tao-train-mask-auto-label

MAL

MAL (Mask Auto-Label) for weakly-supervised segmentation. Produces segmentation masks from minimal annotations (e.g., point or box annotations). Uses ViT-MAE backbone.

Set train.pretrained_model_path for ViT-MAE pretrained weights.

Dataclass Schemas

Generated TAO Core schemas are packaged in schemas/<action>.schema.json, with schemas/manifest.json listing available actions. Each generated schema also emits references/spec_template_<action>.yaml from the schema top-level default field. AutoML enablement is declared at the model layer in references/skill_info.yaml via automl_enabled. Runnable AutoML still requires schemas/train.schema.json and references/spec_template_train.yaml to exist and parse. Use the packaged train schema for automl_default_parameters, automl_disabled_parameters, defaults, min/max bounds, enums, option weights, math conditions, dependencies, and popular parameters. Do not expect ~/tao-core at runtime; maintainers regenerate schemas/templates before packaging the skill bank.

Train Action Policy

This model is AutoML-enabled at the model layer. Before handling any train-stage request, read references/skill_info.yaml and resolve the run override from either an explicit automl_policy value or the user's workflow request. Treat phrases like "turn off AutoML", "disable AutoML", "no HPO", or "plain training" as automl_policy: off for this run only; otherwise default to auto. When automl_policy: auto, automl_enabled: true, and both schemas/train.schema.json and references/spec_template_train.yaml are packaged, route the train action through tao-skill-bank:tao-run-automl by default with this model's skill_dir. Preserve workflow/application overrides for datasets, specs, output directories, GPU/platform settings, parent checkpoints, and automl_policy. Use direct model training only when automl_policy: off or the packaged train schema/template is missing; in the missing-schema case, report that AutoML is enabled but not runnable for this model until schemas are generated.

Non-train actions such as evaluate, inference, export, and deploy flows stay in this model skill. The per-run automl_policy override does not change model metadata.

Training Requirements

• Dataset type: segmentation
• Formats: default
• Monitoring metric: mIoU

Per-Action Dataset Requirements

Action	Spec Key	Source	Files	List?
evaluate	dataset.val_img_dir	eval_dataset	images.tar.gz	No
evaluate	dataset.val_ann_path	eval_dataset	annotations.json	No
inference	inference.img_dir	inference_dataset	images.tar.gz	No
inference	inference.ann_path	inference_dataset	annotations.json	No
train	dataset.train_img_dir	train_datasets	images.tar.gz	No
train	dataset.train_ann_path	train_datasets	annotations.json	No
train	dataset.val_img_dir	eval_dataset	images.tar.gz	No
train	dataset.val_ann_path	eval_dataset	annotations.json	No

Typical Spec Overrides

Data source overrides are mandatory for every action — the agent MUST construct data source paths from the Per-Action Dataset Requirements table above and include them in spec_overrides.

S3_TRAIN = "s3://bucket/data/train"
S3_EVAL = "s3://bucket/data/eval"

train (mandatory data sources):

{
    "train.num_gpus": 1,
    "train.gpu_ids": [
        0
    ],
    "train.num_epochs": 5,
    "train.checkpoint_interval": 5,
    "train.validation_interval": 5,
    "dataset.train_img_dir": f"{S3_TRAIN}/images.tar.gz",
    "dataset.train_ann_path": f"{S3_TRAIN}/annotations.json",
    "dataset.val_img_dir": f"{S3_EVAL}/images.tar.gz",
    "dataset.val_ann_path": f"{S3_EVAL}/annotations.json",
}

evaluate (mandatory data sources):

{
    "dataset.val_img_dir": f"{S3_EVAL}/images.tar.gz",
    "dataset.val_ann_path": f"{S3_EVAL}/annotations.json",
}

inference (mandatory data sources):

{
    "inference.img_dir": f"{S3_EVAL}/images.tar.gz",
    "inference.ann_path": f"{S3_EVAL}/annotations.json",
}

Eval Dataset

Optional. Val images and annotations configured alongside train paths.

Important Parameters

• model.arch: ViT-MAE backbone variant. Default vit-mae-base/16. Options include vit-mae-large/16 and other ViT-MAE variants.
• train.lr: Learning rate. Default 1e-6 (very low — fine-tuning ViT).
• model.crop_size: Training crop size. Default 512.
• train.warmup_epochs: Warmup epochs before full learning rate.
• model.load_mask: Whether to load pre-computed masks.

Multi-GPU / Multi-Node

Launch method: Lightning-managed (single python process, Lightning spawns workers).

Spec Key	Description	Default
train.num_gpus	Number of GPUs	1
train.gpu_ids	GPU device indices	[0]
train.num_nodes	Number of nodes	1

• Multi-GPU strategy: ddp_find_unused_parameters_true
• No fsdp support
• LR auto-scaling: lr = lr * num_devices * batch_size (learning rate is scaled automatically by device count and batch size)

Multi-node env vars (set by orchestrator): WORLD_SIZE, NODE_RANK, MASTER_ADDR, MASTER_PORT, NUM_GPU_PER_NODE.

Hardware

Minimum 1 GPU(s), recommended 2 GPU(s). 24GB+ (A100 recommended) VRAM per GPU. ViT-MAE backbone at crop_size=512 needs 24GB+ GPU memory.

Error Patterns

CUDA out of memory: Reduce model.crop_size (512 -> 384 -> 256) or use a smaller ViT-MAE variant (base vs large).

Spec Param / Parent Model Inference

Model-specific inference mappings belong in this MD file, not in config.json. Generated runners should read this section and apply the mappings with SDK helpers before create_job(). This mirrors the old microservices infer_params.py flow.

Inference mappings from TAO Core mal.config.json:

Action	Spec Field	Inference Function	Meaning
evaluate	evaluate.checkpoint	parent_model	model file inferred from the parent job results folder
evaluate	results_dir	output_dir	current job results directory
inference	inference.checkpoint	parent_model	model file inferred from the parent job results folder
inference	inference.label_dump_path	create_inference_result_file_mal	MAL inference JSON path
inference	results_dir	output_dir	current job results directory
train	results_dir	output_dir	current job results directory

For parent_model or parent_model_folder, pass the upstream train/export/AutoML child job id as parent_job_id. The SDK lists the parent result folder, filters checkpoint artifacts, and returns the selected model file or folder. Do not add these mappings back to config.json and do not patch generated runner scripts to guess checkpoint paths.