Principal Engineer, State Estimation (R4602)

Team: X-BAT Engineering - Software

Location: United States, San Diego, California, Dallas, Texas, Boston, MA, Washington, DC, Remote

Commitment: Full Time Employee

Workplace Type: onsite

Job Description:

What you'll do:

Navigation System Architecture & Design:
• Establish navigation performance requirements and error budgets for safety-critical applications 
• Support decomposition of navigation requirements into allocations for sensors, estimation algorithms, and software components 
• Design detailed software architecture for state estimation implementations, including module interfaces and data flow 
Algorithm Development & Implementation:
• Design and implement Extended Kalman Filter algorithms for navigation applications, with broad understanding of state estimation theory and alternative filtering approaches 
• Implement tightly-coupled and loosely-coupled GNSS/INS integration algorithms 
• Integrate diverse sensing modalities (vision, RF, celestial etc.) into multi-sensor fusion framework for GPS-degraded environments 
• Develop fault detection, isolation, and recovery (FDIR) strategies for navigation systems 
• Implement integrity monitoring and protection level calculations for safety-critical operations 
Certification & Verification:
• Develop verification and validation test plans for navigation algorithms 
• onduct performance analysis including Monte Carlo simulation, covariance analysis, and flight test data evaluation 
• Document navigation system design, requirements allocation, and compliance evidence 
• Support safety assessment activities including failure modes and effects analysis 
Technical Leadership:
• Provide technical guidance on navigation architecture and state estimation approaches 
• Support trade studies evaluating navigation sensor suites and fusion strategies 
• Mentor junior engineers on state estimation theory and implementation 

Required qualifications:

• MS or PhD in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or related field 
  15+ years of experience developing state estimation algorithms for aerospace navigation applications 
• Demonstrated experience implementing GNSS/INS integration solutions 
• Experience with safety-critical system development and certification processes 
• Deep understanding of state estimation theory 
• Experience implementing multi-sensor fusion algorithms in production systems 
• Strong background in inertial navigation, GNSS positioning, and sensor error modeling 
• Strong programming skills in C/C++ and Python/MATLAB for algorithm development and analysis 
• Understanding of integrity monitoring, protection levels, and safety assessment methods 
• Experience with requirements management and verification/validation processes for certifiable systems 
• Understanding of GPS/GNSS signal structure, error sources, and performance characteristics 
• Knowledge of IMU error models, calibration, and Allan variance analysis 
• Familiarity with alternative navigation sensors (camera, RF ranging, celestial, etc.) 
• Understanding of navigation performance metrics (accuracy, integrity, continuity, availability)

Preferred qualifications:

• PhD in relevant field with focus on state estimation or navigation 
• Direct involvement in certified navigation system development from requirements through flight test 
• Experience with specialized navigation approaches (vision-aided navigation, terrain-referenced navigation, celestial navigation, etc.) 
• Publications or patents in navigation or state estimation 
• Experience with GPS/GNSS jamming and spoofing mitigation techniques 
• Clearance eligible or active security clearance