HIL Electrical Systems Engineer

Ford Motor Company; Dearborn (MI); Hybrid; USD 100,000 - 193,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical coverage

Dental coverage

Vision coverage

Parental leave

Tuition assistance

Vehicle discount

Job summary

Ford Motor Company in Dearborn is shaping the next generation of Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) infrastructure. You will architect I/O and signal conditioning, design wire harnesses and PCBs, and integrate simulator platforms with ECUs and dynamometer hardware, bringing configurations from enclosure to fully communicating systems.

You will work across Ford’s research, advanced engineering, and production teams, collaborating with suppliers to specify, design, and deploy HIL hardware and software.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or closely related field.
• 5+ years designing, building, and validating HIL or embedded electronic test systems.
• 3+ years with automotive electronic control systems (powertrain, electrification).
• Proficiency in electrical schematic design and wire harness/cable assembly design.
• Ability to drive projects independently from concept through production.

Responsibilities

• Design and architect new HIL system configurations for powertrain and electrification programs, including enclosure layout, I/O strategy, signal conditioning, power distribution, fault insertion, and interface control documentation.
• Author technical requirements, statements of work, and evaluation criteria for HIL hardware and software procurement; support supplier selection and design reviews; coordinate delivery across research, advanced engineering, and production.
• Design, build, and validate wire harnesses and electrical cable assemblies connecting HIL simulators to ECUs, sensors, actuators, and powertrain/dynamometer subsystems; own schematics, wiring diagrams, and harness documentation.
• Design, lay out, and validate custom circuits for signal conditioning, load simulation, and interface adaptation for HIL/ViL/HPiL/dyno environments.
• Configure and integrate HIL platforms (e.g., dSPACE SCALEXIO, Speedgoat, NI VeriStand) to support test objectives; ensure backward compatibility across migrations.

Skills

HIL design

Automotive networks

PCB design

Schematic capture

C/C++ programming

Project leadership

Vendor coordination

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

dSPACE SCALEXIO

Speedgoat

NI VeriStand

CANalyzer/CANoe

Vector hardware-in-the-loop tools

Job description

Ford's Research & Advanced Engineering team is defining the next generation of Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) infrastructure, and we're looking for the engineer who will help shape it. You'll collaborate across multiple Ford organizations, from research and advanced engineering to production, working with suppliers to specify, design, and bring to life a platform built to serve Ford's verification and validation needs for years to come. This is a role where you'll shift verification and validation (V&V) left, explore new HIL use cases, and push into capabilities that go well beyond traditional HIL boundaries — all in a flexible, innovative environment where you'll be building capability that does not exist at Ford today.

In this position...

You will be the electrical design authority for these benches: architecting I/O and signal conditioning strategy, designing wire harnesses and custom PCBs, integrating simulator platforms with real ECUs and dynamometer hardware, and bringing new configurations up from bare enclosure to a fully communicating system. Successful candidates will be comfortable moving between schematic capture, an oscilloscope, and a supplier technical review in the same week, and will have a track record of driving hardware projects independently from concept through production.

What You'll Do...

• Design and architect new HIL system configurations for powertrain and electrification programs, including enclosure layout, I/O strategy, signal conditioning, power distribution, fault insertion, and interface control documentation
• Author technical requirements, statements of work, and evaluation criteria for HIL hardware and software procurement; support supplier selection and technical design reviews, and coordinate delivery across research, advanced engineering, and production organizations
• Design, build, and validate wire harnesses and electrical cable assemblies connecting HIL simulators to ECUs, sensors, actuators, and powertrain/dynamometer subsystems, and own the supporting electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, and harness documentation from connector and pinout definition through routing, shielding, and continuity verification
• Design, lay out, and validate custom circuits for signal conditioning, load simulation, and interface adaptation used in HIL, Vehicle-in-the-Loop (ViL), Hybrid PowerPack-in-the-Loop (HPiL), and dyno test environments
• Configure and integrate HIL platforms — including dSPACE SCALEXIO, Speedgoat, or NI VeriStand — to support powertrain and electrification test objectives, maintaining backward compatibility across platform migrations so that existing test assets and harnesses remain fully functional through hardware and software transitions
• Implement and validate I/O circuits for analog voltage/current, PWM, frequency, digital I/O, and high-speed automotive communication networks (CAN, CAN-FD, LIN, Automotive Ethernet)
• Perform component-level and system-level debugging across HIL benches, including signal tracing, oscilloscope analysis, CAN/Ethernet protocol analysis, and ECU communication diagnostics
• Support bring-up and commissioning of new bench configurations, including power cycling validation, network bring-up, ECU flashing, and initial communication verification
• Research and evaluate emerging HIL platforms, tools, and simulation methodologies; recommend improvements aligned with Ford's electrification roadmap and Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV) architecture evolution

You'll have...

• Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Electrical & Computer Engineering, or closely related discipline
• 5+ years' experience designing, building, and validating HIL or embedded electronic test systems
• 3+ years' experience with automotive electronic control systems (powertrain, electrification, or related domain)
• Proficiency in electrical schematic design and wire harness/cable assembly design
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and drive projects from concept through production, including project planning, stakeholder coordination, and delivery across multiple organizations
• Hands-on experience with automotive communication protocols (CAN, CAN-FD, LIN, Automotive Ethernet)
• Hands-on laboratory debugging skills with oscilloscopes, multimeters, bench supplies, and bus analysis tools
• Demonstrated effective communication, documentation, and interpersonal skills in a team environment

Even better, you may have...

• Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering or related field
• Hands-on experience with dSPACE, Speedgoat, NI VeriStand, or Vector hardware-in-the-loop platforms and associated software
• PCB design and layout experience: schematic capture, board layout, DFM review, bring-up, and validation
• Experience designing signal conditioning circuits (basic, advanced, and engine I/O) for HIL or rapid prototyping applications
• Experience with Vehicle-in-the-Loop (ViL) or dynamometer (dyno) test environments
• Experience with the creation and execution of test plans, test scripts, and test automation, and the generation of test reports
• Experience with version control and process automation tools (GitHub, Jenkins)
• Knowledge of automotive network analysis tools (CANalyzer, CANoe).
• Experience with calibration and measurement tools like ATI Vision, INCA, ControlDesk.
• Experience with programming languages like C/C++ and python
• Experience using AI assistants such as GitHub Copilot for tooling development, and AI-assisted approaches to test case generation, log analysis, and failure triage
• Familiarity with Ford development and systems engineering processes and tools (GPDS, GTDS, VSEM, Stages).

As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

This position is a range of salary grade(s) 7-8 and ranges from $99,600-$192,900.

Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1-888-336-0660.

This position is hybrid with a requirement to be onsite four or more days per week.