Better SMT Proofs for Easier Reconstruction

Proof assistants are used in verification, formal mathematics, and other areas to provide trustworthy , machine-checkable formal proofs of theorems. Proof automation reduces the burden of proof on users, thereby allowing them to focus on the core of their arguments. A successful approach to automation is to invoke an external automatic theorem prover, such as a satisfiability-modulo-theories (SMT) solver, reconstructing any generated proofs using the proof assistant's inference kernel. The success rate of reconstruction, and hence the usefulness of this approach, depends on the quality of the generated proofs. We report on the experience gained by working on reconstruction of proofs generated by an SMT solver while also improving the solver's output.