Systems & Robotics Engineer

Your working location can/will be fully on-site located in State College, PA. This role requires periodic travel to remote locations. We are searching for highly motivated Systems & Robotics Engineers to join Autonomy and Emerging Technology (AET) Department at the Applied Research Laboratory (ARL) at Penn State. The AET Department serves as ARL’s innovation hub for developing and evaluating advanced capabilities in the Subsea and Seabed Warfare (SSW) mission space.

This role will work at the intersection of autonomy, underwater robotics, and prototype system integration to rapidly transition new technologies to Navy sponsors. Our team is expanding to support the SSW mission area. ARL is an authorized DoD Skill Bridge partner and welcomes all transitioning military members to apply.

• Technical:
  Develop and integrate autonomy architectures for UxVs; design and test novel SSW payloads, sensors, navigation solutions, and undersea effectors; contribute to mission analysis, system architecture, and deployment strategies
• Team
  
  Collaboration:
  
  Work within a multidisciplinary team covering undersea navigation, endurance optimization, acoustic communications, environmental modeling, and autonomy enabled
• CONOPS Simulation and Test:
  Build prototype architectures using SIL and HIL environments and conduct field testing with unmanned platforms in representative maritime conditions
• Cross-Lab Engagement:
  Interact and collaborate regularly with software team, project lead and other collaborators throughout the lab

• Manage technical tasks and engineering projects of varying size and complexity, including responsibility for technical performance, schedules, budgets, deliverables, and risk management
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams of engineers, scientists, software developers, technicians, and external research partners to accomplish program objectives
• Ensure engineering activities comply with applicable sponsor requirements, engineering standards, quality requirements, cybersecurity policies, export control regulations, information assurance requirements, and laboratory security procedures
• Support research conducted within Unclassified, Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), and Classified environments while safeguarding sensitive technical information and government-furnished data
• Participate in technology transition activities, including system integration, operational demonstrations, customer evaluations, manufacturing support, and field implementation
• Identify technical risks and develop mitigation strategies to improve program execution, system performance, reliability, maintainability, and mission effectiveness
• Initiate and contribute to business development activities through technical concept development, customer engagement, proposal preparation, Independent Research and Development (IRAD) initiatives, and strategic technology planning
• Mentor and provide technical leadership to junior engineers, engineering technologists, engineering support personnel, interns, and students
• Maintain technical expertise through continued professional development, participation in technical working groups, awareness of emerging technologies, and engagement with the defense research community

• Systems engineering applied to complex hardware/software systems
• Strong analytical skills and ability to work across disciplines
• Practical experience with Agile software/system development
• Testing and evaluating systems and subsystems
• System architecture for integrated robotic or autonomous systems
• Active security clearance, at the Secret level or higher

• UxV / Undersea Systems UxVs, including platforms, payloads, launch and recovery, acoustic communications, and energy management
• Oceanography, seabed features, or environmental data for autonomy
• Prior support to Navy missions or UxV fleet experimentation
• Autonomy and Mission Technologies Autonomy development (behaviors, mission planning, architectures, standards)
• Navigation for GPS denied environments
• Sensor integration, payload delivery methods, undersea effectors
• Counter UxV research or applications
• Modeling, Simulation, and Evaluation MBSE tools (Cameo, Magic Draw, etc.)
• Development or use of UxV simulation frameworks
• Maritime test and evaluation of unmanned platforms

• If filled as R&D Engineer
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