Firmware Engineer, Motor Control

Omni Instrument; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Omni Instrument in San Francisco, CA, is seeking a Firmware Engineer for the Motor Controls team to design and implement production firmware for distributed real-time control systems, including CAN, EtherCAT, and embedded Linux on Linux-based systems and microcontrollers.

You will own firmware architecture, develop real-time state machines, fault handling, and production-ready interfaces between software and hardware, while collaborating with hardware and manufacturing teams on-site, reporting

Qualifications

• Degree in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or related field.
• Strong experience developing embedded firmware in C++ for real-time systems.
• Experience with embedded Linux systems and microcontrollers.
• Experience implementing communication protocols such as CAN, EtherCAT, Ethernet, SPI, UART, or USB.
• Experience debugging embedded systems with oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, JTAG, or similar tools.
• Strong understanding of multithreading, synchronization, and timing-sensitive software.
• Experience building firmware test infrastructure and automated validation systems.
• Ability to independently design and implement production firmware systems.

Responsibilities

• Own firmware architecture from concept through production deployment.
• Design reliable communication interfaces between embedded devices.
• Develop fault monitoring, watchdog, and recovery systems.
• Validate firmware timing behavior, synchronization, and system stability.
• Create test infrastructure for firmware validation and release qualification.
• Define firmware release criteria and reliability requirements.
• Ensure firmware is maintainable, testable, and scalable.

Skills

Embedded C++

Real-time systems

Embedded Linux

CAN

EtherCAT

Ethernet

SPI

UART

JTAG

Oscilloscopes

Multithreading

Testing infrastructure

Education

B.S. in Computer/Electrical Engineering or related

Tools

JTAG

Oscilloscopes

Logic Analyzers

Job description

Omni Instrument is building autonomous manufacturing systems using custom hardware, embedded Linux platforms, real-time control systems, and distributed embedded devices. Our systems combine edge computing, motor control, advanced and industrial communication networks, along with production-grade embedded software designed for manufacturing environments. We are focused on building reliable, production-ready systems that operate continuously and safely in demanding industrial conditions.

Role Overview

We are hiring a Firmware Engineer who works on the Motor Controls team to design and implement production firmware for distributed real-time control systems. This role involves ownership of embedded firmware architecture across Linux-based systems and microcontrollers, including communication infrastructure, fault handling, state machines, monitoring systems, and real-time device coordination. You will work on systems involving CAN, EtherCAT, embedded Linux, motor control integration, and safety-critical monitoring logic. The role requires strong programming ability, strong systems-level thinking, and the ability to design firmware that is robust, testable, and production-ready. This is an on-site role in San Francisco, CA reporting directly to the CEO.

What You'll Do

• Design and implement embedded firmware for distributed control systems
• Develop firmware architecture for Linux and microcontroller-based systems
• Implement real-time state machines and fault handling systems
• Build communication infrastructure using CAN, EtherCAT, Ethernet, and inter-process communication
• Develop monitoring and safety systems for motors, sensors, and industrial devices
• Design firmware interfaces between high-level software and low-level hardware
• Debug timing-sensitive embedded systems and communication issues
• Develop production-quality embedded C++ software
• Build automated validation and regression test infrastructure
• Develop Hardware In the Loop and Software In the Loop testing systems
• Investigate firmware failures and perform root cause analysis
• Work closely with hardware, controls, and manufacturing teams to ensure production readiness

Key Responsibilities

• Own firmware architecture from concept through production deployment
• Design reliable communication interfaces between embedded devices
• Develop fault monitoring, watchdog, and recovery systems
• Validate firmware timing behavior, synchronization, and system stability
• Create test infrastructure for firmware validation and release qualification
• Define firmware release criteria and reliability requirements
• Ensure firmware is maintainable, testable, and scalable

You Have

• Degree in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or related field
• Strong experience developing embedded firmware in C++
• Strong understanding of real-time embedded systems
• Experience with embedded Linux systems
• Experience with microcontrollers and low-level hardware interfaces
• Experience implementing communication protocols such as CAN, EtherCAT, Ethernet, SPI, UART, or USB
• Experience designing embedded software architecture and state machines
• Experience debugging embedded systems using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, JTAG, or similar tools
• Strong understanding of multithreading, synchronization, and timing-sensitive software
• Experience building firmware test infrastructure and automated validation systems
• Ability to independently design and implement production firmware systems

We Prefer

• Experience with Sitara, STM32, NVIDIA Jetson, or similar embedded platforms
• Experience with industrial automation or robotics systems
• Familiarity with PREEMPT_RT Linux or real-time Linux concepts
• Experience with motor control systems and distributed embedded architectures
• Experience with Hardware In the Loop and Software In the Loop validation systems
• Experience with fault-tolerant or safety-critical firmware design
• Experience supporting manufacturing or production environments

What Success Looks Like

• Firmware systems are reliable, deterministic, and production-ready
• Embedded communication systems operate robustly under real-world conditions
• Firmware failures are quickly diagnosable and reproducible
• Validation infrastructure scales with product complexity and manufacturing volume
• Firmware releases are predictable, repeatable, and stable
• Embedded systems are maintainable, testable, and robust across hardware variations