Electrical Engineer, Actuator Test Infrastructure
Designs, commissions, and operates the electrical infrastructure for robotic actuator dynamometers and test cells, including power systems, motor drives, instrumentation, DAQ, and safety circuits. The role requires hands-on experience with electromechanical test equipment, power electronics, measurement integrity, and electrical documentation.
About the job
Responsibilities
- Own the electrical architecture of dynamometer and actuator test cells, from mains distribution and protection through load motor drives, braking, and auxiliary power.
- Specify, integrate, commission, and tune motor drives and load machines for robotic actuator torque, speed, efficiency, thermal, and durability testing.
- Design power distribution, grounding, shielding, cable routing, and connectorization for high-current, high-voltage, and low-level measurement systems.
- Integrate torque, position, speed, temperature, voltage, current, vibration, and other instrumentation into DAQ and control systems.
- Develop electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, panel layouts, harness documentation, and test-cell interface definitions.
- Build, debug, and maintain test-cell electrical hardware, diagnosing noise, EMI, grounding, drive, sensor, and power-quality issues.
- Design and validate safety circuits, including E-stops, interlocks, contactors, safe torque off, guarding interfaces, and fault detection.
- Partner with mechanical, software, and controls engineers on packaging, cooling, I/O maps, calibration, automated sequences, and reliable data capture.
- Establish commissioning, calibration, inspection, and preventive-maintenance procedures.
- Evaluate vendors and components for drives, motors, sensors, DAQ hardware, protection devices, and electrical enclosures.
- Analyze test and diagnostic data to improve measurement quality, cell uptime, and hardware reliability.
- Set practical electrical standards for safe and consistent dyno-lab operation.
Requirements and Preferred Qualifications
- Bachelor’s or graduate degree in Electrical Engineering, Robotics, Mechatronics, or a related field.
- Experience building, commissioning, or maintaining electrical systems for robotic actuator dynamometers, robotics, automation, motors, power electronics, or industrial test equipment.
- Hands-on experience with motor drives, servo systems, load motors, power distribution, and electrical protection.
- Strong understanding of grounding, shielding, EMI/EMC, signal integrity, and instrumentation wiring.
- Experience integrating sensors and DAQ hardware for voltage, current, torque, position, speed, temperature, or vibration measurements.
- Familiarity with electrical safety practices, E-stops, interlocks, safe torque off, lockout/tagout, and relevant lab or machinery standards.
- Ability to create and maintain schematics, wiring diagrams, panel layouts, and electrical documentation.
- Experience troubleshooting complex electromechanical systems with oscilloscopes, meters, power analyzers, and other lab tools.
- Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
- Willingness to work hands-on in a lab and take ownership of safety and operational reliability.
Compensation
- Salary range: $225,000–$295,000 USD.
Skills
Power Electronics, Motor Drives, Servo Systems, Power Distribution, Electrical Protection, Grounding, Shielding, Emi/Emc, Signal Integrity, Data Acquisition, Electrical Safety, Safe Torque Off, Oscilloscopes, Power Analyzers
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