Senior Staff RF Design Engineer - Unmanned Aircraft Systems

TrellisWare Technologies

$115K — $200K *
Aerospace & Defense
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or related field required.
  • Over 10 years of experience as an RF/Wireless Design Engineer.
  • Strong understanding of transceiver design, frequency conversion, frequency synthesizers, and PLL design to 3 GHz.
  • Experience with RF Power Amplifier design and characterization.
  • Ability to abstract complex technical concepts and communicate them effectively.

Responsibilities

  • Identify and define UAS system requirements and hardware features in collaboration with Business Development and Product Management.
  • Lead HW design and architecture development across RF, Analog, Digital, and Mechanical disciplines for UAS systems.
  • Collaborate with the Radio Products group to align hardware design with software requirements.
  • Drive HW design to meet modem performance based on Waveform group feedback.
  • Establish development schedules and budgets alongside Program Management.
  • Lead design verification testing (DVT) and analyze results for UAS platforms.
  • Create and manage product design documentation in PLM systems.

Benefits

  • Job stability and long-term career prospects within a growing field.
  • Collaborative environment with opportunities for personal and professional development.
  • Innovative work culture focused on pushing boundaries and empowering team members.
Full Job Description
Our Hardware Platforms and Accessories Team is seeking a Senior Staff RF Design Engineer specializing in Hardware systems for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). You would be responsible for designing and developing RF/Analog systems and modules for use within UAS platforms. This includes identifying and understanding requirements for wireless products in UAS platforms; designing RF, analog, and digital circuits that meet those requirements while keeping focus on minimizing Size, Weight & Power; driving design verification of new TrellisWare UAS products; transitioning product design into manufacturing; and sustaining the design throughout the product lifetime. The successful RF Design Engineer will fulfill these responsibilities by working collaboratively with Product Management, Program Management, and Sales along with engineering leads from Software, Product Test, and Manufacturing.

Enhancing cohesiveness and maintaining team morale is a responsibility of all our team members, as is the ambition for self-improvement and talent development. Through this dedication to unity and professional advancement, each team member is directly impacting the successful outcome of TrellisWare's deliverables and setting the tone for our core values of delivering excellence, pushing boundaries, and empowering people.

The essential duties and responsibilities include:
  • Work with Business Development and Product Management to clearly identify system requirements and HW features of UAS platforms and applicable TrellisWare products.
  • Lead HW design/architecture development for UAS systems across TrellisWare RF, Analog, Digital, and Mechanical disciplines.
  • Work with TrellisWare's Radio Products group to understand how Radio system SW runs on UAS products and drive HW design to facilitate SW operation.
  • Work with TrellisWare's Waveforms group to understand how modem performance depends on developed HW and drive design to meet Waveform/modem performance on UAS HW products.
  • Work with Program Management to establish schedules and budgets for development of new UAS products.
  • Lead HW-centric DVT of developed UAS platform including reviews of DVT results and recommendations.
  • Work with TrellisWare's product test, and certification groups to ensure developed HW meets overall UAS platform requirements.
  • Drive required manufacturing support infrastructure including test boards and fixtures, as well as test and calibration functionality needed for manufacturing.
  • Own creation and maintenance of product design material in TrellisWare's PLM systems.
  • Assist in developing product documentation.
  • Support technical customer meetings to provide integration recommendations, expected performance capabilities, and participate in customer troubleshooting.
  • Develop relationships with team members built on trust and respect.

Education and work experience requirements are:
  • Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or related field of study required.
  • 10+ years of experience as an RF/Wireless Design Engineer

To be considered for this position, you would need to meet, at a minimum, the knowledge, skills, and abilities listed here:
  • Understands transceiver design, frequency conversion, frequency synthesizers, and PLL design to 3 GHz with tight packaging constraints.
  • Experience with front-end amplifiers and filter design.
  • Experience with receive sensitivity, noise figure, and transmit power measurements.
  • Experience with RF Power Amplifier design and characterization.
  • Demonstrates knowledge of RF analysis and computer-aided design tools.
  • Proficiency in circuit debugging and troubleshooting.
  • Experience with wireless communications and test equipment design.
  • Experience developing products for UAS or similar environments where SWaP, reliability, and performance are critical factors is preferred.
  • Ability to abstract complex, technical concepts and communicate them in a clear, relevant, complete manner to others.
  • Ability to work independently, demonstrate initiative and interact with a variety of engineering development teams.
  • Demonstrates analytical and problem-solving skills.
  • Demonstrates strong written and verbal communication skills.
  • Ability to work independently as well as in a team environment
  • Strong collaborative drive and interpersonal skills.
  • Strong initiative, proactive work ethic and prioritization skills.
  • Effective execution and decision making.

The physical demands described here represent those that must be met in order to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable those with qualified disabilities.
  • Able to frequently sit, stand, walk, use hands to fingers, handle or feel, reach within hands and arm's length, stoop, kneel, and crouch, talk and hear.
  • Regularly required to sit for extended periods of time; frequently required to use office equipment such as PC, printer, telephone, etc.
  • Able to regularly lift and/or move up to 10 pounds, frequently lift and/or move up to 25 pounds, and occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds.
  • Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

Additional requirements are:
  • U.S. Citizenship.

Note: Many of TrellisWare's positions require a security clearance or the ability to obtain one. Security clearances may only be granted to U.S. citizens. In addition, applicants who accept a conditional offer of employment may be subject to government security investigation(s) and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information.

TrellisWare Technologies pays competitively according to the market in an individual's geographic location, in addition to their qualifications and experience. The posted range is annually and for individuals located in the San Diego, CA area.

San Diego, California Pay Range

$115,000-$200,000 USD

Disclaimers
  • The above statements are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified. Nothing in the job description restricts the company's right to change, assign, or reassign duties and responsibilities at any time for any reason.
  • As part of our onboarding process, we conduct background checks, where legally permitted and appropriate for the role, in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and privacy requirements.

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