A novel modular Q-learning architecture to improve performance under incomplete learning in a grid soccer game

Multi-agent reinforcement learning methods suffer from several deficiencies that are rooted in the large state space of multi-agent environments. This paper tackles two deficiencies of multi-agent reinforcement learning methods: their slow learning rate, and low quality decision-making in early stages of learning. The proposed methods are applied in a grid-world soccer game. In the proposed approach, modular reinforcement learning is applied to reduce the state space of the learning agents from exponential to linear in terms of the number of agents. The modular model proposed here includes two new modules, a partial-module and a single-module. These two new modules are effective for increasing the speed of learning in a soccer game. We also apply the instance-based learning concepts, to choose proper actions in states that are not experienced adequately during learning. The key idea is to use neighbouring states that have been explored sufficiently during the learning phase. The results of experiments in a grid-soccer game environment show that our proposed methods produce a higher average reward compared to the situation where the proposed method is not applied to the modular structure. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.