Postdoc in Robotics & Autonomous Systems — Field Ops

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory; Laurel (MD); On-site; USD 85,000 - 156,000; Full time

Job summary

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, MD, is seeking a Postdoctoral Researcher in Robotics and Autonomous Systems to join the Tailored Autonomous Systems Group (QPJ). This role focuses on applying advanced research to real-world autonomous platforms for mission-driven environments.

You will lead applied robotics research, design and integrate platforms, develop autonomy algorithms, and run experiments while collaborating across disciplines to publish results

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Robotics, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
• Strong research record in robotics/autonomous systems (publications, dissertation, or equivalent).
• Hands-on experience building and testing robotic systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead and contribute to applied research in robotics and autonomy, transitioning ideas into prototypes and deployable systems.
• Design, build, and integrate robotic platforms, including sensing, compute, control, and communications.
• Contribute to teams developing advanced autonomy algorithms and pipelines on resource-constrained hardware (perception, planning, decision-making, multi-agent coordination).
• Develop and evaluate systems using simulation, digital twins, and HWIL environments.
• Conduct field experiments and performance evaluations in realistic operational scenarios.
• Collaborate across mechanical, electrical, software, and AI/ML disciplines to deliver integrated capabilities.
• Publish results and help shape future research directions and proposals.

Skills

Robotics research

Hands-on testing

Embedded platforms

Python

C++

System integration

Education

PhD in Robotics or related field

Tools

ROS/ROS2

Gazebo

Isaac Sim

NVIDIA Jetson

FPGA

Job description

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, MD, is seeking a Postdoctoral Researcher in Robotics and Autonomous Systems to join the Tailored Autonomous Systems Group (QPJ). This role focuses on applying advanced research to real-world autonomous platforms for mission-driven environments.

You will lead applied robotics research, design and integrate platforms, develop autonomy algorithms, and run experiments while collaborating across disciplines to publish results