Junior Autonomy & Sensor Fusion Engineer

Position Overview

Blue Ops is seeking a motivated Junior Autonomy & Sensor Fusion Engineer to support the development, integration, testing, and validation of advanced autonomous systems for uncrewed surface vessels (USVs).

The selected candidate will work closely with senior engineering personnel on navigation systems, GNSS and GNSS-denied positioning, radar integration, sensor fusion, autonomous navigation, and AI-assisted perception.

This is a hands-on engineering position combining software development, embedded systems, robotics, and real-world maritime testing.

The ideal candidate is a technically capable junior engineer who enjoys solving complex problems, writing clean code, working with physical hardware, and learning advanced autonomy technologies.

Key Responsibilities

1. Navigation, GNSS & Positioning Systems

- Assist with integration and testing of GNSS/GPS receivers, high-accuracy GNSS systems, RTK-GNSS, and inertial navigation sensors.

- Support development and validation of positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) systems.

- Assist with GNSS-degraded and GNSS-denied navigation research and testing.

- Work with IMUs, magnetometers, heading sensors, and inertial navigation systems (INS).

- Troubleshoot NMEA 0183, NMEA 2000, and navigation telemetry.

- Help validate coordinate transformations, heading accuracy, sensor timestamps, and navigation data quality.

2. Sensor Fusion & Perception

- Support integration of marine radar, GNSS, IMU, cameras, and other onboard sensors.

- Assist with Kalman filtering, extended Kalman filters (EKF), and basic state-estimation algorithms.

- Develop Python utilities for sensor data processing, filtering, visualization, and diagnostics.

- Help evaluate sensor accuracy, calibration, latency, and synchronization.

- Support radar-based target detection, tracking, and classification.

- Assist with automatic target recognition (ATR) and AI perception workflows.

3. Autonomous Navigation & Robotics

- Support development and testing of autonomous vessel navigation capabilities.

- Assist with waypoint navigation, route following, heading control, and vessel state estimation.

- Help implement and test PID controllers and other basic control algorithms.

- Support collision-detection and collision-avoidance research, simulations, and validation.

- Assist with autonomous mission behaviors, safety monitoring, and recovery procedures.

- Work with ROS 2 components, messaging, telemetry, and robotic software interfaces.

4. Software Development & Integration

- Develop, maintain, and debug software primarily using Python , with exposure to C++.

- Build utilities, APIs, diagnostic tools, and automated test scripts.

- Work with Linux-based development environments and NVIDIA Jetson edge-computing platforms.

- Support communication protocols including CAN, TCP/IP, UDP, serial, and MQTT.

- Assist with ROS 2 nodes, services, topics, and system integration.

- Use Git/GitHub for version control, code reviews, and collaborative development.

- Help diagnose software, networking, sensor, and hardware integration issues.

5. AI, Machine Learning & Data Processing

- Support development and evaluation of computer vision and machine learning components.

- Assist with preparing, labeling, and validating radar and sensor datasets.

- Run inference benchmarks and evaluate model accuracy and performance.

- Support deployment and optimization of AI models on embedded hardware.

- Develop scripts for processing sensor logs, telemetry, and experimental data.

- Assist senior engineers with model evaluation, fine-tuning workflows, and technical research.

6. Testing, Validation & Field Support

- Participate in laboratory, simulation, dockside, and controlled vessel testing.

- Collect and analyze sensor logs, GNSS data, radar recordings, and system telemetry.

- Develop repeatable test procedures and document engineering results.

- Assist with troubleshooting hardware and software issues during integration.

- Verify software changes against defined acceptance criteria.

- Support preparation of technical documentation, test reports, and engineering milestones.

- Follow established safety procedures and engineering change-control processes.

Minimum Qualifications

- Bachelors degree in computer science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical field; equivalent demonstrated technical experience considered.

- Foundational proficiency in Python programming .

- Familiarity with Linux development environments.

- Basic understanding of GPS/GNSS, coordinating systems, and navigation principles.

- Familiarity with sensors, embedded systems, or robotics.

- Basic knowledge of linear algebra, trigonometry, and introductory control systems.

- Experience using Git or another version-control system.

- Ability to troubleshoot technical problems systematically.

- Strong willingness to learn unfamiliar technologies.

- Ability to communicate findings and document technical work.

Relevant internships, academic projects, robotics competitions, military technical experience, and personal engineering projects are welcome.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with any of the following is beneficial but not required:

- ROS 2 and robotics middleware.

- NVIDIA Jetson, Raspberry Pi, or similar embedded platforms.

- GNSS, RTK, INS, IMUs, and magnetometers.

- NMEA 0183 / NMEA 2000 maritime protocols.

- Marine radar, LiDAR, or camera-based perception.

- Kalman filters, EKF, and sensor fusion.

- Autonomous vehicles, drones, or USVs.

- C++ programming.

- OpenCV, PyTorch, or machine learning inference.

- Docker, CMake, colcon, and automated testing.

- CAN bus, serial communications, and network diagnostics.

- Simulation tools and hardware-in-the-loop testing.

- Maritime navigation and COLREGs fundamentals.

What Success Looks Like

First 30 Days

- Become familiar with Blue Ops development environments, software architecture, and onboard hardware.

- Successfully build, run, and troubleshoot assigned software components.

- Understand basic vessel navigation telemetry and sensor data flows.

- Complete initial Python development and testing assignments.

First 60 Days

- Independently complete small, well-defined engineering tasks.

- Assist with sensor integration, telemetry validation, and software debugging.

- Develop useful diagnostic scripts or automated test utilities.

- Participate in autonomy and perception integration testing.

First 90 Days

- Own assigned components or engineering utilities under senior supervision.

- Contribute tested code to navigation, perception, or sensor-fusion workflows.

- Support vessel integration and controlled field-testing activities.

- Demonstrate the ability to investigate defects, propose solutions, and validate results.

Ideal Candidate

We are looking for someone who is technically curious, resourceful, disciplined, and comfortable working across software and hardware.

The successful candidate does not need to be an expert in autonomous systems on day one. They should possess strong programming fundamentals, an understanding of engineering principles, and the initiative to investigate problems before escalating them.

This position provides the opportunity to develop practical expertise in advanced maritime autonomy, sensor fusion, GNSS-resilient navigation, robotics, and edge AI while working alongside experienced engineers on real-world uncrewed systems.

Physical Requirements and Working Conditions

- Must be able to walk, stand, and navigate large indoor and outdoor facilities for extended periods of time.

- Ability to lift, carry, and move materials and equipment weighing up to 25 lbs on a regular basis.

- Use of personal protective equipment (PPE) may be required in designated areas or when performing specific tasks, in accordance with safety protocols and company policy.

- May be required to climb ladders, stoop, kneel, or crouch during inspections, maintenance walk-throughs, or emergency response situations.

- Regular exposure to facility operations including noise, dust, temperature fluctuations, and industrial equipment.

- Occasional off-hours or weekend work required for emergency facility responses or projects as needed

- Requires frequent use of a computer and other standard office equipment for documentation, communication, and coordination tasks.

Background Check

This position will require successfully completing a post-offer background check. Qualified candidates with a criminal history will be considered and are not automatically disqualified, consistent with federal and state law.

EEO and ITAR/EAR Work Authorization Disclosure

Red Cat Holdings provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This position requires direct or indirect access to hardware, software, technology or technical data controlled under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). Successful candidates for positions subject to ITAR/EAR restrictions must provide proof of U.S. Citizenship or Permanent Residence and must not require sponsorship for export-restricted work authorization.

E-Verify

The company participates E-Verify ensure eligibility for employment and compliance with Right to Work rules.

Compensation: Base pay, plus generous annual equity package and potential bonuses.