Senior Research Engineer

Job Title

Senior Research Engineer I

Texas A&M University System Offices

Bush Combat Development Complex

Commensurate

Bryan, Texas

Staff

The System Offices is one of several system members within the Texas A&M University System representing one of the largest systems of higher education in the nation, with a network of 12 universities, a comprehensive health science center, nine state agencies, and the RELLIS Campus. The Texas A&M University System mission is to provide education, conduct research, commercialize technology, offer training, and deliver services for the people of Texas and beyond.

$6,251.00 - $10,000.00 per month commensurate with experience.

The Senior Research Engineer I serves as a lead technical architect and contributor, driving the high-level design of the BCDC autonomy stacks while scoping and prototyping solutions for emerging technical challenges. At the George H.W. Bush Combat Development Complex (BCDC), the Research Engineer for Multi-Agent Autonomy develops next-generation autonomous systems that enable coordinated, heterogeneous fleets to operate in complex, unstructured environments.

This research focuses on the integration of diverse platforms, ranging from tactical UTVs and military-grade UGVs to unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) and autonomous helicopters. We aim to solve the fundamental challenges of multi-agent coordination and shared situational awareness, fostering the human-agents teaming essential for future mission success. By bridging the gap between sophisticated algorithms and real-world application, our team develops technologies that significantly enhance unit capabilities, mobility, and speed of action.

We translate theoretical breakthroughs into field-demonstrated reality through System Experimentation and Field Testing using our multi-vehicle fleet in the diverse off-road terrain of the RELLIS campus.

• Architects and implements the core frameworks for multi-agent coordination, setting the standard for modularity, performance, and scalability across all BCDC autonomy stacks.
• Conducts targeted background research in unfamiliar technical domains to scope emerging problems and develop initial proof-of-concept prototypes, accelerating the team's ability to adopt new methodologies.
• Acts as a primary developer for the most complex algorithmic challenges, producing high-performance, robust code (Python/C++) for embedded hardware and ROS2 middleware.
• Drives the development of cross-platform communication and shared situational awareness architectures, ensuring the seamless integration of air and ground assets.
• Serves as a technical authority on the evolution of the autonomy stacks, identifying and implementing emerging technologies that enhance multi-agent performance.
• Directs the design of multi-level simulation environments, ensuring they accurately reflect the complexities of field deployment for heterogeneous fleets.
• Architects integrated hardware-software systems, conducting technical trade studies to select sensor suites and compute platforms that optimize mission-level capabilities.
• Oversees the system-level integration of ROS2 nodes across complex platforms, including autonomous helicopters and robotic ground vehicles, to ensure hardware-software synergy.
• Leads high-stakes System Experimentation and Field Testing at the RELLIS campus, serving as the technical lead for large-scale demonstrations and ensuring mission success.
• Analyzes complex field data to generate system-level requirements and performance metrics, closing the loop between experimental results and future development cycles.
• Ensures technical continuity across multiple projects, helping the team balance efforts between established research and high-priority new initiatives.
• Mentors research staff through high-level design reviews and collaborative implementation, elevating the-technical standard of the entire development group.
• Translates high-level mission objectives and guidance from senior staff into robust system architectures and actionable development roadmaps.
• Collaborates with…