Ford Motor Company

Staff Motor Controls Engineer

Ford Motor Company • $150K — $283K *
Manufacturing & Automotive
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Degree in Electrical/Mechanical Engineering, Physics or related field
  • 10+ years of product design and development experience
  • Strong knowledge of power electronics and control theory
  • Experience programming control algorithms in embedded C
  • Proven track record in designing controls for automotive power electronic products
  • Hands-on experience with motor control systems using induction motors or PMSMs
  • Proficient in modeling control systems using MATLAB/Simulink or similar tools

Responsibilities

  • Develop and implement control algorithms for automotive traction inverters
  • Monitor and diagnose the state of system components through algorithms
  • Create firmware for traction inverters enabling OTA updates
  • Simulate and verify control system algorithms
  • Select and optimize inverter hardware for performance
  • Create system diagrams to illustrate interactions between components
  • Draft technical specifications ensuring compliance with regulations
  • Collaborate across teams to integrate control strategies and validate performance
  • Lead troubleshooting efforts to resolve control system issues
  • Stay updated on trends in control theory and automotive technologies
  • Support validation and verification of control systems
  • Participate in testing to ensure performance and safety of control systems

Benefits

  • Hybrid work model with onsite requirements for local candidates
  • Opportunities for cross-functional collaboration and innovation
  • Engagement in a high-performing team environment
  • Support for continuous professional development
  • Access to state-of-the-art tools and technologies
  • Opportunity to influence technology roadmaps and customer attributes
Full Job Description
Job Description

The drive-inverter controls engineer will develop advanced control algorithms for automotive traction inverter systems to optimize reliability, performance, efficiency, and cost. Further, algorithms to monitor and manage the state of system components are developed to ensure safe operation of the assets and guarantee the desired durability of all components. In general, it is expected that the motor controls engineer will stay informed about industry trends, support validation and testing activities, and contribute to technology roadmaps and customer-facing attributes.

Responsibilities

What you'll do...
• Develop and implement control algorithms for automotive traction inverter systems, ensuring reliability, safety, optimal performance and efficiency.
• Develop and implement controls algorithms to monitor and diagnose the state of system components.
• Develop firmware for the traction inverter and power electronic systems. Firmware will be enabled to support continuous improvements and optimizations for high-volume applications through over-the-air (OTA) updates.
• Develop control system simulations to verify algorithms.
• Participate in inverter hardware selection and optimization for durability, efficiency, and performance.
• Develop block and system diagrams to showcase interactions between subsystems.
• Develop, analyze and interpret system requirements and develop technical specifications for control system components, ensuring compliance with industry standards and regulations, and correlated analytical models.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to integrate control strategies with hardware and software components and validate system functionality through simulation and testing.
• Identify and track key system decisions that establish technology roadmaps and customer facing attributes.
• Utilize necessary tools such as oscilloscopes, multimeters, and frequency response analyzers to bring-up and test controls on target hardware.
• Lead troubleshooting and root cause analysis efforts to identify and resolve control system-related issues and implement corrective actions to improve system performance and reliability.
• Stay current with industry trends and advancements in control theory, power electronics, and automotive technologies, and apply this knowledge to enhance control system designs and functionalities.
• Support the development of validation and verification plans.
• Participate in testing and validation activities to ensure control system performance and safety requirements are met.

Qualifications

You'll have...
• Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Physics Degree or similar degree
• 10+ years of experience designing, developing, and releasing products.
• Sound knowledge of power electronics and control theory.
• Experience coding control algorithms and inverter applications in embedded C.
• Experience designing and optimizing controls for motor inverters, chargers, DCDCs, or similar mass-produced automotive grade power electronic products.
• Hands-on experience building, optimizing, and launching motor control systems using induction motors and/or PMSMs for traction control
• Strong power electronics and digital controls background, particularly in motor drive applications, DCDC, and/or chargers.
• Experience in modeling control systems using MATLAB/Simulink, PLECS or similar.
• Hands-on experience building and launching automotive products and prototyping powertrain systems.
• Ability to read and interpret component datasheets, PCB schematics and layout design.

Even better, you may have...
• PhD degree in engineering
• Knowledge of fault tolerant machine topologies and optimization of inverters for sensorless control.
• Deep understanding of sensorless controls techniques.
• Experience with Microsoft Office, Confluence, and Jira applications.
• Experience with instrumentation and measurement of powertrain systems in a lab environment.
• Experience using git or similar version control system.
• An eagerness to work cross-functionally in a dynamic environment where you are part of a high performing team.
• A systems approach to design and development with the desire and curiosity to strive for exceptional delivery execution and continuous improvement.

You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!

This position is a leadership level 6 and ranges from $150,200-$283,500.
Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: https://fordcareers.co/LL6

Visa sponsorship is available for this position.

This position is hybrid. Candidates who are in commuting distance to a Ford hub location may be required to be onsite four or more days per week. #LI-Hybrid

#LI-MZ1 #UEV

About Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company manufactures or distributes automobiles in addition to offering financial services. The company sells to dealerships for retail sales, and for sale to fleet customers, including commercial fleet customers, daily rental car companies, and governments. Ford’s vehicle portfolio includes automobiles, buses, tractors, and trucks. Retail financing includes retail installment sale contracts for new and used vehicles, and direct financing leases for new vehicles to retail customers, government entities, daily rental car companies, and fleet customers. Finance receivables in the non-consumer portfolio include products offered to automotive dealers. Ford’s environmental initiatives include compressed natural gas, flexible fuel vehicles, electric drive vehicles, Hydrogen, PC power management, and so on. Ford Motor Company was founded by Henry Ford in 1903 and is headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan.

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Learn more about Ford Motor Company
Size
183,000 employees
Market Cap
$44.8 billion
Industry
Net Income
-$1.2 billion
Founded
1903
5 Year Trend
-2.1%
Revenue
$127.1 billion
NASDAQ

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