Related papers: Certifying Hamilton-Jacobi Reachability Learned vi…

We present a novel framework for solving optimal transport (OT) problems based on the Hamilton--Jacobi (HJ) equation, whose viscosity solution uniquely characterizes the OT map. By leveraging the method of characteristics, we derive…

Existing approaches to language model alignment often treat safety as a tradeoff against helpfulness, which can lead to unacceptable responses in sensitive domains. To ensure reliable performance in such settings, we propose High-Confidence…

In this paper, we introduce Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) equations for Q-functions in continuous time optimal control problems with Lipschitz continuous controls. The standard Q-function used in reinforcement learning is shown to be the…

This paper investigates the problem of maintaining the safe operation of Waste-to-Energy (WtE) systems under operational constraints and uncertain waste inflows. We model this as a robust viability problem, formulated as a zero-sum…

Value function approximation is important in modern reinforcement learning (RL) problems especially when the state space is (infinitely) large. Despite the importance and wide applicability of value function approximation, its theoretical…

Reinforcement Learning (RL) has been shown to be effective in many scenarios. However, it typically requires the exploration of a sufficiently large number of state-action pairs, some of which may be unsafe. Consequently, its application to…

We propose a novel hierarchical reinforcement learning framework for quadruped locomotion over challenging terrain. Our approach incorporates a two-layer hierarchy in which a high-level policy (HLP) selects optimal goals for a low-level…

Control barrier functions (CBFs) have been demonstrated as an effective method for safety-critical control of autonomous systems. Although CBFs are simple to deploy, their design remains challenging, motivating the development of…

In recent times, a variety of Reinforcement Learning (RL) algorithms have been proposed for optimal tracking problem of continuous time nonlinear systems with input constraints. Most of these algorithms are based on the notion of uniform…

The Hopf formula for Hamilton-Jacobi reachability (HJR) analysis has been proposed to solve high-dimensional differential games, producing the set of initial states and corresponding controller required to reach (or avoid) a target despite…

Hamilton-Jacobi (HJ) reachability analysis is a powerful framework for ensuring safety and performance in autonomous systems. However, existing methods typically rely on a white-box dynamics model of the system, limiting their applicability…

As reinforcement learning (RL) has achieved great success and been even adopted in safety-critical domains such as autonomous vehicles, a range of empirical studies have been conducted to improve its robustness against adversarial attacks.…

Multi-agent differential games are important and useful tools for analyzing many practical problems. With the recent surge of interest in using UAVs for civil purposes, the importance and urgency of developing tractable multi-agent analysis…

The Bellman equation and its continuous-time counterpart, the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) equation, serve as necessary conditions for optimality in reinforcement learning and optimal control. While the value function is known to be the…

Within a robot autonomy stack, the planner and controller are typically designed separately, and serve different purposes. As such, there is often a diffusion of responsibilities when it comes to ensuring safety for the robot. We propose…

In Bansal et al. (2019), a novel visual navigation framework that combines learning-based and model-based approaches has been proposed. Specifically, a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) predicts a waypoint that is used by the dynamics…

Despite impressive results, reinforcement learning (RL) suffers from slow convergence and requires a large variety of tuning strategies. In this paper, we investigate the ability of RL algorithms on simple continuous control tasks. We show…

Hamilton-Jacobi (HJ) reachability analysis is a powerful tool for analyzing the safety of autonomous systems. However, the provided safety assurances are often predicated on the assumption that once deployed, the system or its environment…

Reinforcement learning (RL) commonly relies on scalar rewards with limited ability to express temporal, conditional, or safety-critical goals, and can lead to reward hacking. Temporal logic expressible via the more general class of…

This study presents a dynamic safety margin-based reinforcement learning framework for local motion planning in dynamic and uncertain environments. The proposed planner integrates real-time trajectory optimization with adaptive gap…