CAV Tech Transfer Engineer

Description

Are you interested in shaping the future of transportation? Consider joining the Leidos team operating FHWA’s Saxton Transportation Operations Laboratory (STOL), a USDOT research lab focused on the improvement of transportation operations, safety, mobility, and environmental impacts. STOL provides a variety of services to support the advancement and adoption of emerging technologies, including automation and communication in vehicles and on the roadside.

Learn More About The Leidos Surface Transportation group

Learn More About The Saxton Transportation Operations Laboratory

Position Overview

The CAV Tech Transfer Engineer will be a key part of the Leidos team supporting Connected Automated Vehicle (CAV) research across the US through our work at the U.S. Department of Transportation's (USDOT) Saxton Lab, located at the Turner Fairbank Highway Research Center in McLean, VA. Our team advances CAV technology for the USDOT by developing, testing, and supporting the adoption of technologies associated with vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications as well as Cooperative Driving Automation (CDA).

Duties

• Provide technical assistance to academia, government, and private industry to support the adoption of ITS, CDA, C-V2X, and CAV technologies.
• Perform engineering duties at the systems level on commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware and software required for traffic signals control, traffic management systems, vehicle guidance systems, and transportation simulation tools.
• Work directly with the components, systems, and suppliers to develop new and exciting transportation technologies.
• Aid in organizing and managing project work, including supporting development and review of project financials, customer interaction, providing input towards project direction, and offering engineering expertise towards project execution.
• Lead the development and maintenance of a stakeholder community of practice to support tech transfer for various projects across the surface transportation research portfolio.
• Support stakeholder outreach and promotion to meet research and project needs.
• Operate and maintain the lab facility, equipment, and associated testbeds, including conducting and/or supervising the prototyping, assembly, and configuration of electrical and networking equipment, and performing safety driver duties during testing.
• Stay up to date with the latest technology in AI, AV, and CAV industries by attending seminars, conferences, and independent research.
• Interface with researchers, Government technical and business personnel, and other users of the Saxton Laboratory and associated testbeds.
• Assist in various phases of research projects across the breadth of transportation science.

Required Education & Experience

• B.S. in electrical, Civil, Automotive, or other scientific or engineering discipline
• Related internship experience or other scientific or engineering discipline
• 0–2+ years of experience supporting technical projects, research, software tools, transportation systems, or stakeholder-facing technology work
• Knowledge of Connected and automated vehicle or transportation communication
• Familiarity with transportation and communication systems
• Familiarity with technical documentation, user guides, reports, briefings, or training materials
• Desire to independently learn about new technologies, hardware, and software (with guidance and technical support from the team as needed)
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely in English, both orally and in writing along with a good understanding of industry specific terminology
• Ability to be a good team player and give and take constructive feedback
• Ability to be prompt, schedule-conscious, and able to focus on the work at hand
• Ability to be coachable and open to self-discovery and professional improvement
• Candidate must be able to obtain and maintain a Public Trust clearance
• Valid driver’s license and suitability to operate a motor vehicle

Extra Consideration Given

• Familiarity with AWS and Artificial intelligence especially generative AI
• Software development tools and methods, including one or more commonly used programming languages, such as C++, Python, JAVA, and Bash scripting
• Geospatial positioning (e.g., GPS) and position correction (e.g., RTCM)
• Experience supporting stakeholder outreach, technical assistance, helpdesk-style support, workshops, or community-of-practice activities