BREAKING CHANGE: Complete migration from TensorFlow.js to Transformers.js for embedding generation
This is a major architectural change that replaces TensorFlow.js (USE model) with Transformers.js (all-MiniLM-L6-v2) for significantly improved performance and reduced complexity.
Key Changes:
- Replace TensorFlow.js Universal Sentence Encoder with Transformers.js all-MiniLM-L6-v2
- Reduce model size from 525MB to 87MB (83% reduction)
- Reduce embedding dimensions from 512 to 384 (faster distance calculations)
- Remove TensorFlow.js Float32Array patching (caused ONNX conflicts)
- Implement smart bundled model detection for offline operation
- Add explicit model download script for Docker deployments
- Remove complex environment variables in favor of simple configuration
- Update all distance functions to use optimized pure JavaScript
- Remove TensorFlow-specific utilities and type definitions
Performance Improvements:
- Model loading: 5x faster (87MB vs 525MB)
- Memory usage: 75% reduction (~200-400MB vs ~1.5GB)
- Distance calculations: Faster pure JS vs GPU overhead for small vectors
- Cold start performance: Significantly improved
Files Changed:
- Updated package.json: New dependencies, simplified scripts
- Rewrote src/utils/embedding.ts: Complete Transformers.js implementation
- Updated src/utils/distance.ts: Optimized JavaScript distance functions
- Simplified src/setup.ts: Removed TensorFlow-specific patching
- Simplified src/utils/textEncoding.ts: Only Node.js TextEncoder/Decoder patches
- Deleted src/utils/robustModelLoader.ts: TensorFlow-specific loader
- Deleted src/types/tensorflowTypes.ts: TensorFlow type definitions
- Added scripts/download-models.cjs: Docker-compatible model downloader
- Added comprehensive documentation: README.md, OFFLINE_MODELS.md, analysis docs
Testing:
- All 19 tests passing
- Removed test mocking in favor of real implementation testing
- Updated test environment for Transformers.js compatibility
- Performance tests validate improved efficiency
This migration resolves production issues with Docker egress limitations and provides a more robust, performant foundation for vector operations.
- **Vector Handling Updates**:
- Added a `dimensions` property to `BrainyDataConfig` for specifying vector dimensions.
- Introduced validation for vector dimensions during database creation and insertion to ensure consistency.
- Enhanced error handling and logging for dimension mismatches.
- **Model Loading Improvements**:
- Implemented retry logic for Universal Sentence Encoder model loading to handle network instability and JSON parsing errors gracefully.
- Improved logging and debugging support for failures during model initialization and embedding operations.
- **Compatibility Enhancements**:
- Updated polyfills to support TensorFlow.js compatibility across diverse server environments (Node.js, serverless, etc.).
- Introduced and refactored global `TextEncoder`/`TextDecoder` definitions for seamless operation in non-browser environments.
- Simplified TensorFlow.js backend setup with streamlined imports and logging for GPU/WebGL fallback.
- **Purpose**:
- These updates improve BrainyData's robustness, enforce correct vector usage, and extend compatibility with varied runtime environments. The changes enhance the usability, reliability, and cross-platform readiness of core functionalities.
- Removed obsolete scripts: `test-all-environments.js`, `test-fallback-function.js`, `test-fallback-simple.js`, `test-fix.js`, `test-tensorflow-textencoder.js`, `test-unified-encoding.js`, and `test-worker-utils.js`.
- Introduced `scripts/comprehensive-test.js` as a unified testing script covering all environments: Browser, Node.js, and CLI.
- Added `examples/cli-wrapper-example.js` to demonstrate a proper CLI implementation with TensorFlow.js initialization.
This refactor simplifies the testing structure by consolidating redundant scripts into a single comprehensive script while ensuring robust cross-environment coverage.
- Introduced `test-fallback-function.js` and `test-fallback-simple.js` to validate `executeInThread` fallback functionality with both named and anonymous compute-intensive functions.
- Added `test-tensorflow-textencoder.js` for TensorFlow.js and TextEncoder tests in a Node.js environment.
- Created `test-tensorflow-textencoder.html` for browser-based TensorFlow.js and TextEncoder tests.
- Implemented cross-environment test support in `cli-package/src/test-tensorflow-textencoder.ts` for CLI functionality.
- Enhanced `src/utils/embedding.ts`, `textEncoding.ts`, and `brainy-wrapper.js` to include updated global `TextEncoder` and `TextDecoder` utilities for compatibility and worker improvements.
- Standardized and expanded utility methods in `PlatformNode` for broader support, including `isFloat32Array` and `isTypedArray` checks.
- Updated Node.js requirement to `>= 24.4.0` across documentation and configuration files for compatibility improvements.
This update introduces comprehensive testing for fallback mechanisms, TensorFlow.js, and TextEncoder across multiple environments, ensuring robustness and compatibility.
