Production Test Engineer

TILT Autonomy; Annapolis (MD); On-site; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

ICHRA health benefit

401(k)

31 days PTO (16 holidays + 15 disc + 5

Job summary

TILT Autonomy, Inc. in Annapolis, MD is hiring a test engineer to automate production testing for UAV and marine modules. You will convert bench checks into repeatable fixtures and procedures that technicians can run with clear pass/fail results.

Responsibilities include expanding the self-test on boot, integrating DroneCAN/UAVCAN interfaces, and supporting sea trials and field tests. On-site work with potential travel; U.S. residency required.

Qualifications

• 3+ years in test engineering, systems integration, or hardware bring-up.
• Strong Python for test automation and data analysis.
• Linux and the command line; comfortable with test instrumentation.
• U.S. citizenship or permanent residency.

Responsibilities

• Design and build production test fixtures and stands for boards and harnesses.
• Write acceptance test procedures a technician can run without interpretation.
• Automate tests using Python, DroneCAN/MAVLink, and real instruments.
• Extend self-test on boot and provide meaningful failure explanations.
• Support sea trials, field tests, and instrument the vehicle for diagnosability.

Skills

Python

Data analysis

Linux

Hardware debugging

Tools

CAN

DroneCAN/UAVCAN

I2C

SPI

UART

Job description

TILT Autonomy, Inc. — Annapolis, MDFull-Time | $90,000–$140,000 DOE

About TILT

TILT Autonomy designs and builds the autonomy that runs uncrewed aircraft and boats — theboards, the firmware on them, and the ground software crews command them from. Everythingruns on ArduPilot, and we do all of it in house, out of our shop in Annapolis.

We're scaling into rate production, and test is where a large share of the labor pervehicle currently goes.

The Role

Right now, proving a module works takes an engineer, a bench, and some judgment. That isthe single most expensive hour in our build, and it is the one that does not scale.

Your job is to make it not require an engineer. You'll turn the checks our team does byinstinct into automated test fixtures and acceptance procedures a technician can run inminutes, with an unambiguous pass or fail and a record that survives a program review.

Our hardware already has good bones for this — every TILT module speaks DroneCAN, reportstelemetry, and can be scripted through ArduPilot. The built-in self-test story ishalf-written. You'll finish it.

Then you take it to the water, because a bench that passes and a boat that fails is a testthat lied to you.

What You'll Own

Production test- Design and build the test fixtures and stands for our boards, modules and harnesses- Write acceptance test procedures a technician can run without interpreting anything- Automate it — Python, scripted DroneCAN and MAVLink, real instruments, logged results

Built-in test- Extend the self-test that already runs on boot: command a throttle, read the response,decide if it's right- Make a failure say what failed, not just that something did

Integration and field test- Bring up new hardware and find what the schematic did not predict- Support sea trials and flight test; instrument the vehicle so a bad run is diagnosable- Environmental and durability testing as we mature the product

Close the loop- Turn test data into defect trends the design team can act on- Cut test time per unit, and be able to show the number coming down

What We're Looking For

Must have:- 3+ years in test engineering, systems integration, or hardware bring-up- Strong Python for test automation and data analysis- Comfortable with instruments — scopes, DMMs, power supplies, loads — and with what ameasurement actually proves- You've debugged at the hardware/software boundary and can tell the story of a hard one- Linux and the command line- U.S. citizenship or permanent residency

Strongly preferred:- Test fixture and stand design; automated functional test in production- Embedded and serial protocols: CAN, DroneCAN/UAVCAN, I2C, SPI, UART- Flight stack experience — ArduPilot, PX4, MAVLink- HIL or SITL test setups- Writing ATPs and test reports for a customer who will read them

Nice to have:- Marine, UAS, or other uncrewed systems; at-sea or flight test experience- MIL-STD environmental testing (810, 461)- Manufacturing or CM-facing test transfer- Active security clearance

Why TILT

• Directly measurable impact. Labor hours per vehicle is a number on our plan. Youmove it.
• Both worlds. Bench and boat. If you only want one of those, this isn't the seat.
• Build the tooling you need. Nobody will hand you a test framework — that's the job.
• Sustainable pace. We work hard and build for the long haul.
• Benefits. ICHRA health benefit, 401(k), and 31 days of paid time off(16 holidays + 15 discretionary + 5 sick days).

Location & Schedule

On-site in Annapolis, MD. Regular time on the water for sea trials, and occasional travelto contract manufacturers to transfer test to their floor.

This role requires U.S. citizenship or permanent residency because of the workwe do for the U.S. government. Are you a U.S. citizen or permanent resident?