How to Kickstart Your Deep Learning Projects with a PyTorch Template

Aug 8, 2022 | Data Science

A sound structure is like a sturdy foundation for building a house; it gives you the stability to expand and innovate. In the realm of Deep Learning, leveraging a well-designed project template can streamline your workflow significantly. With that in mind, let’s delve into a PyTorch project template that encapsulates simplicity, best practices for folder structure, and excellent Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) design.

In a Nutshell

This template is crafted for ease; it aims to help you focus on your core models and training flows, rather than the repetitive groundwork you typically encounter when starting a new project. For example, if you want to implement ResNet-18 to train the MNIST dataset, here are the steps:

  • Create a Python file in the modeling folder, like example_model.py.
  • In modeling/__init__.py, build a function to call your model:
  • from .example_model import ResNet18
    
    def build_model(cfg):
        model = ResNet18(cfg.MODEL.NUM_CLASSES)
        return model
  • In the engine folder, create a model trainer and inference function:
  • # trainer
    def do_train(cfg, model, train_loader, val_loader, optimizer, scheduler, loss_fn):
        implement the logic of epoch:
        - loop on the number of iterations in the config and call the train step
        - add any summaries you want using the summary pass
    
    # inference
    def inference(cfg, model, val_loader):
        implement the logic of the train step
        - run the tensorflow session
        - return any metrics you need to summarize
  • In the tools folder, create train.py to bind everything together:
  • # Example of train.py
    model = build_model(cfg)
    
    train_loader = make_data_loader(cfg, is_train=True)
    val_loader = make_data_loader(cfg, is_train=False)
    
    optimizer = make_optimizer(cfg, model)
    
    # Start training
    do_train(cfg, model, train_loader, val_loader, optimizer, None, F.cross_entropy)

With this setup, you’ll be ready to train your first model swiftly!

In Detail

Here’s a breakdown of the fundamental components:

  • config: Default settings and configurations stored in defaults.py and tailored files like train_mnist_softmax.yml.
  • data:
    • datasets: Handles data management.
    • transforms: Responsible for data augmentation.
    • build.py: Constructs the data loader.
    • collate_batch.py: Merges samples for mini-batch creation.
  • engine: Contains training loops in trainer.py and inference processes in inference.py.
  • layers: Includes any custom layers needed for your project.
  • modeling: Houses all your model architectures.
  • solver: Optimizers and learning rate schedulers are found here.
  • tools: This folder might contain the main file to kick off training, such as train_net.py.
  • utils: A repository for utility functions and logging features in logger.py.
  • tests: Essential unit tests for reliability and integrity.

Future Work

This template is a living document! Contribution ideas or any enhancements are welcome!

Troubleshooting Ideas

Encountering bumps along your journey? Here are some troubleshooting tips:

  • Check package versions; ensure you have the recommended versions of dependencies (like yacs, PyTorch, ignite).
  • Ensure your folder structure adheres to the template layout to avoid import errors.
  • Consult the community or documentation for the specific libraries you are using.
  • If you encounter persistent issues, consider reaching out for collaborative support. For more insights, updates, or to collaborate on AI development projects, stay connected with fxis.ai.

At fxis.ai, we believe that such advancements are crucial for the future of AI, as they enable more comprehensive and effective solutions. Our team is continually exploring new methodologies to push the envelope in artificial intelligence, ensuring that our clients benefit from the latest technological innovations.

Acknowledgments

A big thank you to all contributors and maintainers who have worked tirelessly to create this template—your efforts are invaluable!

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