ROBOTICS & VEHICLE AUTONOMY ENGINEER

AC Future, Inc.; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

AC Future, Inc. on Irvine, California is seeking a hands-on Robotics & Vehicle Autonomy Engineer. You will develop autonomous navigation, perception, and control for next-generation mobility platforms, working with sensors, embedded computers, and vehicle networks.

The role requires strong C++/Python, ROS/ROS 2 experience, and hands-on collaboration with cross-disciplinary teams to bring concepts from simulation to prototype testing.

Qualifications

• BS/MS/PhD in Robotics, CS, Electrical, Mechanical, Mechatronics or related field.
• Four+ years in robotics, autonomous vehicles, ADAS, or connected vehicles.
• Strong C++ and Python in Linux environments.
• Experience with ROS/ROS 2 and localization, path planning, and control.

Responsibilities

• Develop autonomous navigation, parking, motion planning, and vehicle control.
• Implement perception and sensor-fusion with cameras, LiDAR, radar, GNSS/IMU.
• Develop C++/Python software for Linux-based embedded systems (ROS/ROS 2).
• Integrate hardware with ECUs, sensors, and vehicle networks (CAN, Ethernet).
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams and support field testing.

Skills

C++ programming

Python

Sensor fusion

Localization/SLAM

Perception

Embedded systems

ROS/ROS 2

Education

BS/MS/PhD in Robotics/CS/EE/Mechatronics

Tools

ROS/ROS 2

Linux

NVIDIA Jetson/DRIVE

Git

Job description

Develop intelligent & connected capabilities for next-generation AC Future mobility platforms

Location:Irvine, California

Employment Type:Full-Time

Department:Engineering / Advanced Technology

Position Overview

We are seeking a hands-on Robotics & Vehicle Autonomy Engineer to develop and integrate autonomous, intelligent-vehicle, and connected-vehicle capabilities for next-generation mobility platforms. The role combines robotics, perception, sensor fusion, localization, motion planning, controls, embedded software, vehicle integration, and supporting telemetry functions.

The engineer will work directly with sensors, actuators, vehicle controllers, embedded computers, vehicle networks, and telemetry systems to take advanced functions from concept and simulation through prototype implementation, calibration, validation, and real-world testing.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop robotic and autonomous-vehicle functions, including autonomous navigation, automated parking and maneuvering, low-speed autonomy, obstacle avoidance, localization and mapping, path planning, trajectory generation, and vehicle motion control.
• Develop and integrate perception and sensor-fusion algorithms using cameras, LiDAR, radar, ultrasonic sensors, GNSS/GPS, IMU, and vehicle sensors.
• Develop steering, braking, propulsion, and maneuvering control algorithms and integrate them with vehicle ECUs, controllers, sensors, and actuators.
• Develop production-quality C++ and Python software for Linux-based embedded environments using ROS or ROS 2.
• Implement autonomous functions on NVIDIA Jetson, NVIDIA DRIVE, or equivalent automotive and robotics computing platforms.
• Interface with CAN, CAN FD, J1939, Automotive Ethernet, diagnostics, and related vehicle communication protocols.
• Integrate selected vehicle and autonomy data with telemetry and connected-vehicle platforms, including signal acquisition, data logging, diagnostics, system health, and sensor status.
• Support communication among vehicle controllers, telematics control units or gateways, cloud platforms, and remote applications using technologies such as MQTT and REST APIs.
• Support remote diagnostics, vehicle health monitoring, vehicle-to-cloud troubleshooting, and OTA software or configuration-update integration as required.
• Perform sensor and vehicle calibration, data collection, debugging, field testing, and analysis to improve performance, reliability, and robustness.
• Develop simulation, software-in-the-loop, hardware-in-the-loop, and vehicle-level test methods for validation before deployment.
• Develop safe operating strategies, fault handling, degraded modes, emergency-stop behavior, and operational safety boundaries for autonomous functions.
• Collaborate with electrical, mechanical, embedded software, cloud, mobile application, and vehicle engineering teams; support prototype builds and hands-on system testing.

Required Qualifications

• BS, MS, or PhD in Robotics, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, Automotive Engineering, or a related technical field.
• Four or more years of relevant experience in robotics, autonomous vehicles, ADAS, mobile robots, embedded vehicle systems, or connected vehicles. Relevant PhD research and postdoctoral work may be counted toward this experience requirement.
• Strong programming skills in C++ and Python, with experience developing in Linux environments.
• Experience with ROS or ROS 2 and a sound understanding of coordinate transformations, kinematics, dynamics, localization, path planning, trajectory generation, and feedback control.
• Deep experience with one or more perception or localization sensors, such as camera, LiDAR, radar, ultrasonic, GNSS, or IMU.
• Experience with CAN, CAN FD, J1939, Ethernet, or similar vehicle and embedded communication protocols.
• Understanding of vehicle telemetry, data logging, diagnostics, and vehicle-to-cloud communication.
• Ability to troubleshoot complex systems involving hardware, embedded software, networks, and vehicle-level integration.
• Willingness and ability to work directly with prototype vehicles, wiring, sensors, ECUs, actuators, and embedded computers.

Preferred Qualifications

• Autonomous driving, ADAS, mobile robotics, sensor fusion, computer vision, LiDAR perception, SLAM, or visual/LiDAR odometry.
• GPS localization, Kalman filtering or Extended Kalman Filtering, path and motion planning, Model Predictive Control, or vehicle dynamics and control.
• OpenCV, CUDA, PyTorch, TensorFlow, or GPU-accelerated computing.
• NVIDIA Jetson or DRIVE platforms and deployment of algorithms on embedded compute hardware.
• Vehicle telematics, TCU integration, MQTT, connected-vehicle architectures, cloud-based vehicle data platforms, remote diagnostics, or OTA integration.
• AWS or a similar cloud environment, automotive diagnostics, and data-analysis pipelines.
• Functional Safety (ISO 26262), SOTIF (ISO 21448), automotive cybersecurity (ISO 21434), or safety-oriented robotic-system development.
• Simulation and validation tools such as CARLA, Gazebo, MATLAB/Simulink, or equivalent SIL/HIL environments.
• Experience translating graduate or postdoctoral research into working prototypes, field demonstrations, deployed systems, or peer-reviewed technical results.

What We Are Looking For

We are looking for a practical engineer and creative problem solver who can bridge robotics algorithms, embedded systems, real vehicle hardware, and connected-vehicle technology. The successful candidate will be comfortable moving between algorithm development, software integration, sensors, vehicle networks, telemetry, debugging, and physical vehicle testing.

The primary focus of this position is Robotics and Vehicle Autonomy. Telemetry is an important supporting capability for vehicle-data collection, diagnostics, remote monitoring, and connected functionality.