FPGA Engineer

Copello Global; West of England; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Excellent pension

Performance bonus

Job summary

Copello Global is seeking an experienced Senior FPGA Engineer to own FPGA and programmable logic design within advanced gimbal payload systems. The role focuses on RTL, video capture, high-speed interfaces and real-time pointing and stabilisation control.

You will drive in-house electronic solutions from prototype to production, with short development cycles and direct ownership, enabling rapid progression from concept to deployment.

Qualifications

• Degree in Electronic Engineering or related field.
• 10+ years FPGA development experience.
• Strong VHDL or SystemVerilog skills with vendor toolchains.
• Experience with video or imaging pipelines and sensors.
• Experience with embedded processors and register maps.
• Hands-on hardware debugging with oscilloscopes and analyzers.
• Ability to review schematics in Altium.
• Methodical verification focusing on performance and reliability.
• Collaborative cross-disciplinary teamwork in a fast-paced environment.
• Defence/aerospace experience advantageous but not essential.

Responsibilities

• Lead FPGA/SoC design for payload video and control systems.
• Develop video processing pipelines covering sensor capture, image correction, stabilisation, overlays, video output and metadata.
• Implement real-time interfaces for pointing and stabilisation systems, collaborating with HW, SW and mechanical teams.
• Take in-house boards from prototype to qualified production.
• Develop verification strategies including testbenches, coverage, HIL testing and fault analysis.
• Review schematics, pin assignments, clocking and timing in Altium.
• Establish design standards, coding practices, configuration control and reviews.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to engineers.

Skills

VHDL

SystemVerilog

RTL design

Embedded processing

Hardware debugging

High-speed interfaces

Camera/video pipelines

Education

Electronic Engineering degree

Tools

Altium

Oscilloscopes

Logic analyzers

Job description

FPGA Engineer- Bristol (Hybrid)- Permanent- circa £80,000 -£90,000, plus bonus, excellent pension and benefits package.

We are looking for an experienced Senior FPGA Engineer to take technical ownership of FPGA and programmable logic design within advanced gimbal payload systems.

You will work on some of the most innovative tech out there- across video capture and processing, sensor and high-speed serial interfaces, real-time pointing and stabilisation control, and interfaces with mission computing systems.

A key focus will be developing in-house electronic solutions, taking designs from prototype through to production and reducing reliance on externally sourced hardware. With short development cycles and direct ownership of the technology, you will see your engineering work progress from concept to deployment very quickly.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead FPGA and system-on-chip design for payload video and control systems, including RTL design, simulation, synthesis, timing closure and hardware bring-up.
• Develop video processing pipelines covering sensor capture, image correction, stabilisation, overlays, video output and metadata.
• Implement real-time interfaces for pointing and stabilisation systems, working closely with software, control and mechanical engineering teams.
• Take internally developed image processing and position control boards from prototype through to qualified production.
• Develop verification strategies, including testbenches, coverage, hardware-in-the-loop testing and fault investigation.
• Review hardware schematics, pin assignments, clocking and timing constraints in Altium.
• Establish and maintain design standards, coding practices, configuration control and review processes.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to other engineers.

About You

You will be an experienced FPGA engineer with a strong background in digital design and a practical, hands-on approach to hardware development.

Ideally, you will have:

• A degree in Electronic Engineering or a related discipline, with approximately 10 years or more of FPGA development experience.
• Strong VHDL or SystemVerilog skills and experience with major FPGA vendor toolchains.
• Experience developing hardware-based video or imaging pipelines, including camera and serial sensor interfaces.
• Experience with systems combining programmable logic and embedded processors, including register maps, drivers and boot processes.
• Practical hardware debugging skills, using oscilloscopes, logic analysers and protocol analysis tools.
• Experience interpreting and reviewing electronic schematics using Altium.
• A methodical approach to verification, with a focus on measurable performance, reliability and quality.
• The ability to work collaboratively across hardware, software and systems engineering teams in a fast-paced environment.

Experience in defence, aerospace or airborne systems would be advantageous but is not essential.