Dual-Agent Reinforcement Learning for Automated Feature Generation

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Gao, Wanfu, Man, Zengyao, Pan, Hanlin, Liu, Kunpeng
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Gao, Wanfu
Man, Zengyao
Pan, Hanlin
Liu, Kunpeng
author_facet Gao, Wanfu
Man, Zengyao
Pan, Hanlin
Liu, Kunpeng
contents Feature generation involves creating new features from raw data to capture complex relationships among the original features, improving model robustness and machine learning performance. Current methods using reinforcement learning for feature generation have made feature exploration more flexible and efficient. However, several challenges remain: first, during feature expansion, a large number of redundant features are generated. When removing them, current methods only retain the best features each round, neglecting those that perform poorly initially but could improve later. Second, the state representation used by current methods fails to fully capture complex feature relationships. Third, there are significant differences between discrete and continuous features in tabular data, requiring different operations for each type. To address these challenges, we propose a novel dual-agent reinforcement learning method for feature generation. Two agents are designed: the first generates new features, and the second determines whether they should be preserved. A self-attention mechanism enhances state representation, and diverse operations distinguish interactions between discrete and continuous features. The experimental results on multiple datasets demonstrate that the proposed method is effective. The code is available at https://github.com/extess0/DARL.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2505_12628
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Dual-Agent Reinforcement Learning for Automated Feature Generation
Gao, Wanfu
Man, Zengyao
Pan, Hanlin
Liu, Kunpeng
Machine Learning
Feature generation involves creating new features from raw data to capture complex relationships among the original features, improving model robustness and machine learning performance. Current methods using reinforcement learning for feature generation have made feature exploration more flexible and efficient. However, several challenges remain: first, during feature expansion, a large number of redundant features are generated. When removing them, current methods only retain the best features each round, neglecting those that perform poorly initially but could improve later. Second, the state representation used by current methods fails to fully capture complex feature relationships. Third, there are significant differences between discrete and continuous features in tabular data, requiring different operations for each type. To address these challenges, we propose a novel dual-agent reinforcement learning method for feature generation. Two agents are designed: the first generates new features, and the second determines whether they should be preserved. A self-attention mechanism enhances state representation, and diverse operations distinguish interactions between discrete and continuous features. The experimental results on multiple datasets demonstrate that the proposed method is effective. The code is available at https://github.com/extess0/DARL.
title Dual-Agent Reinforcement Learning for Automated Feature Generation
topic Machine Learning
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.12628