The methodological reflections of Poincaré on the mechanical modeling of phenomena, physical theories, the hierarchy of laws and the evolution of their status and system are illuminated by a Kantian reading that displays the constitutive function of mathematics and the regulative function of principles of convenience and of the principles of physics, these corresponding to an important step in the evolution of physical theories.
Poincaré; Kant; Philosophy of physics; Convenient conventions; Regulative principles; Harmony; Systematic unity