Unveiling the Superior Paradigm: A Comparative Study of Source-Free Domain Adaptation and Unsupervised Domain Adaptation

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Hauptverfasser: Wang, Fan, Han, Zhongyi, Liu, Xingbo, Gao, Xin, Yin, Yilong
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Veröffentlicht: 2024
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author Wang, Fan
Han, Zhongyi
Liu, Xingbo
Gao, Xin
Yin, Yilong
author_facet Wang, Fan
Han, Zhongyi
Liu, Xingbo
Gao, Xin
Yin, Yilong
contents In domain adaptation, there are two popular paradigms: Unsupervised Domain Adaptation (UDA), which aligns distributions using source data, and Source-Free Domain Adaptation (SFDA), which leverages pre-trained source models without accessing source data. Evaluating the superiority of UDA versus SFDA is an open and timely question with significant implications for deploying adaptive algorithms in practical applications. In this study, we demonstrate through predictive coding theory and extensive experiments on multiple benchmark datasets that SFDA generally outperforms UDA in real-world scenarios. Specifically, SFDA offers advantages in time efficiency, storage requirements, targeted learning objectives, reduced risk of negative transfer, and increased robustness against overfitting. Notably, SFDA is particularly effective in mitigating negative transfer when there are substantial distribution discrepancies between source and target domains. Additionally, we introduce a novel data-model fusion scenario, where data sharing among stakeholders varies (e.g., some provide raw data while others provide only models), and reveal that traditional UDA and SFDA methods do not fully exploit their potential in this context. To address this limitation and capitalize on the strengths of SFDA, we propose a novel weight estimation method that effectively integrates available source data into multi-SFDA (MSFDA) approaches, thereby enhancing model performance within this scenario. This work provides a thorough analysis of UDA versus SFDA and advances a practical approach to model adaptation across diverse real-world environments.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2411_15844
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Unveiling the Superior Paradigm: A Comparative Study of Source-Free Domain Adaptation and Unsupervised Domain Adaptation
Wang, Fan
Han, Zhongyi
Liu, Xingbo
Gao, Xin
Yin, Yilong
Machine Learning
Artificial Intelligence
Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition
In domain adaptation, there are two popular paradigms: Unsupervised Domain Adaptation (UDA), which aligns distributions using source data, and Source-Free Domain Adaptation (SFDA), which leverages pre-trained source models without accessing source data. Evaluating the superiority of UDA versus SFDA is an open and timely question with significant implications for deploying adaptive algorithms in practical applications. In this study, we demonstrate through predictive coding theory and extensive experiments on multiple benchmark datasets that SFDA generally outperforms UDA in real-world scenarios. Specifically, SFDA offers advantages in time efficiency, storage requirements, targeted learning objectives, reduced risk of negative transfer, and increased robustness against overfitting. Notably, SFDA is particularly effective in mitigating negative transfer when there are substantial distribution discrepancies between source and target domains. Additionally, we introduce a novel data-model fusion scenario, where data sharing among stakeholders varies (e.g., some provide raw data while others provide only models), and reveal that traditional UDA and SFDA methods do not fully exploit their potential in this context. To address this limitation and capitalize on the strengths of SFDA, we propose a novel weight estimation method that effectively integrates available source data into multi-SFDA (MSFDA) approaches, thereby enhancing model performance within this scenario. This work provides a thorough analysis of UDA versus SFDA and advances a practical approach to model adaptation across diverse real-world environments.
title Unveiling the Superior Paradigm: A Comparative Study of Source-Free Domain Adaptation and Unsupervised Domain Adaptation
topic Machine Learning
Artificial Intelligence
Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2411.15844