Fabrice Rouillier

Career

From mathematics to computer science, and back: after a PhD in a mathematics department and fifteen years in computer science laboratories, I moved in 2011 to the Institut de Mathématiques de Jussieu – Paris Rive Gauche, a laboratory of pure mathematics, to work on much more theoretical questions.

Teams

• 2025 – present. PACE — Project on Algebraic Computations for Engineering, joint laboratory of Inria (OURAGAN) and Safran Electronics & Defense. Co-director, with Guillaume Rance (Safran).
• 2012 – present. OURAGAN, Paris. Leader — Inria team from 2012, project-team since 2019, joint with CNRS, Sorbonne Université and Université Paris Cité, entirely hosted by the IMJ-PRG: the only Inria team in a laboratory of pure mathematics.
• 2004 – 2010. SALSA, Paris-Rocquencourt. Team leader — joint with LIP6 and UPMC, the first Inria project-team entirely hosted outside an Inria site.
• 2003 – 2004. SPACES, Rocquencourt and Nancy. Vice head, in charge of the Paris part — the first Inria project located on two sites.
• 1998 – 2000. PolKa, Nancy. Participant.
• 1996 – 1998. Eureca, Nancy. Participant.

PhD students

• Alexandre Loustric (2025 – ) — CIFRE Safran / Inria, within PACE
• Florent Corniquel (2024 – )
• Chaoping Zhu (2023 – )
• Joao Ruiz (2023 – 2025)
• Alexandre Lê (2022 – 2025), with D. Chablat — parallel robots for line-of-sight stabilisation (CIFRE with Safran Electronics & Defense, at the origin of PACE)
• Christina Katsamaki (2019 – 2023), with E. Tsigaridas — convex hulls of curves and varieties, topology of parametrised curves
• Grace Younes (2018 – 2022), with A. Quadrat — computation of the $L_\infty$ norm of finite-dimensional linear systems
• Mahya Mehrabdollahei (2018 – 2022), with A. Guilloux — Mahler measure of curves
• Ranjan Jha (2013 – 2016), with D. Chablat — performance analysis of parallel robots
• Cuong Tran (2011 – 2015), with P.-V. Koseleff — computer algebra in the basis of Chebyshev polynomials
• Rong Xiao (2003 – 2009), with Bican Xia (Peking University) — discriminant varieties
• Guillaume Moroz (2005 – 2008) — solving parametric systems
• Solen Corvez (2001 – 2005), with M.-F. Roy and L. González-Vega — cuspidal serial robots
• Luc Rolland (1997 – 2002), with J.-P. Merlet — parallel robots (with CMW Marioni)
• Mohab Safey El Din (1997 – 2001), with D. Lazard — one point per connected component of real algebraic varieties

Editorial activities

• Since 2020: editorial board of Maple Transactions.
• Since 2007: editorial board of the Journal of Symbolic Computation.
• Guest editor of the JSC special issues for MEGA 2015 and ICPSS 2004.

Committees

International

• Since 2018: scientific committee of the Indo-French Centre for Applied Mathematics (IFCAM).
• Programme committees: Maple Conference 2019 and 2021, MEGA 2015, ASCM 2009, MACIS 2009, 25 years of Maple (2006), Algebraic Geometric Methods in Engineering (IMA, Minneapolis, 2006), Computations and Applications in Real Algebraic Geometry (Santander, 2002).
• MACIS: steering committee (2008 – 2010), organising committee chair (2007).
• ACM SIGSAM Advisory Board officer (2005 – 2007).
• Organising committees: ICPSS 2004; Workshop on Open Source Computer Algebra (Lyon, 2002).

National

• Inria Paris project-team committee (since 2003).
• Elected member of the Inria Evaluation Committee (2002 – 2005 and 2006 – 2009).
• Inria researcher recruitment juries (2003, 2006, 2008); selection committees for associate professor positions (UPMC 2009, Sorbonne Université 2016).
• Scientific committee of the 150th anniversary conference of the Société Mathématique de France (2022); Journées Nationales de Calcul Formel (2003, 2005).

PhD and habilitation juries

Reviewer for R. Becker (MPI Saarbrücken, 2018) and R. Benoit (Angers, 2017); chair for P. Jalinière (Sorbonne Université, 2016), D. Chablat's habilitation (Centrale Nantes, 2008) and M. Zein (Centrale Nantes, 2007); member for Y. Bouzidi and L. Peñaranda (Loria, 2010) and A. Ayad (Rennes, 2006).

Teaching

• Since 2010: preparation for the agrégation (option C, computer algebra), Sorbonne Université.
• 2016 – 2020: Master in mathematics, Sorbonne Université — algebraic computation.
• 1999 – 2004: DEA Algorithmique (Paris 6 / ENS / X) — solving algebraic systems.
• Courses in the Paris research master in computer science and the UPMC master (2009), at the universities of Turin (2006) and Lille (2002, 2003), at the Institut Henri Poincaré (2005) and EPFL (1997); summer schools in Trieste and Rennes (2003); co-organiser of Calcul formel en liberté (2002, 2005).

Outreach

• Since 2017: president of Animath, an association promoting mathematics among young people — from math clubs to the most selective competitions — following its founder Martin Andler. Its activities, such as the Alkindi competition or the Salon Culture et Jeux Mathématiques, reach more than 100,000 participants; the Rendez-vous des Jeunes Mathématiciennes encourage girls towards scientific careers.
• Since 2017: in charge of outreach (médiation scientifique) for the Inria Paris centre.
• Since 2015: national jury of the Olympiades de Mathématiques.
• Steering committees of the Semaine des Mathématiques (since 2018) and of the Année des Mathématiques 2019 – 2020; scientific committee of the SMF cycle Mathématiques étonnantes (since 2019); juries of the d'Alembert and Jacqueline Ferrand prizes (2020, 2022); editorial board of Interstices (2017 – 2020).
• 2020: Parlons Maths, keeping outreach activities alive online during the lockdowns; the same tools were later used for Inria's Fête de la Science and the national Grand forum des mathématiques vivantes.

Awards

• 1999: Prize of the Société Industrielle de l'Est, for the work with CMW on parallel robots.
• 1999: Loria medal.

Selected invited talks

• Selected applications using effective (real) algebraic geometry — Algebraic Algorithms and Applications, in honour of Patrizia Gianni, 2017.
• Computing intersections of two algebraic plane curves: the price of the certification — Fields Institute, Thematic Program on Computer Algebra, 2015.
• Computer Algebra and Computational Geometry — EuroCG 2008.
• Keynote: Polynomial System Solving — Special Semester on Gröbner Bases, Linz, 2006.
• IMA thematic year on Applications of Algebraic Geometry, Minneapolis, 2006 (two talks).
• Polynomial system solving for industrial problems — SIAM Conference on Mathematics for Industry, 2005.
• Efficient real solutions and robotics — first EMS–SMAI–SMF joint conference, 2003.
• Real solving — ICM 1998, Berlin.
• Polynomial system solving in practice — FoCM 1997.

Funded projects

Industrial

• [2021 – ....] Safran Electronics & Defense — joint laboratory PACE
• [2016 – ....] Waterloo Maple Inc.
• [2006 – 2010] Waterloo Maple Inc.
• [1997 – 2002] CMW Marioni

International

• [2006 – 2010] Inria associated team with LIAMA (China) – Chinese Salsa. Coordinator.

European

• [2002 – 2005] RAAG – RTN-HPRN-CT-2001-00271. Partner, in charge of "software and links with industry".
• [1996 – 1999] FRISCO, ESPRIT BRA 21024. Designer of the real solver.
• [1993 – 1996] PoSSo, ESPRIT BRA 6846. Designer of the real solver.

National

• [2011 – 2015] ANR SGT (geometry) – local coordinator. Final workshop Curve 2015, about 130 participants.
• [2007 – 2010] ANR SIROPA (robotics) – local coordinator.
• [2005 – 2006] ARC SILA (control theory, microwave filters), with F. Seyfert. Participant.
• [2002 – 2003] Action Spécifique STIC Robots cuspidaux – local coordinator. A complete classification of a family of 3-DOF serial robots.
• [2001 – 2002] Action Spécifique STIC Calcul Formel, led by G. Villard. Participant.
• [2000 – 2003] ACI Jeunes Chercheurs, with J.-C. Faugère — parametric systems.
• [1998 – 1999] ARC FIABLE – local coordinator for Inria Nancy; the beginnings of MPFR and MPFI.

Patents

• Procédé de synthèse de filtres numériques par ondelettes et filtres numériques correspondants. FR2758670 – 1998-07-24 (BOPI 1998-30).
• Dispositif de gestion d'échanges de données entre matériels informatiques. WO0101265 – 2001-01-04.