Senior UAV System Engineer | Defence

Zoid Technologies Private Limited; Dadri; On-site; INR 2,800,000 - 4,200,000; Full time

Job summary

Zoid Technologies Private Limited is seeking a Senior Systems Engineer in Noida to lead the development and deployment of defense-grade software systems. You will bridge hardware, software, and product teams to ensure seamless integration, performance, and compliance with aerospace standards.

Responsibilities include architecture design for UAV software, real-time systems, and multi-drone coordination, along with hands-on work on ArduPilot/PX4 and SITL/HITL testing.

Qualifications

• 5 to 8 years of robotics/defense software experience with real hardware in the loop.
• Expert-level C++ with memory management and concurrency.
• Experience designing architectures for real-time or mission-critical systems.
• Deep Linux proficiency and debugging.
• Hands-on ArduPilot or PX4 source experience.
• Knowledge of MAVLink and SITL/HITL concepts.

Responsibilities

• Design end-to-end software architectures for defense systems.
• Define full stack for each system including security hardening.
• Produce IEEE/ISO/IEC 12207 compliant documentation.
• Oversee integration between hardware, software and product teams.
• Lead development of autonomous UAV software and multi-drone swarming.
• Coordinate hardware and software interfaces and test in field conditions.

Skills

C++ programming

Python scripting

Real-time systems

Linux

MAVLink / SITL

Multi-drone swarming

Tools

ArduPilot / PX4

GIT / CI

ROS/ROS2

GStreamer

Job description

About the Company

Zoid is a high-tech R&D startup devoted to developing cutting-edge technologies in the Defence and Aerospace sector. We primarily deliver customized solutions to the Indian Armed Forces, leveraging our expertise in AI, Electronics, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, and Robotics.

Job Overview

Location: Noida (Sector 132)
Employment Type: Full-time
Experience Required: 5-8 Years

Currently Funded By The IDEX Initiative Under The Ministry Of Defence, India, We Are Working On Projects Of Strategic National Importance, Including

• AI-based FOD detection software for Naval Air Stations
• Reusable Off-board Missile Decoys for Anti-Ship Missile Defense

Role Overview

We are seeking an experienced Senior Systems Engineer to lead the development and deployment systems for defense and aerospace applications. You will oversee system integration, drive technical requirements definition, and lead a team of system engineer and jr. engineer in a mission-critical product environment. You will be the bridge between hardware, software, and product teams, ensuring that all components work seamlessly together, meet performance specifications, and comply with defense/aerospace standards.

Key Responsibilities

Design & Architect Core Software Systems

• Design end-to-end software architectures for defense systems: drone swarms, AI inference servers (marine/ground), third-party platform integrations, GCS/HMI, and vehicle-mounted sensor platforms
• Define the full stack for each system: application logic, IPC, networking, OS configuration, security hardening, deployment
• Produce documentation to IEEE/ISO/IEC 12207 and IEEE 29148 (prior experience not mandatory; learn within the first few months)
• Familiarity with DO-178C, MIL-STD-498, STANAG 4586 is a plus
• Set and enforce coding standards, code reviews, version control workflows, and CI/build practices

Autonomous UAV Software

• Modify ArduPilot/PX4 (or similar) core code: custom flight modes, EKF tuning, failsafe logic, new sensors and payloads
• Develop companion computer software for perception, mission decisions, payload control, and comms relay
• Build multi-drone swarming: coordination, formation control, task allocation, deconfliction
• Implement GNSS-denied navigation (VIO, optical flow, terrain-relative navigation)
• Work extensively with MAVLink, including custom messages
• Maintain SITL/HITL simulation and analyze flight logs
• Integrate payloads: gimbal cameras, EO/IR, GNSS, rangefinders, LIDAR, comms modules

Hardware and Sensor Integration

• Interface with GNSS, IMUs, industrial/thermal cameras, LIDAR, rangefinders, radios, flight controllers, and gimbals
• Generic hardware: use and contribute to open-source drivers, configure kernel modules, write integration layers
• Specialized hardware (Basler/FLIR, Veronte, military radios): use vendor SDKs and build wrappers that isolate vendor dependencies
• Communicate over UART, SPI, I2C, RS-232, RS-422
• Read datasheets, coordinate with hardware engineers, debug hardware-software boundary issues

Linux Systems, Networking, and Infrastructure

• Build and harden Ubuntu OS images for field systems: secure boot, minimal attack surface, automated provisioning, systemd, permission lockdown
• Implement process management: watchdogs, heartbeats, auto-restart, graceful shutdown
• Write bash scripts for configuration, networking, orchestration, and deployment
• Build TCP/UDP, RTSP streaming, and mesh networking
• Implement IEEE 1588 PTP and NTP time synchronization

Required Qualifications

• 5 to 8 years of software engineering experience, mostly in robotics, autonomous systems, embedded, or defense software, with real hardware in the loop (drones, ground vehicles, robotic arms)
• Expert-level C++ (memory management, concurrency, multi-threading, performance optimization); production-level Python for automation and scripting
• Proven experience designing architectures for real-time or mission-critical systems: module decomposition, IPC, state machines, data flow, deployment topology
• Deep Linux proficiency: process management, networking stack, shell scripting, OS-level debugging
• Hands-on ArduPilot or PX4 source experience (or a comparable large robotics stack); understanding of MAVLink, SITL/HITL, companion computers, flight log analysis, custom flight modes
• Socket-level TCP/UDP programming; experience with at least one pub/sub middleware

Preferred Qualifications

• Ability (or demonstrated aptitude) to produce defense-grade documentation to IEEE 12207
• ML inference on edge hardware (Jetson Orin/Xavier, NUC-class; TensorRT, ONNX Runtime)
• DDS implementation, including QoS configuration and domain architecture
• Hardware bring-up experience: UART, SPI, I2C, RS-422, industrial camera SDKs (Basler, FLIR, Allied Vision)
• ROS/ROS 2 with real robot or drone deployments
• GStreamer/RTSP video pipeline development
• GNSS receiver integration and protocols (NMEA, UBX)
• IEEE 1588 PTP / NTP time synchronization
• Familiarity with DO-178C, MIL-STD-498, STANAG 4586
• Multi-drone swarming, formation control, or multi-agent coordination
• Open-source contributions (ArduPilot, PX4, ROS, or equivalent)
• GCS and C2/HMI software (QGroundControl, Mission Planner, or custom), STANAG 4586, or naval combat management system integration
• Tactical radios and data links: mesh radios, basic link budgets, encrypted links

Code- ArduSys

Skills: networking,ardupilot,defense,software