Staff Embedded Perception Engineer

Boston Dynamics, Inc.; Waltham (MA); On-site; USD 134,000 - 185,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision

401(k)

Paid time off

Annual bonus

Job summary

Boston Dynamics, Inc. seeks a Staff Embedded Perception Engineer specializing in tactile sensing to advance robotic manipulation. You will design sensing systems to convert raw tactile signals into meaningful data guiding robot behavior.

Work spans embedded systems, sensing hardware, signal processing, simulation, and robotics, building high-bandwidth data acquisition and firmware. Collaboration across electrical, mechanical and software teams is essential to ensure reliable, capable robotic

Qualifications

• Advanced degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Robotics, or related field.
• BS with substantial relevant experience may be considered.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to design and demonstrate new sensing solutions.
• Architect and implement high-performance embedded firmware for tactile data acquisition.
• Design automated data-collection routines for ground-truth datasets.
• Characterize sensor behavior under load, motion, vibration and thermal variation.
• Develop data processing pipelines using DSP techniques for sensor signals.
• Bridge sim-to-real by modeling sensor performance in simulated environments.

Skills

Embedded C/C++

Verilog/VHDL

SPI/I2C/CAN

Python

PyTorch

DSP techniques

Education

MS/PhD in EE/CS/Robotics

BS + significant relevant experience

Tools

Git

Job description

We’re looking for a Staff Embedded Perception Engineer specializing in tactile sensing to help advance the next generation of robotic manipulation. In this role, you will design and develop sensing systems that allow robots to physically interact with the world, transforming raw tactile signals into meaningful data that drives intelligent robot behavior.

You will work at the intersection of embedded systems, sensing hardware, signal processing, simulation, and robotics, developing high-bandwidth data acquisition systems and firmware that enable robots to perceive contact, force, and interaction with their environment. This role requires hands‑on experimentation and close collaboration with teams across electrical, mechanical, and software engineering to build sensing solutions that improve the capabilities and reliability of robotic platforms operating in dynamic environments.

How You Will Make an Impact

• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to design, evaluate, and demonstrate new sensing solutions that enable reliable closed‑loop robotic manipulation and interaction with the environment.
• Architect and implement high‑performance embedded firmware to acquire, process, and stream high‑bandwidth data from tactile sensors.
• Design and deploy automated data‑collection routines using robot end‑effectors or instrumented test rigs to generate ground‑truth datasets for sensor calibration and modeling.
• Conduct hands‑on testing to characterize sensor behavior under operational loads including motion, vibration, and thermal variation.
• Develop data processing pipelines that leverage advanced DSP techniques to filter, fuse, and compress raw sensor signals into optimized representations used by robotic perception and behavior models.
• Model sensor performance and drive the integration of tactile sensing into simulated virtual environments (e.g., Isaac Sim, MuJoCo) to effectively bridge the sim‑to‑real gap.
• Debug complex electronics, perform failure analysis, and investigate root causes to improve reliability and system performance.
• Work closely with software, systems, manufacturing, and test engineering teams to define hardware interfaces and ensure successful system integration.
• Document designs, experiments, and learnings while contributing to improved development processes, tools, and design standards.

Required Experience

• MS or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Robotics, or a related field. A BS with significant relevant experience will also be considered.
• 5+ years of experience developing embedded systems in robotics, automation, or similar electromechanical products.
• Strong understanding of the physical principles behind tactile sensing and the ability to model sensor behavior and translate physical limitations into robust data representations.
• Experience using version‑control (Git) and developing embedded C/C++ and Verilog/VHDL firmware for robotic systems, emphasizing SPI, I2C, and CAN communication with underlying hardware.
• Proficiency in Python and deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch applied to sensor data processing or representation learning.
• Strong technical communication and documentation skills.

Desired Experience

• Experience with bare‑metal development for high‑bandwidth sensor readout and low‑latency systems.
• Experience designing and executing hardware‑based data collection campaigns to generate ground‑truth datasets for sensor calibration, modeling, or simulation environments such as MuJoCo or Isaac Sim.
• Experience integrating multiple sensor modalities such as vision, force/torque sensors, IMUs, or audio arrays into complex electromechanical systems.
• Experience debugging electronics and conducting environmental or reliability testing in motion‑centric applications.
• Familiarity with EMC/EMI testing and standards is a plus.
• Certifications related to robotics safety, reliability engineering, or IPC standards are a plus.

Compensation and Benefits

Pay range: $134,399.06 to $184,798.70 annually. Base pay will depend on multiple individualized factors including, but not limited to, internal equity, job related knowledge, skills and experience. This range represents a good faith estimate of compensation at the time of posting.

Benefits include medical, dental, vision, 401(k), paid time off, and an annual bonus structure. Additional details regarding these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer for employment.