Embedded Hardware Engineer - Electro Optical Systems

About Trakka Systems

Trakka Systems is a global leader in the design, development, and manufacture of mission-critical vision, surveillance, and situational awareness solutions for airborne, maritime, and land-based operations. For more than 25 years, Trakka has delivered innovative technologies including advanced gyro-stabilized imaging systems, EO/IR sensor platforms, high-intensity searchlights, mission management and mapping software, counter-UAS solutions, and integrated surveillance systems that support defense, law enforcement, border security, search and rescue, utility, and special mission operators around the world. Trakka Systems is a member of the Acron Technologies platform of specialized companies that innovate to create safer skies and protect lives.

Trakka Systems is seeking a hands-on Embedded Hardware Engineer to design, develop, and debug the electronics inside our airborne, land, and maritime electro-optical products. This is a bench-forward design role: you will own circuit boards from concept through schematic capture, layout, bring-up, and qualification - including real-time video processing, motor control and stabilization, serial communications, and DC/DC power regulation.

Alongside new development, you will serve as the hardware escalation point for our production and field service teams, applying the same instrumentation and root-cause discipline to units already in the field. If you are equally comfortable in front of an ECAD tool and behind an oscilloscope, this role is built for you.

Product Scope:

• The hardware you design goes into a defense- and public-safety-focused product line. Direct experience with these systems is a plus, not a prerequisite - but you should be interested in working on:
• Gyro-stabilized multi-axis gimbals (2-axis and 4-axis) with EO/IR sensor payloads
• High-intensity searchlights (HISL) and associated high-power drive electronics
• Counter-UAS and detection systems
• Airborne, land, and maritime platform integrations, including qualification to environmental, shock/vibration, and EMI/EMC requirements

Responsibilities:

• Hardware Design & Development
• Own board-level design from requirements through release: architecture, component selection, schematic capture, and PCB layout for mixed-signal, high-speed digital, and power boards.
• Design and implement circuitry for real-time video paths, brushless motor control and stabilization, serial communications, and DC/DC power regulation and distribution.
• Apply disciplined power, ground, and high-speed design practice: stackup and impedance control, controlled return paths, plane partitioning, decoupling strategy, length/skew matching, and signal integrity for multi-gigabit and clocked interfaces.
• Design for EMI/EMC, thermal performance, and environmental robustness in size-, weight-, and power-constrained enclosures.
• Integrate and configure STM32 (and similar ARM Cortex-M) microcontrollers and FPGAs, working closely with firmware engineers on pinout, boot, clocking, memory, and interface definition.
• Produce and maintain complete design documentation: schematics, BOMs, fabrication and assembly drawings, interface control documents, and test procedures.
• Bring-Up, Debug & Validation
• Perform first-article board bring-up and power-on characterization, isolating and resolving hardware faults down to the component and signal level.
• Use the full bench toolkit daily: oscilloscopes (including high-bandwidth and mixed-signal), spectrum analyzers, logic and protocol analyzers, function generators, DMMs, power supplies and electronic loads, thermal imaging, and network/serial test tools.
• Debug and validate hardware interfaces including SPI, I²C, UART/RS-232/RS-422/RS-485, Ethernet, HDMI, SDI, CAN, USB, and LVDS/differential video links.
• Measure and verify power rails, sequencing, ripple, transient response, efficiency, inrush, and load regulation; characterize noise coupling and grounding issues in real hardware rather than on paper.
• Plan and execute design verification testing; support EMI/EMC and environmental qualification campaigns and drive corrective design changes based on results.
• Production & Field Support
• Act as the hardware technical resource for manufacturing and service personnel - resolving build, test, and yield issues and supporting escalations that exceed technician-level diagnosis.
• Develop test fixtures, ATE requirements, functional test procedures, and troubleshooting guides that let production and service teams diagnose faults independently.
• Perform failure analysis on returned and fielded units; determine root cause, recommend corrective action, and close the loop through engineering change orders and design improvements.
• Apply design-for-manufacturability, design-for-test, and design-for-serviceability principles from the start of each project.
• Provide occasional remote or on-site support for fielded systems.

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related discipline.
• 5+ years of hands-on embedded hardware design experience, including schematic capture and PCB layout of production hardware.
• Demonstrated proficiency with lab instrumentation - you can independently select the right instrument, set up the measurement correctly, and interpret what you see.
• Practical design and debug experience with embedded digital interfaces (SPI, I²C, UART/RS-232/RS-422, Ethernet) and at least one high-speed video or serial interface (HDMI, SDI, LVDS, or similar).
• Working experience designing around microcontrollers (STM32 or comparable ARM Cortex-M) and FPGAs.
• Solid grounding in power electronics: DC/DC topologies, regulation, sequencing, protection, and power/ground plane design.
• Ability to read and interpret datasheets, reference designs, and errata, and to make defensible component and topology trade-offs.
• Strong analytical and written communication skills; able to document findings clearly for engineering, production, and customer audiences.
• Must be a U.S. Person as defined under ITAR/EAR and eligible to work on export-controlled programs.
• Up to 10% travel required.

Additional Qualifications:

• Experience with Altium Designerand associated library and release management practices.
• Brushless (BLDC/PMSM) motor drive and closed-loop control hardware experience; familiarity with stabilization systems, gyros, encoders, or IMUs a plus
• Real-time video and imaging electronics experience (EO/IR sensors, camera interfaces, video encoders/serializers).
• FPGA design exposure (VHDL/Verilog) or close collaboration with FPGA teams on interface definition and timing closure.
• Firmware/embedded C experience sufficient to write bring-up and diagnostic code.
• Familiarity with aerospace or defense qualification standards (e.g., DO-160, MIL-STD-810, MIL-STD-461) and IPC workmanship standards.
• Experience supporting fielded airborne, land, or maritime systems, or prior work with EO/IR gimbals, high-intensity searchlights, or Counter-UAS products.
• Background in structured root-cause analysis and continuous improvement methodologies.