Embedded Firmware and Control Engineer

IIT Bombay; Mumbai; On-site; INR 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Job summary

IIT Bombay in Mumbai invites applications for an Embedded Firmware and Control Engineer to work on government-funded drone initiatives. You will design and optimize firmware for autopilot and UAV applications, leveraging RTOS concepts.

The role includes board bring-up, hardware testing, and HIL/unit testing in a collaborative, research-driven environment. The candidate profile includes PhD/ME/MTech or BE/BTech with relevant experience, along with strong C/C++, ARM Cortex, STM32, and RTOS skills,

Qualifications

• Proficient in developing, debugging, and optimizing embedded firmware in C/C++.
• Hands-on experience with ARM Cortex (M4 and above), STM32, RISC-V MCUs.
• Bare-metal firmware development with solid hardware concept knowledge (SFR, Interrupts, Timers, PWM, Flash, DMA, Bootloader).
• Experience with multithreading and RTOS like Nuttx or Zephyr.
• Strong systems architecture understanding.
• Git and development pipelines knowledge.
• CMake and Makefile toolchains experience.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain embedded firmware for autopilot and UAV applications.
• Architect firmware using RTOS principles and real-time constraints.
• Conduct board bring-up, peripheral init, hardware validation, and troubleshooting on new hardware.
• Develop and execute HIL, unit, and integration tests; analyze flight data logs.
• Incorporate test flight feedback for firmware improvements.
• Create and maintain firmware documentation, guides, and update logs.
• Perform additional tasks as required.

Skills

Embedded firmware in C/C++

ARM Cortex-M4+

STM32

RISC-V

Bare-metal firmware

RTOS (Nuttx/Zephyr)

Git version control

CMake/Makefile

Debug with scopes/logic analyzers

Multithreading

Education

PhD in relevant field

MTech/ME or equivalent (2+ yrs)

BTech/BE or equivalent (4+ yrs)

Tools

JTAG/SWD

Oscilloscopes

Logic analyzers

Job description

Job Role:Embedded Firmware and Control Engineer

Location: Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai

Job Category: Project Research Staff

About the project:

The Government-funded project focuses on the development and demonstration of drone and allied technologies. With applications spanning various sectors, the initiative leverages advanced technologies and infrastructure. It aims to foster strong industry-academia collaborations to address real-world challenges and drive innovation. Comprehensive training programs are an integral component, ensuring awareness and proficiency in drone operations.

Institute:

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, Mumbai

Qualification and Key Skills Required:

• PhD in a relevant experience OR
• MTech / ME or equivalent with minimum 2 years of relevant experience OR
• BTech / BE or equivalent with minimum 4 years of relevant experience

Candidate must have following skills & experience-

• Proficient in developing, debugging, and optimizing embedded firmware in C/C++.
• Must have hands‑on experience with ARM Cortex (M4 and above), STM32, RISC‑V microcontroller families.
• Strong experience in Bare‑Metal Firmware Development with deep understanding of hardware concepts like SFR, Interrupts, Timers, PWM, Flash, Memory maps, DMA, Bootloader etc.
• Must have working experience of multi-threading and Real‑Time Operating System like Nuttx, ZephyrRTOS, etc.
• Strong understanding of Systems Architecture
• Skilled in using tools like JTAG/SWD, oscilloscopes, logic analyzers for troubleshooting firmware/hardware issues.
• Strong understanding of with version control systems (e.g, git-based workflows) and development pipelines.
• Good understanding of coding practises, modularity, unit testing in embedded systems.
• Experience with CMake and Makefile compiler toolchain

Preferred to have -

• Familiarity with control systems, sensor fusion, UAV/autopilot systems and flight controller firmware (Ardupilot, Betaflight) is an added advantage.
• Experience with safety/certification standards (e.g., ISO 26262, DO-178C)
• Experience with drones, avionics, robotics, or autonomous system
• Proficiency in Python for tooling, testing or scripting

Job Profile:

• Design, develop, and maintain robust, efficient embedded firmware for autopilot and UAV-based applications.
• Architect firmware using RTOS principles—task scheduling, inter‑task communication, real‑time constraints.
• Conduct board bring‑up, peripheral initialization, hardware validation, and troubleshooting on new hardware designs.
• Develop and execute hardware‑in‑the‑loop (HIL), unit, and integration tests; collect and evaluate flight data logs for performance assessment.
• Integrate feedback from test flights and field deployments for iterative firmware enhancements.
• Create and maintain thorough firmware documentation, user guides, and update logs.
• Any other work assigned as per requirement.