The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) is offering opportunities for engineers to work at its state-of-the-art facility on California’s beautiful central coast.

MBARI was founded by David Packard to develop and apply new methods, instruments, and analytical systems to address fundamental questions in ocean science. Engineers at MBARI engage in peer relationships with researchers and specialists in operations and education/outreach to develop exciting new technologies enabling us to explore and understand the ocean, and to inform and educate the public.

MBARI is seeking a Software Engineer to bring capabilities in embedded software, data analytics, and algorithm development, reporting to the Embedded Software Engineering Group Lead. As a key developer on multiple projects, this individual will work with teams of researchers, engineers, and operations staff on a range of novel technologies for exploring and measuring the ocean, including:

• Autonomous and crewed marine vehicles
• State-of-the-art imaging systems
• Chemical/physical/biological sensors
• Vehicle control and navigation systems
• AI/ML applications, e.g. automated image/audio processing
• Signal processing
• Aerial drones

Core responsibilities for this role include:

• Design, test, deploy and support software used in laboratory and field environments.
• Develop applications for commercially available and custom hardware, using a variety of processors, with and without operating systems. Applications include firmware, middleware, algorithms, and utilities for a variety of embedded, desktop, and networked systems.
• Collaborate with development teams to generate functional and design requirements.
• Produce documentation for developers and users.

Engineers in the embedded systems group typically gain experience and contribute in a number of interesting areas, for example:

• Machine vision
• Instrumentation/measurement
• Embedded Linux
• Low-power systems
• Wireless communications
• Acoustics/imaging
• Simulation
• Robot Operating System (ROS)

This role features occasional participation in shipboard operations for testing and research, with opportunities to participate in longer expeditions. This individual works occasionally in non-office settings, e.g., laboratories, test facilities, and ships. Previous research or fieldwork experience are not required.

Required qualifications for this role include:

• Experience equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline and body of relevant software development work
• Ability to multitask effectively, independently and on multidisciplinary teams
• Demonstrated collaborative software development skills
• Proficiency in C/C++ and use of contemporary development tools
• Experience designing embedded and/or real-time software
• Basic network configuration and troubleshooting skills
• Appropriate application of formal engineering processes

Preferred qualifications include but are not limited to:

• Familiarity with machine learning tools and techniques
• Proficiency in Python and/or similar languages
• Familiarity with Linux, macOS, and/or Windows applications and development tools
• Use of schematics, protocol analyzer, oscilloscope for troubleshooting
• Understanding of good measurement and data management practices