Presynaptic spike-driven plasticity based on eligibility trace for on-chip learning system.

INTRODUCTION: Recurrent spiking neural network (RSNN) performs excellently in spatio-temporal learning with backpropagation through time (BPTT) algorithm. But the requirement of computation and memory in BPTT makes it hard to realize an on-chip learning system based on RSNN. In this paper, we aim to realize a high-efficient RSNN learning system on field programmable gate array (FPGA).

METHODS: A presynaptic spike-driven plasticity architecture based on eligibility trace is implemented to reduce the resource consumption. The RSNN with leaky integrate-and-fire (LIF) and adaptive LIF (ALIF) models is implemented on FPGA based on presynaptic spike-driven architecture. In this architecture, the eligibility trace gated by a learning signal is used to optimize synaptic weights without unfolding the network through time. When a presynaptic spike occurs, the eligibility trace is calculated based on its latest timestamp and drives synapses to update their weights. Only the latest timestamps of presynaptic spikes are required to be stored in buffers to calculate eligibility traces.

RESULTS: We show the implementation of this architecture on FPGA and test it with two experiments. With the presynaptic spike-driven architecture, the resource consumptions, including look-up tables (LUTs) and registers, and dynamic power consumption of synaptic modules in the on-chip learning system are greatly reduced. The experiment results and compilation results show that the buffer size of the on-chip learning system is reduced and the RSNNs implemented on FPGA exhibit high efficiency in resources and energy while accurately solving tasks.

DISCUSSION: This study provides a solution to the problem of data congestion in the buffer of large-scale learning systems.