Optical Engineer

Jobtailor; Missouri; On-site; USD 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Jobtailor is seeking an experienced Optical Engineer to design, develop, validate, and support automotive camera products. You will lead optical design and system-level specifications for lenses, CMOS imagers, illumination paths, filters, and camera systems, coordinating with hardware, software, and manufacturing teams to meet milestones.

Applicants should hold a Master’s degree and 4–8 years of hands-on experience in optical design, testing, and image-quality engineering.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in optical engineering, applied physics, electrical engineering, imaging science, or a related field.
• Four to eight years of relevant experience in optical design, camera development, optical testing, image-quality engineering, or related serial-product development.
• Automotive electronics or automotive camera development experience strongly preferred.
• Experience independently executing complex optical engineering assignments and delivering practical, data-based results.
• Experience specifying, designing, or evaluating visible-spectrum lenses and imaging systems.
• Strong knowledge of CMOS image-sensor characteristics, camera tuning, image-signal behavior, and system-performance effects.
• Competence in optical performance characterization and image-quality metrics, including MTF, distortion, relative illumination, flare, stray light, ghosting, color, noise, and dynamic range
• Experience developing optical test strategies, laboratory setups, automated measurements, analysis methods, and test specifications for complex camera systems
• Understanding of optical tolerancing, sensitivity analysis, measurement uncertainty, repeatability, reproducibility, and performance variation
• Cross-disciplinary understanding of optical-mechanical design, packaging, electrical design, software, image processing, thermal effects, manufacturing, assembly, and calibration
• Experience with high-volume, cost-sensitive camera design and manufacturing, design-for-manufacture, and production-test considerations
• Familiarity with automotive OEM camera requirements and environmental and durability expectations
• Ability to diagnose complex optical problems, identify root cause, and lead corrective actions using structured methods such as 8D
• Demonstrated innovation through patents, publications, test-method development, technical standards, reusable tools, or products brought to market
• Optical design and analysis tools such as Zemax OpticStudio and/or CODE V
• Camera and image-quality analysis tools, optical laboratory instruments, and optical-mechanical alignment setups
• Data analysis and test automation using engineering tools; Python, MATLAB, LabVIEW, or equivalent preferred
• Microsoft Office, with strong proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint
• Working knowledge of requirements management, configuration management, and project monitoring tools
• Expert written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to work independently with limited supervision and collaborate in a global, cross-functional environment
• Comprehensive knowledge of English
• Current and ongoing authorization to work in the United States; role is not eligible for visa sponsorship
• Ability to perform normal computer and laboratory work and move around office, laboratory, and plant environments
• Domestic and international travel may be required

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, validate, and provide technical support for automotive camera products
• Lead optical design and development activities, including requirements definition, evaluation, implementation, testing, debugging, and design release
• Develop optical architectures and system-level specifications for lenses, CMOS imagers, illumination paths, filters, and camera systems
• Evaluate CMOS image sensors and optimize camera performance through imager configuration, register tuning, and quantitative image-quality assessment
• Develop or specify multi-element lenses for automotive near-field and far-field applications
• Perform optical tolerancing, sensitivity analysis, and design-tradeoff assessments
• Own optical performance requirements and support program milestones, design reviews, customer deliverables, and launch readiness
• Identify optical technical risks and define mitigation plans
• Develop, implement, validate, and improve optical test methods for lenses, image sensors, and camera systems
• Perform advanced optical characterization, including MTF, spatial resolution, distortion, relative illumination, color and spectral response, noise and dynamic range, flare, stray light, ghosting, veiling glare, and image quality
• Develop test specifications, procedures, acceptance criteria, correlation methods, measurement-system analyses, and reporting templates
• Design and automate optical test processes to improve throughput, repeatability, data quality, and laboratory-equipment utilization
• Analyze complex optical-performance issues, determine root causes, and recommend corrective actions
• Plan and execute validation activities across the product-development lifecycle while supporting multiple programs
• Evaluate emerging optical measurement technologies and characterization methods
• Interface with mechanical, electrical, hardware, software, systems, manufacturing, quality, and supplier teams
• Assess effects of packaging, assembly tolerances, thermal behavior, contamination, calibration, electronics, and software processing on optical performance
• Support manufacturing process development, assembly, end-of-line testing, calibration, yield improvement, and development/production measurement correlation
• Support customer escalations, field investigations, design-validation issues, and corrective-action activities
• Serve as a technical resource and subject-matter expert in camera optics, optical characterization, image-quality analysis, and test methodology
• Mentor engineers and technicians
• Drive continuous-improvement initiatives and provide data-based technical recommendations
• Contribute to optical technology roadmaps, lessons learned, standard methods, reusable tools, and knowledge transfer across global engineering teams
• Comply with company, customer, quality, environmental, health, safety, and data-protection policies

Skills

Optical design

Camera development

Image-quality engineering

Test automation

Cross-disciplinary collaboration

Mentoring

Education

Master's degree in optical engineering or related field

Tools

Zemax OpticStudio

CODE V

Python

MATLAB

LabVIEW

Optical measurement instruments

Job description

• Design, develop, characterize, validate, and provide technical support for automotive camera products
• Lead optical design and development activities, including requirements definition, component evaluation, implementation, testing, debugging, and design release
• Develop optical architectures and system-level specifications for lenses, CMOS imagers, illumination paths, filters, and camera systems
• Evaluate CMOS image sensors and optimize camera performance through imager configuration, register tuning, and quantitative image-quality assessment
• Develop or specify multi-element lenses for automotive near-field and far-field applications
• Perform optical tolerancing, sensitivity analysis, and design-tradeoff assessments
• Own optical performance requirements and support program milestones, design reviews, customer deliverables, and launch readiness
• Identify optical technical risks and define mitigation plans
• Develop, implement, validate, and improve optical test methods for lenses, image sensors, and camera systems
• Perform advanced optical characterization, including MTF, spatial resolution, distortion, relative illumination, color and spectral response, noise and dynamic range, flare, stray light, ghosting, veiling glare, and image quality
• Develop test specifications, procedures, acceptance criteria, correlation methods, measurement-system analyses, and reporting templates
• Design and automate optical test processes to improve throughput, repeatability, data quality, and laboratory-equipment utilization
• Analyze complex optical-performance issues, determine root causes, and recommend corrective actions
• Plan and execute validation activities across the product-development lifecycle while supporting multiple programs
• Evaluate emerging optical measurement technologies and characterization methods
• Interface with mechanical, electrical, hardware, software, systems, manufacturing, quality, and supplier teams
• Assess effects of packaging, assembly tolerances, thermal behavior, contamination, calibration, electronics, and software processing on optical performance
• Support manufacturing process development, assembly, end-of-line testing, calibration, yield improvement, and development/production measurement correlation
• Support customer escalations, field investigations, design-validation issues, and corrective-action activities
• Serve as a technical resource and subject-matter expert in camera optics, optical characterization, image-quality analysis, and test methodology
• Mentor engineers and technicians
• Drive continuous-improvement initiatives and provide data-based technical recommendations
• Contribute to optical technology roadmaps, lessons learned, standard methods, reusable tools, and knowledge transfer across global engineering teams
• Comply with company, customer, quality, environmental, health, safety, and data-protection policies

Requirements

• Master's degree in optical engineering, applied physics, electrical engineering, imaging science, or a related field
• Four to eight years of relevant experience in optical design, camera development, optical testing, image-quality engineering, or related serial-product development
• Automotive electronics or automotive camera development experience strongly preferred
• Experience independently executing complex optical engineering assignments and delivering practical, data-based results
• Experience specifying, designing, or evaluating visible-spectrum lenses and imaging systems
• Strong knowledge of CMOS image-sensor characteristics, camera tuning, image-signal behavior, and system-performance effects
• Competence in optical performance characterization and image-quality metrics, including MTF, distortion, relative illumination, flare, stray light, ghosting, color, noise, and dynamic range
• Experience developing optical test strategies, laboratory setups, automated measurements, analysis methods, and test specifications for complex camera systems
• Understanding of optical tolerancing, sensitivity analysis, measurement uncertainty, repeatability, reproducibility, and performance variation
• Cross-disciplinary understanding of optical-mechanical design, packaging, electrical design, software, image processing, thermal effects, manufacturing, assembly, and calibration
• Experience with high-volume, cost-sensitive camera design and manufacturing, design-for-manufacture, and production-test considerations
• Familiarity with automotive OEM camera requirements and environmental and durability expectations
• Ability to diagnose complex optical problems, identify root cause, and lead corrective actions using structured methods such as 8D
• Demonstrated innovation through patents, publications, test-method development, technical standards, reusable tools, or products brought to market
• Optical design and analysis tools such as Zemax OpticStudio and/or CODE V
• Camera and image-quality analysis tools, optical laboratory instruments, and optical-mechanical alignment setups
• Data analysis and test automation using engineering tools; Python, MATLAB, LabVIEW, or equivalent preferred
• Microsoft Office, with strong proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint
• Working knowledge of requirements management, configuration management, and project monitoring tools
• Expert written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to work independently with limited supervision and collaborate in a global, cross-functional environment
• Comprehensive knowledge of English
• Current and ongoing authorization to work in the United States; role is not eligible for visa sponsorship
• Ability to perform normal computer and laboratory work and move around office, laboratory, and plant environments
• Domestic and international travel may be required

Core Competencies

Demonstrates expertise in optical design, camera development, and optical performance characterization, with a strong focus on automotive applications. Proficient in developing and implementing optical test strategies and methodologies while collaborating across cross-functional teams.

Highest-signal resume keywords

• Optical Design and Development
• CMOS Image Sensor Optimization
• Optical Performance Characterization
• Automated Test Method Development
• Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration

ATS Optimization Keywords

Hard Skills

• Optical Design
• Optical Performance Characterization
• Image-Quality Metrics
• Optical Tolerancing
• Data Analysis
• Test Automation
• Camera Development
• Optical Testing
• Image-Signal Behavior
• Optical Architecture Development

Soft Skills

• Expert Communication Skills
• Problem Diagnosis
• Mentoring
• Collaboration
• Continuous Improvement

Industry Keywords

• Automotive Camera Development
• Optical Engineering
• Imaging Science
• Environmental and Durability Expectations
• High-Volume Manufacturing
• Design-for-Manufacture
• Optical Measurement Technologies
• Optical Characterization Methods
• Camera Systems
• Optical-Mechanical Design

Tools & Technologies

• Zemax OpticStudio
• CODE V
• Python
• MATLAB
• LabVIEW
• Optical Laboratory Instruments
• Microsoft Office
• Requirements Management Tools
• Configuration Management Tools
• Project Monitoring Tools