Senior Mechanical Engineer & Technical Lead — Robotics Hardware

Path Robotics, Inc.; Columbus (OH); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Equity

401(k)

Flexible PTO

Hands-on culture

Job summary

Path Robotics in Columbus, Ohio, is seeking a Staff Mechanical Engineer, Technical Lead to guide the hardware direction for sensing end-of-arm tooling and real-world automation tasks. This hands-on leadership role requires architecture definition, cross-discipline collaboration, and mentoring of engineers, with a track record of bringing hardware from concept to deployment.

This role emphasizes owning the full lifecycle from requirements to deployment, aligning hardware with product goals, and

Qualifications

• Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, Robotics, or related field.
• 7+ years in robotics, automation, or industrial hardware development.
• Track record leading the technical direction of a hardware product or subsystem from concept through deployment.
• Deep experience designing end-of-arm tooling, grippers, or sensor-integrated robotic payloads.
• Strong grasp of how mechanical design affects sensor calibration and performance.
• Experience defining interfaces in electromechanical systems: connectors, cabling, tool changers, and communication protocols.
• Familiarity with imitation or demonstration-based learning and how data collection design affects model results.
• Proficiency in SolidWorks or equivalent CAD with PDM-based release workflows.

Responsibilities

• Own the technical roadmap for sensing end-of-arm tooling, physical interfaces, and training task design.
• Translate product goals and model training needs into hardware requirements and interface specifications.
• Lead design reviews and set standards for robustness, serviceability, and manufacturability.
• Identify technical risks early and retire them before they reach the field.
• Lead the design of end-of-arm tooling that integrates cameras, 3D, force/torque, tactile, and proximity sensors.
• Define sensor placement, calibration, and mounting that hold accuracy under vibration, heat, spatter, dust, and repeated contact.
• Drive tooling from concept through production release.
• Define mechanical, electrical, and data interfaces between robots, tools, tool changers, sensors, fixtures, and workpieces.
• Establish standards that let tools and sensors be swapped, serviced, and reused across platforms.
• Align physical interfaces with hardware abstraction, calibration, and control architecture.
• Design the tasks, fixtures, parts, and environments used to collect demonstration and training data.
• Define task variation, difficulty, and success criteria that represent real industrial work.
• Partner with ML engineers to connect task design to model performance.
• Own the full lifecycle — requirements, design, prototyping, validation, deployment, and improvement.
• Align hardware with product goals across mechanical, electrical, software, and ML teams.
• Mentor engineers and build sound engineering judgment across the team.
• Work with vendors, suppliers, and our shop to turn designs into hardware — fast.
• Drive root cause analysis and design improvements from field and reliability data.

Skills

Robotics expertise

Mechanical design

Leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or related field

Tools

SolidWorks

PDM-based release workflows

Job description

Path Robotics in Columbus, Ohio, is seeking a Staff Mechanical Engineer, Technical Lead to guide the hardware direction for sensing end-of-arm tooling and real-world automation tasks. This hands-on leadership role requires architecture definition, cross-discipline collaboration, and mentoring of engineers, with a track record of bringing hardware from concept to deployment.

This role emphasizes owning the full lifecycle from requirements to deployment, aligning hardware with product goals, and