Decentralised and collaborative machine learning framework for IoT

Decentralised machine learning has recently been proposed as a potential solution to the security issues of the canonical federated learning approach. In this paper, we propose a decentralised and collaborative machine learning framework specially oriented to resource-constrained devices, usual in IoT deployments. With this aim we propose the following construction blocks. First, an incremental learning algorithm based on prototypes that was specifically implemented to work in low-performance computing elements. Second, two random-based protocols to exchange the local models among the computing elements in the network. This proposal was compared to a typical centralized incremental learning approach in terms of accuracy, training time and robustness with very promising results. Decentralized machine learning faces how to use data and models from different sources to build machine learning models that gather the partial knowledge learned by each agent in this network to create, in a collaborative way, a global vision or model of the whole network. This would allow processing large amount of data managed by different computing elements. However, this approach entails several issues that must be considered when proposing solutions for this kind of computing environments. One of the most worrying is how to provide secure and private solutions that protect personal data when building global models. Some approaches have been already proposed to decentralise machine learning algorithms so that a set of networked agents can participate in building a global model.