7th Colloquium Roberto Tempo in Automatica - Beyond Simulation: Certifying Neural Network Controllers - Sophie Tarbouriech, CNRS, Toulouse, France
We are pleased to announce Prof. Sophie Tarbouriech as the speaker of the 2026 Colloquium Roberto Tempo in Automatica. These Colloquia Series are dedicated to the memory of our friend and colleague Roberto, who passed away suddenly in 2017 during a ski mountaineering trip in the Alps.
The Colloquia are general seminars held by renowned scientists. They range over all aspects of systems and control, and on interdisciplinary subjects where control plays a fundamental role.
7th Colloquium Roberto Tempo in Automatica
October 28, 2026 –11:00
Aula Kessler – Palazzo di Sociologia – Università di Trento
Speaker:
Sophie Tarbouriech, CNRS, Toulouse, France
Title:
Beyond Simulation: Certifying Neural Network Controllers
Abstract:
In this talk, we present an approach that leverages the known properties of isolated nonlinearities—referred to as quadratic abstractions—to analyze the closed-loop behavior of dynamical systems, including stability, performance, and robustness. Different ways to reduce the conservatism inherent in traditional quadratic abstraction methods are also proposed. This framework is particularly effective for analyzing activation functions in neural network architectures, such as multilayer perceptrons (MLPs), when used to control dynamical systems, offering a robust tool for closed-loop analysis. The proposed methodology relies on Lyapunov functions, which can be either standard quadratic or sign-indefinite quadratic forms. The latter incorporates an extended quadratic structure to further mitigate conservatism, enhancing the accuracy and applicability of the analysis. By incorporating sign-indefinite quadratic Lyapunov functions with extended quadratic structures, the methodology not only allows to mitigate conservatism but also to enhance the accuracy and applicability of the analysis, paving the way for more reliable neural network-controlled systems.
Short bio:
Sophie Tarbouriech received the Ph.D. degree in Control Theory in 1991 and the HDR degree (Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches) in 1998 from University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France. Currently, she is a Senior Researcher at CNRS and a member of LAAS- CNRS, Toulouse. Her main research interests include analysis and control of linear and nonlinear systems with constraints and hybrid dynamical systems. She is currently a recipient of the AFSR (French-Swedish Research Association) fellowship in collaboration with KTH, Sweden (2025-2026). She is Editor-in-Chief for Automatica since January 2026. She is an IFAC Pawel J. Nowacki Distinguished Lecturer (2023-2026), IEEE Fellow, IFAC Fellow and EUCA Fellow. She served on the IPCs of several IEEE and IFAC conferences, including being Publication Chair for IFAC World Congress in 2017, Program Chair for CDC 2024, Vice-program Chair for MICNON 2024 and she is currently Vice-program Chair for ECC 2027.
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- Via Giuseppe Verdi 26
- Trento, Trentino-Alto Adige
- Italy 38122
- Building: Palazzo di Sociologia
- Room Number: Aula Kessler
Agenda
October 28, 2026 –11:00
Aula Kessler – Palazzo di Sociologia – Università di Trento
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https://unitn.zoom.us/j/68256994553?pwd=37bbKhtIO37wHI9EwEscBHYrwddrbR.1