Mixed-precision Deep Neural Networks achieve the energy efficiency and throughput needed for hardware deployment, particularly when the resources are limited, without sacrificing accuracy. However, the optimal per-layer bit precision that preserves accuracy is not easily found, especially with the abundance of models, datasets, and quantization techniques that creates an enormous search space. In order to tackle this difficulty, a body of literature has emerged recently, and several frameworks that achieved promising accuracy results have been proposed. In this paper, we start by summarizing the quantization techniques used generally in literature. Then, we present a thorough survey of the mixed-precision frameworks, categorized according to their optimization techniques such as reinforcement learning and quantization techniques like deterministic rounding. Furthermore, the advantages and shortcomings of each framework are discussed, where we present a juxtaposition. We finally give guidelines for future mixed-precision frameworks.

本文介绍了混合精度框架优化技巧的现有文献，并对常用的量化技巧进行了总结，其中部分框架运用的优化技巧为强化学习和确定性舍入，文章讨论了每种框架的优点和缺陷，并且为未来的混合精度框架提供了指导。

混合精度神经网络综述