Staff Electrical and Electronic Design Engineer - Future Forward

It started with a simple idea: what if surgery could be less invasive and recovery less painful? Nearly 30 years later, that question still fuels everything we do at Intuitive. As a global leader in robotic-assisted surgery and minimally invasive care, our technologies like the da Vinci surgical system and Ion have transformed how care is delivered for millions of patients worldwide.

Were a team of engineers, clinicians, and innovators united by one purpose: to make surgery smarter, safer, and more human. Every day, our work helps care teams perform with greater precision and patients recover faster, improving outcomes around the world.

The problems we solve demand creativity, rigor, and collaboration. The work is challenging, but deeply meaningful because every improvement we make has the potential to change a life.

The Future Forward organization is Intuitive’s advanced concepts group. We explore emerging technologies, prototype next-generation solutions, and build software experiences that shape the future of robotic-assisted surgery.

If you're ready to contribute to something bigger than yourself and help transform the future of healthcare, you'll find your purpose here.

The Future Forward group within Intuitive Surgical is searching for a Staff Electrical and Electronic Design Engineer to architect, design, and bring up the electronic hardware behind next-generation robotic and vision systems. This role is an exciting opportunity to join a small and innovative team in the early phases of product development, where design decisions made at the schematic and architecture level shape the performance of the entire system.

Joining Intuitive Surgical means joining a team dedicated to using technology to benefit patients by improving surgical efficacy and decreasing surgical invasiveness, with patient outcomes as our highest priority. The Staff Electrical and Electronic Design Engineer owns analog, digital, and mixed-signal circuit design from concept through schematic capture, layout direction, prototype bring-up, design verification, and transfer to manufacturing. The ideal candidate designs for electromagnetic compatibility and signal integrity from the first block diagram rather than after the first chamber failure, and can isolate the most difficult board-level and system-level failures on the bench. A strong sense of integrity, care, and attention to detail is required, together with a commitment to developing products of the highest quality.

Roles and Responsibilities:

• Design analog, digital, and mixed-signal circuits from concept through schematic capture, layout direction, prototype bring-up, and transfer to manufacturing.
• Lead schematic and design reviews, and guide PCB layout for signal integrity, power integrity, and manufacturability.
• Design for EMC and EMI from the start through grounding, shielding, filtering, isolation, and ESD protection, and support pre-compliance and compliance testing.
• Bring up and debug prototypes in the lab, and drive hardware issues to root cause and a verified fix.
• Integrate sensors, cameras, illumination, motor drives, and compute platforms in partnership with Mechanical, Firmware, Software, Vision, and Test teams.
• Document designs, verification protocols, and results under Intuitive design controls.
• Mentor engineers and help shape design practices, reference designs, and the technology roadmap for future products.
• Drive external suppliers and design partners for camera, sensor, optics, and PCBA subsystems, setting technical direction and holding builds to schedule and quality targets.

Skills/Job Requirements:

• Minimum 10 years' experience designing production electronics in the medical device, automotive, or robotics industry, including at least one product taken from concept to production.
• Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Computer Engineering, or Computer Science; a Master of Science degree preferred.
• Strong schematic design, review, and debug skills across analog, digital, and mixed-signal circuits, using Altium Designer, Cadence OrCAD/Allegro, or Siemens Xpedition.
• Practical EMC and EMI design and troubleshooting experience, with working knowledge of standards such as IEC 60601-1-2, CISPR 11/32, or the IEC 61000-4 immunity series.
• Solid signal integrity and power integrity fundamentals for high-speed interfaces such as MIPI CSI-2, LVDS, PCIe, USB, DDR, or Ethernet, including impedance control, return paths, crosstalk, and decoupling.
• Direct experience with imaging and vision hardware, motor drive electronics, or precision sensing, and with transferring designs into manufacturing and production test.
• Confident in the lab with oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers, near-field probes, and logic or protocol analyzers, working with embedded interfaces such as I2C, SPI, UART, CAN, USB, and Ethernet, and using Python or MATLAB for test automation and data analysis.
• Experience under a regulated quality system such as ISO 13485, FDA 21 CFR Part 820, IEC 60601-1, and ISO 14971, or automotive functional safety such as ISO 26262, is desired; FPGA design experience with VHDL or SystemVerilog is a plus.
• Clear communication, strong documentation habits, and the ability to lead technical decisions, work independently, and mentor others.

Due to the nature of our business and the role, please note that Intuitive and/or your customer(s) may require that you show current proof of vaccination against certain diseases including COVID-19. Details can vary by role.

Intuitive is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees, and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type, without regard to race, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, age, religion, protected veteran or disability status, genetic information or any other status protected under federal, state, or local applicable laws.

Mandatory Notices

U.S. Export Controls Disclaimer: In accordance with the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (15 CFR §743.13(b)), some roles at Intuitive Surgical may be subject to U.S. export controls for prospective employees who are nationals from countries currently on embargo or sanctions status.

Certain information you provide as part of the application will be used for purposes of determining whether Intuitive Surgical will need to (i) obtain an export license from the U.S. Government on your behalf (note: the government’s licensing process can take 3 to 6+ months) or (ii) implement a Technology Control Plan (“TCP”) (note: typically adds 2 weeks to the hiring process).

For any Intuitive role subject to export controls, final offers are contingent upon obtaining an approved export license and/or an executed TCP prior to the prospective employee’s start date, which may or may not be flexible, and within a timeframe that does not unreasonably impede the hiring need. If applicable, candidates will be notified and instructed on any requirements for these purposes.

We will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with fair chance laws.

Preference will be given to qualified candidates who do not reside, or plan to reside, in Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, or Tennessee.

This position may be filled at a different job level than listed here depending on

business need and/or on the selected candidate’s experience, knowledge and skills.

Compensation will be based primarily on the job level at which the role is filled and the

candidate’s qualifications, consistent with applicable law.

We provide market-competitive compensation packages, inclusive of base pay, incentives, benefits, and equity. It would not be typical for someone to be hired at the top end of range for the role, as actual pay will be determined based on several factors, including experience, skills, and qualifications. The target compensation ranges are listed.