Electrical Engineer

Senior Electrical Engineer II

Vertex in Indianapolis, IN is seeking a Senior Electrical Engineer II to design and integrate digital I/O, relay control, COTS single board computers, and associated power drive electronics for mission-critical systems. This role focuses on digital I/O design, relay/contact control, state feedback, integration of COTS SBCs using Ethernet and serial interfaces (e.g., RS-232, RS-485), and the design of regulated and unregulated DC/DC buck controllers in isolated topologies and dual H-bridge applications.

The engineer will own circuit card designs and integration tasks that interface to relays, discrete I/O, COTS computing hardware, and drive electronics used in domains such as switching power supplies, Class D-style power stages, linear and rotary actuation drives, and rotators. The role requires strong practical experience in digital I/O and SBC integration together with solid grounding in power conversion and H-bridge-based actuation or drive circuits.

Responsibilities

• Lead electrical design for circuit cards and modules that combine digital I/O, relay control, and power drive electronics.
• Design digital I/O and relay/contact control circuits, including state feedback for status and health monitoring.
• Integrate COTS SBCs or industrial PCs, covering power, reset, Ethernet, USB, and serial interfaces (RS-232, RS-485).
• Define and implement DC/DC buck controller solutions (regulated and unregulated), including isolated topologies where required.
• Design and integrate H-bridge and dual H-bridge stages for applications such as rotators, actuator drives, and Class D-style power stages.
• Perform schematic capture and documentation using ECAD tools (e.g., Altium Designer), including interface definitions and constraints.
• Coordinate with PCB layout to ensure proper routing for both digital and power sections, including SI/PI, creepage/clearance, and EMI/EMC behavior.
• Plan and execute SPICE/SIMetrix simulations of power drive and digital interface circuits; interpret results and refine designs.
• Conduct board-level bring-up and debug using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, current probes, and protocol analyzers.
• Support RCCA for digital I/O, power drive, and SBC integration issues encountered in the lab, production, or field.
• Mentor junior and mid-level engineers working on digital I/O and power drive content; contribute to best-practice development.

Qualifications Education & Experience

• Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related STEM field.
• Minimum 8 years of professional electrical engineering experience, or 6+ years with a relevant Master's degree (MSEE, MSCE, or similar).
• Demonstrated experience in:
• Digital I/O design and relay/contact control circuits with state feedback.
• Integration of COTS single board computers using Ethernet and serial interfaces (RS-232, RS-485).
• Design or integration of regulated and unregulated DC/DC buck controllers, including isolated topologies and dual H-bridge applications.

Required Skills

• U.S. Citizen with ability to obtain and maintain a DoD Secret clearance.
• Competent to proficient in digital circuitry design (level translation, buffering, isolation, ESD/transient protection) for GPIO, relays, and discrete I/O.
• Experience designing relay driver circuits (transistor/FET drivers, coil management, snubbers/diodes, contact protection, flyback control) and capturing discrete states for monitoring/BIT.
• Experience with serial communications hardware (RS-232, RS-485 transceivers) including biasing, termination, and isolation practices.
• Experience integrating COTS SBCs or industrial PCs, including power, reset, Ethernet, USB, and serial interfaces.
• Experience designing or integrating DC/DC buck controllers, including:
• Regulated and unregulated converters for various load profiles.
• Isolated topologies (e.g., flyback or forward-style implementations) where appropriate for safety or EMI/EMC.
• Dual H-bridge configurations used in rotating mechanisms, actuator drives, or Class D-style power stages.
• Proficient in SPICE/SIMetrix-class simulation tools (e.g., LTSpice, SIMetrix/SIMPLIS); able to set up non-trivial power and drive simulations and interpret detailed results.
• Proficiency with ECAD tools (e.g., Altium Designer) for schematic capture and layout constraint definition for mixed digital/power designs.
• Ability to support SI/PI considerations for Ethernet and serial links and coordinate with PCB layout for robust implementations.
• Experience with lab bring-up and debug of digital I/O, SBC integration, and power drive circuits using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, current probes, and protocol analyzers.
• Competent in stress/margin calculations (voltage/current/temperature) using MATLAB, Mathcad, and Excel.
• Understanding of EMI/EMC considerations for digital and power drive circuits (filtering, shielding, ground strategy, cable/harness impacts).
• Strong teaming skills; able to work effectively in cross-functional teams with systems, software/firmware, mechanical, and test…