For standardizations, conferences, journals and a database with 6 million papers in the field of electrical engineering, IEEE is the place to be. That is why many students become members early on, and engineers who prove themselves in the field can earn the title of fellow. Frans Willems has held this title since 2005, but an even greater honor will be bestowed upon him on April 24, 2025, when he will receive the Richard W. Hamming Medal in Tokyo. “I’m absolutely thrilled; you could see it as a lifetime achievement award for my work in the areas of multi user information theory, source coding and information-theoretic security.”

The American mathematician Hamming made vast contributions to computer science and telecommunications. Around 1950, he worked with Claude Shannon at Bell Labs, the research department of the U.S. national telephone company.

That collaboration between Shannon and Hamming was invaluable to the development of digital communication and computers. Hamming’s Coding Theory enabled the practical application of Shannon's Information Theory. And that very connection between fundamental research and practice has been a constant theme throughout Willems’ career.

For decades, he worked as an advisor for Philips Research, and later – up to this day – for Intrinsic ID, a company specializing in digital security that started as a spin-out from Philips in 2008. “It is very important for the university to have strong ties to industry,” says Willems. “Researchers push boundaries and work on solutions to technical problems in society. We need to stay informed about each other’s work.”

The medal with Hamming’s image will be placed next to the Marconi Young Scientist Award medal in Willems’ home office in Geldrop, where his IEEE Fellow certificate also hangs on the wall. Willems received the Marconi Award in 1982 from Marconi’s daughter in the Ridderzaal in The Hague. “It was awarded to me for my PhD research in Leuven. Afterwards, I returned to TU/e as a researcher. I had started there as a student in 1972. It means a lot to me that, even after half a century, I still enjoy cycling to TU/e.”

About ten years ago, Willems also traveled to Japan (Kyoto) to accept an award: a Best Paper Award. Twice, he and his colleagues were recognized for writing the best paper of the year, according to IEEE Societies focused on their field. “I’m also very proud of those awards.”

Tuesdays

Willems (70) still visits Flux every Tuesday. There, he meets with peers, a PhD candidate he supervises and Intrinsic ID staff. He cannot imagine life without the university, though he has plenty of things to keep him busy at home.

“I was watching my grandchildren on my regular babysitting day when I received an email from IEEE about being awarded the Hamming Medal, and I was genuinely surprised. My first reaction was ‘How nice,’ but it wasn’t until later that my wife and I realized how special it really is.”

Predecessors

Not many IEEE medals have been awarded in the Benelux, and the three winners Willems lists first are all from the local area, where the university and industry are so closely connected. “The first one to receive an IEEE Medal was Bernard Tellegen. As a student, I was taught Tellegen’s theorem during lectures.” Tellegen invented the pentode, a type of radio tube, at the Philips Physics Laboratory and made groundbreaking theoretical contributions to electrical networks.

“Martin van den Brink and Kees Schouhamer Immink also received an IEEE Medal. The former led ASML for three decades and the latter designed the compact disk for Philips. I feel very proud to be listed alongside them.”

Message

Willems has been fascinated with electrical engineering since his student days. “I wanted to know everything. I would look through the education guides to see which courses were offered at the Technische Hogeschool and sometimes I wished I didn’t have to wait a whole year to take a certain course.”

He has a message for today’s students: “Think of the university as a candy store. That may sound strange, but you can do what you love here. Actively seek out what makes you happy. And connect with the lecturers; that’s easy to do at a smaller university such as ours.”