.
Planning Through Possibilities
Planning means considering possible future situations before they are actually experienced. A model makes this possible by supplying predictions about what may follow a state and action. The agent can use those possible future situations when deciding on a course of action, rather than relying only on a response that has already occurred in the real environment.
The tree represents alternatives, not a record of events that have already happened. Each branch begins with a possible action and leads to a possible future situation supplied by the model. Planning uses these possibilities to reason about which course of action to take.
What do you think happens?
An agent asks a model what may happen after taking A1 in state S1. Has the real environment already moved to the predicted next state?
Reveal answer
No, because the model only supplied an inference.
The source distinguishes a model prediction from a real environment transition. The model has not caused the environment to move.
Two Learning Families
| Aspect | Model-based methods | Model-free methods |
|---|---|---|
| Environment model | Use a model of the environment | Do not use a model of the environment |
| Decision approach | Use planning and possible future situations | Learn through trial and error |
| Relationship to interaction | Can consider consequences before those situations are experienced | Learn through interaction rather than first using a model to reason about possible futures |
The presence or absence of an environment model distinguishes these two families of methods.
Model-free does not mean that the agent cannot learn. It means that the agent is described as learning through trial and error without a model of the environment. The contrast is with model-based methods, whose decisions involve a model and planning.
Trial-and-Error Experience
In a model-free method, the agent does not first use an environment model to reason about possible futures. Instead, it learns through interaction with the environment: it takes actions and learns from the resulting experience. This is why model-free methods are described as almost the opposite of planning.
Common Classification Mistakes
Common mistake Treating a model prediction as a real environment transition.
What it looks likeThe model predicts S2 after the query involving S1 and A1, so the agent assumes the real environment is now in S2.
Why it failsThe source states that the model has not caused the real environment to move. It has only supplied an inference about what could happen.
Do this insteadDescribe S2 as a predicted next state until the real environment actually responds.
Common mistake Defining model-free learning as learning without rewards.
What it looks likeAn agent is called model-free because it does not use a model, so rewards are ignored.
Why it failsThe model-free distinction concerns the absence of an environment model and the use of trial-and-error learning, not the absence of rewards.
Do this insteadRemember that the source's model query includes a predicted next reward, while model-free methods are characterized by learning through interaction without a model.
Common mistake Calling any action selection planning.
What it looks likeAn agent interacts with the environment and then chooses another action; this is automatically called planning.
Why it failsPlanning specifically means considering possible future situations before they are actually experienced.
Do this insteadUse planning for the model-based process of considering possible futures, and use trial and error for learning through interaction without first using a model.
Check Your Understanding
An agent is in state S1 and considers action A1. A component predicts a possible next state S2 and reward R1, but the real environment has not yet responded. Identify the component's role and classify the decision process as model-based or model-free.
Hints
- Look for the component that receives a state-action pair and produces a predicted next state and next reward.
- Ask whether the agent is considering a possible consequence before the situation is actually experienced.
Practice Solution
Classify the process in which a component predicts S2 and R1 from S1 and A1 before the real environment responds.
- 1Identify the component
A component that receives a state and action and predicts a next state and reward is an environment model.
- 2Identify the reasoning pattern
The agent is considering a possible future situation before it is experienced, which is planning.
- 3Classify the method
Using a model and planning identifies the process as model-based rather than model-free.
This is a model-based process: the model predicts a possible outcome, and the agent can use that prediction for planning.
Key Takeaways
- 1An environment model gives an agent a way to infer how the environment may respond.
- 2A basic model query pairs a state and action with a predicted next state and next reward.
- 3A model prediction is an inference; it does not itself cause the real environment to move.
- 4Planning considers possible future situations before they are actually experienced.
- 5Model-based methods use models and planning, while model-free methods learn through trial and error without a model.
At a glance
- A model predicts how the environment may respond to a state-action pair.
- The predicted result includes a possible next state and next reward.
- Planning uses possible future situations before they are experienced.
- Model-free reinforcement learning learns through trial and error without an environment model.
- The presence or absence of a model separates model-based and model-free methods.