Dr Timothy Bourke

My Research

My research focuses on rigorous approaches to modelling, programming, and verifying embedded control systems. My motivation is not formal techniques as an end in themselves, but rather as a means to clarify the principles behind and to better engineer embedded systems. I always try to work with practical examples, like the control system of a robotic wheelchair (a long time ago), an infrared sensor, a microkernel operating system (as part of a large group), a microprinter component, or a wireless routing protocol. Focusing on practice means working with programming languages that can be compiled and executed. Rigour mandates languages based on precise and tractable models (like synchronous languages). Finally, modelling and analyzing realistic programming languages, their compilers, and the applications created with them requires computer assistance; ideally interactive theorem provers.

Students

• Guillaume Baudart: PhD 2013—2017
• Lélio Brun: PhD 2016—2020
• Paul Jeanmaire: PhD 2020—
• Basile Pesin: PhD 2020—2023

Academic Service

• PC member of DAC (track ESS1) 2021; ECRTS 2019, 2020, 2022 (Real-Time Pitches Chair), 2023, 2024, 2025; EMSOFT 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 (co-chair), 2020 (chair), 2022, 2023, 2024; JFLA 2018, 2021, 2022 (vice-président), 2023 (président); REBLS 2023; RTAS 2016; RTSOPS 2024; SCOPES 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021; SETTA 2024 (PC Co-chair); Modelica 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021; American Modelica Conference 2018 2020 2022; Asian Modelica Conference 2020, 2022; Japanese Modelica Conference 2018; and OCaml 2019.
• Workshop co-organization: Synchron (2020, 2021).
• ESWEEK: 2021 Tutorial Chair, 2024 Web Chair.
• Member of the Student Research Competition (SRC) panel for PLDI 2017.
• Journal reviewing: ACM Trans. on Cyber-Physical Systems (2020), ACM Trans. on Embedded Computing Systems (2013, 2016, 2018, 2022, 2023), IEEE Embedded Systems Letters (2016), J. Logical and Algebraic Methods for Programming (2020), J. Logic and Computation (2013), Leibniz Trans. on Embedded Systems (2023), Real-Time Systems (2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2022), Science of Computer Programming (2018, 2020, 2024), ACM Trans. on Software Engineering and Methodology (2018), IEEE Trans. on Software Engineering (2016, 2017), and Theoretical Computer Science (2010, 2012, 2022).
• Conference reviewing: ACSC (2010), ACSD (2013), ASP-DAC (2006), CAV (2019, 2022), CC (2017), CONCUR (2013), CPP (2012), DAC (2014, 2015), DATE (2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2025), ESOP (2020, 2024), FASE (2015), FM (2016), FORMATS (2009, 2010), FoSSaCS (2020), Haskell Symposium (2020), IJCAR (2018), ITP (2018, 2023), JFLA (2015), MARS (2020), NFM (2015), OOPSLA (2019), POPL (2012, 2021, 2023), PPDP (2018), RTSS (2010), WPDRTS (2006, 2007).

Teaching

• Lecture at EJCP 2024: École Jeunes Chercheuses et Jeunes Chercheurs en Programmation