Engineer - Vehicle Flight Control & Inertial Navigation Systems
State College, Centre County, Pennsylvania, 16801, USA
Listed on 2026-05-29
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Engineering
Systems Engineer, Electrical Engineering
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS:
- CURRENT PENN STATE EMPLOYEE (faculty, staff, technical service, or student), please login to Workday to complete the internal application process. Please do not apply here, apply internally through Workday.
- CURRENT PENN STATE STUDENT (not employed previously at the university) and seeking employment with Penn State, please login to Workday to complete the student application process. Please do not apply here, apply internally through Workday.
- If you are NOT a current employee or student, please click "Apply" and complete the application process for external applicants.
Approval of remote and hybrid work is not guaranteed regardless of work location.
For additional information on remote work at Penn State, see Notice to Out of State Applicants.
POSITION SPECIFICS
We are searching for a Dynamics and Controls Engineer to join our Vehicle Control and Dynamics Department at the Applied Research Laboratory (ARL) at Penn State University. ARL's purpose is to research and develop innovative solutions to challenging scientific, engineering, and technology problems in support of the Navy, the Department of Defense (DoD), and the Intel Community (IC).
ARL is an authorized DoD Skill Bridge partner and welcomes all transitioning military members to apply.
You Will:
Develop and analyze flight control system requirements, including system design trade studies
Create, validate, and maintain 6
DoF dynamic system models for undersea vehicles including Software-in-Loop simulations in Matlab/SimulinkDesign, tune, and validate flight control algorithms and software
Design, analyze, and update Strapdown Inertial Navigation System algorithms including modeling and analysis of navigation sensors
Develop, debug, and test Matlab/Simulink-based software and data analysis tools, including the creation of unit, integration, and hardware-in-the-loop system tests for vehicle software and documentation of algorithms, specifications, software, and defects.
Support lab and field test planning, execution, and data analysis
Proactively seek professional development opportunities
Proactively share knowledge with team members
Additional responsibilities for higher level positions:
Contribute to the design, development, implementation, and analysis of technical engineering products, systems, and subsystems
Investigate and evaluate practical applicability of scientific theories and engineering principles to develop and improve various engineering systems; identify technical approach for solving problems and meeting customer/grantor needs
Apply standard practices and techniques in specific situations, correlate data, recognize discrepancies in results and follow operations through a series of related detailed steps or processes
Conduct experiments/tests in the laboratory/field to test, prove, or modify theoretical propositions on basis of research findings and experiences of others researching in related technical areas; may include taking measurements and recording observations, collecting, compiling, and processing data; may include planning/designing experiments or tests and supervising the execution thereof
Initiate or contribute data/analysis/design for use in technical reports, documents, proposals, papers, or oral/written presentations
Required skills/experience areas include:
Experience using Matlab, Simulink, C, or C++
Experience in network and serial communications
Experience in software configuration management systems (ex. GIT)
Preferred skills/experience areas include:
Active government security clearance
Strong interpersonal and communication skills, both oral and written
Excellent time management skills
Ability to present ideas, concepts, and instructions in a clear manner, both internally to peers and management and externally to sponsors and stakeholders
Ability to work equally well independently or as part of a team
Ability to conform to development standards and requirements for each project
Your working location will be fully on-site, located in State College, PA. Questions related to flexible work should be directed to the hiring manager during the interview process.
MINIMUM EDUCATION, WORK EXPERIENCE & REQUIRED…
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