PhD offer : Development of software implementing environmental simulation in SORA (Specific Ope[...]

European Commission; Canada; On-site; CAD 30,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

The European Commission, through the Université de Sherbrooke, offers a PhD position focused on developing numerical simulations for drone operations in the aeronautics industry. This role involves creating models that analyze traffic and environmental conditions, fostering collaboration with renowned industry leaders in a prestigious research setting.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in relevant fields required.
• Experience in aeronautics preferred.
• Good communication skills in English or French.

Responsibilities

• Create a dynamic model incorporating turbulence impacts.
• Model traffic behaviors for aviation entities.
• Develop software for synthetic data generation.

Skills

Experience in aeronautics with digital twins

Robotics simulation environments

Communication skills in English or French

Adaptability

Teamwork

Design, research and development

Education

Master's degree in electrical engineering

Master's degree in mechanical engineering

Master's degree in simulation engineering

Job description

Interdisciplinary Institute for Technological Innovation (3IT)

Organisation/Company Université de Sherbrooke Department Interdisciplinary Institute for Technological Innovation (3IT) Research Field Engineering » Electrical engineering Engineering » Mechanical engineering Engineering » Simulation engineering Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Country Canada Application Deadline 30 Jul 2025 - 00:00 (America/Toronto) Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 37 Offer Starting Date 1 Sep 2025 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Other EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

Context:

Numerical simulations are commonly used in the aeronautics industry, for example to analyze the integrity of fuselages or even the risk of collision with birds near an airport. However, there is no integrated method for numerically analyzing the risk associated with drone operations beyond direct visibility (Beyond Visual Line-Of-Sight – BVLOS), a necessary step in the Specific Operational Risk Assessment (SORA) process for authorizing a mission. In this context, our research project, in partnership with CAE and Unither Bioelectronics, aims to develop a complete processing pipeline for the production of synthetic data from a sophisticated simulation environment of a flight corridor, including weather conditions, ground infrastructure, airspace traffic interactions and even the quality of communication links to operate the drone, all of this fed by both historical and live data.

Topic:

This thesis aims to achieve a realistic and sufficiently comprehensive simulation of the corridor terrain, its meteorological conditions, and especially the potential air traffic present there. The successful candidate will be responsible for:

• Creating a dynamic model of controlled entities incorporating three types of turbulence impact (no impact, moderate, and significant).
• Modeling non-cooperative and cooperative traffic for one or more entities that implement three basic behaviors: hostile, near miss, and random
• Generating three-dimensional models of the terrain and infrastructures (buildings, roads, power lines, etc.) for specific corridors, as well as a model of meteorological conditions that impact the flight dynamics of the aircraft under study.

For replicating corridor terrain, we will explore the conversion of publicly available data from sources like OpenStreetMap (OSM) to integrate them into our simulation's terrain database, allowing offline queries without directly communicating with OSM servers during scenario execution. At the end of this thesis, the student will have developed a complete software model implementing the fundamental simulation environment and a processing pipeline in the form of a set of software tools allowing efficient automation of the production and consolidation of synthetic data.

Work Supervision:

This PhD thesis will be realized under the co-direction of Pr. François Ferland, Pr. David Rancourt and Pr. Adina Panchea, as part of Alliance Project between Université de Sherbrooke, CAE & Unither Bioélectronique on acceleration of the Specific Operational Risk Assessment (SORA) mission risk analysis process for the future of air mobility. The work will be carried out at the Interdisciplinary Institute for Technological Innovation (3IT) of the University of Sherbrooke and in collaboration with industry-leading professionals from our world-class partners CAE and Unither Bioelectronics. The student will thus benefit from an exceptional research environment bringing together students, professionals, professors and industrialists working hand in hand to develop the technologies of the future.

Where to apply

E-mail [e-mail]

Requirements

Research Field Engineering » Electrical engineering Education Level Master Degree or equivalent

Research Field Engineering » Mechanical engineering Education Level Master Degree or equivalent

Research Field Engineering » Mechanical engineering Education Level Master Degree or equivalent

Research Field Engineering » Simulation engineering Education Level Master Degree or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

Desired Profile:

• Master's degree in electrical or mechanical engineering
• Experience in aeronautics with digital twins or robotics simulation environments
• Ability to communicate in English or French both orally and in writing
• Strong ability to adapt, be autonomous and work in a team
• Pronounced taste for design, research and development

Specific Requirements

• Experience in aeronautics with digital twins or robotics simulation environments

Languages ENGLISH Level Good

Languages FRENCH Level Good

Additional Information

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available 1 Company/Institute Université de Sherbrooke , Sherbrooke, Canada (QC) Country Canada State/Province Québec City Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada Postal Code J1K 2R1 Street 2500, boul. de l'Université Geofield