Electrical Engineer III, Motors and Controls

Major Responsibilities

• Design, model, and analyze fractional horsepower motors (BLDC, PMSM, brushed DC, stepper) for aerospace actuation applications.
• Perform electromagnetic, thermal, and mechanical analysis of motor designs, including torque speed optimization, losses, and efficiency.
• Collaborate with mechanical and systems engineering to integrate motors into electromechanical actuator assemblies.
• Architect and design motor drive electronics, including gate drivers, current sense circuits, resolver/encoder interfaces, and protection circuitry.
• Develop mixed signal schematics and oversee PCB layout for motor control boards, ensuring signal integrity, EMC robustness, and aerospace reliability.
• Implement and tune current, velocity, and position control loops (FOC, trapezoidal, sinusoidal, sensor less, etc.).
• Develop real time embedded firmware for motor control, actuator control, and system level coordination (C/C++, bare metal or RTOS).
• Implement control algorithms, state machines, safety monitors, and communication protocols (CAN, RS 485, ARINC 429, etc.).
• Perform hardware in the loop (HIL) testing, firmware bring up, and system debugging.
• Support requirements development, allocation, and traceability for motor control and actuation subsystems.
• Ensure compliance with DO-160, DO-254, ARP4754, and other aerospace or military standards.
• Participate in design reviews, FMEAs, and safety analyses for EM control systems.
• Develop and execute motor control test plans, including bench testing, and environmental qualification.
• Diagnose issues related to motor performance, control stability, EMI/EMC, firmware timing, and sensor feedback.

Minimum Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in motor design, motor control, or electromechanical actuation.
• Strong background in fractional-horsepower motor physics, electromagnetic design, and performance modeling.
• Proficiency in motor-control algorithms (FOC, PID tuning, commutation strategies, sensor less control).
• Experience with embedded firmware for real-time controls (C/C++, RTOS, bare-metal).
• Experience with feedback sensors (resolvers, encoders, Hall sensors) and signal-conditioning circuits.
• Familiarity with aerospace environmental and reliability requirements (DO-160, DO-254, derating, thermal analysis).
• Strong troubleshooting skills using oscilloscopes, current probes, and logic analyzers.
• Excellent communication skills and ability to work cross-functionally in a regulated engineering environment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with EMA’s for utility actuation or flight-control systems.
• Knowledge of FPGA-based motor control or high-speed digital logic.
• Experience with MATLAB/Simulink for control-loop modeling and simulation.
• Exposure to safety-critical firmware development and certification processes.
• Familiarity with power-stage design (MOSFET/IGBT selection, gate-drive tuning, thermal management).

Preferred Competencies

• Experience in NI LabVIEW.