Research Officer, Mechatronics

Your Challenge

Great Minds. One Goal. Canada's Success.

Help bring research to life and drive your career forward with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC), Canada's largest research and technology organization.

We are looking for a Research Officer, Mechatronics to join the Connected & Automated Vehicles (CAV) team and to support the Automotive and Surface Transportation Research Centre. The selected candidate would be someone who shares our core values of Integrity, Excellence, Respect and Creativity.

We are seeking a candidate to advance CAV research at the NRC. This candidate will work in a team environment with other researchers and technical experts to develop, execute, and report on research and engineering projects pertaining to CAV technologies in Canada. 

The work will focus on connected vehicle and driving automation technologies, with particular focus on sensing & perception, simultaneous localization & mapping (SLAM) techniques, and prototyping proof of concept systems demonstrating these technologies. Some high-level examples of projects include:

• Development of automated & scalable techniques to characterize roadway environments using inputs from LiDAR, radar, RGB and thermal camera sensors;
• Development of image & point cloud data analysis techniques including those involving machine learning/deep learning to identify and monitor issues in transportation infrastructure;
• Development of a simulation testbed involving digital twins of real roadway environments for (a) modeling behaviors of dynamic elements of the roadway environment and their interactions, and (b) prototyping connected vehicle applications and performance benchmarking thereof.

Screening Criteria

Applicants must demonstrate within the content of their application that they meet the following screening criteria in order to be given further consideration as candidates:

Education

PhD in Science or Engineering, such as mechatronics, electrical, computer science, mechanical or related field.

 
A Master’s degree in related Engineering field may be considered.

For information on certificates and diplomas issued abroad, please see Degree equivalency

Experience

• Significant experience demonstrated by published paper/thesis, contributions to open-source code repositories, marketed products etc. in at least two of the following topics:
  • Design and application of hardware and software for SLAM systems or high-speed data acquisition systems for robotic applications
  • Mechatronics product development in volving hardware/software co-development 
  • Simulation testing of mobile robots/autonomous agents
• Significant experience of prototyping and implementing research concepts (e.g., novel concepts developed by self or as part of a team, or concepts described in technical papers) including those with heavy hardware focus;
• Experience in developing and implementing scalable data processing pipelines involving multi-dimensional and multi-modal time-series data;
• Experience in at least three of the following software environments/languages:
  • Linux (Ubuntu preferred)
  • ROS/ROS2
  • Python/C++
  • MATLAB/Simulink
• A track-record of research excellence proven by publications in conferences and journals.

Condition of Employment

 Reliability Status

Language Requirements

English

Information on language requirements and self-assessment tests

Assessment Criteria

Candidates will be assessed on the basis of the following criteria:

Technical Competencies

• Solid understanding of mobile robotics topics such as pose estimation, sensor fusion, SLAM;
• Ability to prototype and validate performance of hardware setups involving CAV perception sensors for operational deployments;
• Ability to understand, critique and develop solutions to complex CAV problems pertaining to perception and localization;
• Capacity to write concise and clear software codes to contribute to the team’s code repository (examples of previous work will be helpful, but not necessary if prohibited by copyright obligations); and
• Technical problem solving (hardware & software) in both self-directed and team environment modes.

Behavioural Competencies

Competency Profile(s)

For this position, the NRC will evaluate candidates using the following competency profile: Research

View all competency profiles

Compensation

This position is classified as a Research Officer (RO), a group that is unique to the NRC. Candidates are remunerated based on their expertise, outcomes and impacts of their previous work experience relative to the requirements of the level. The salary scale for this group is vast, from $62,071 to $175,466 per annum, which permits for employees of all levels from new graduates to world renowned experts to be fairly compensated for their contributions.

NRC employees enjoy a wide-range of competitive benefits including comprehensive health and dental plans, vacation, sick, and other leave entitlements, disability insurance and pension plans.

The NRC Advantage

The National Research Council of Canada (NRC) is the Government of Canada's largest research organization supporting industrial innovation, the advancement of knowledge and technology development. We collaborate with over 70 colleges, universities and hospitals annually, work with 800 companies on their projects, and provide advice or funding to over 8000 Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) each year.

We bring together the brightest minds to deliver tangible impacts on the lives of Canadians and people around the world. And now, we want to partner with you.  Let your expertise and inspirations make an impact by joining the NRC.

At the NRC Employee wellness matters. We offer flexible work schedules as well as part-time work to help employees maintain work-life balance. We are one of the few federal organizations that close our offices during the December holiday season.  We offer professional learning and development opportunities such as conferences, workshops, and a suite of mentorship, award and recognition programs. Diversity enables creativity and innovation. Fostering a diverse, inclusive, welcoming and supportive workplace is important to us, and contributes to a more inclusive Canadian innovation system. We welcome all qualified applicants and encourage you to complete the employment equity self-declaration questions during the job application process. Please let us know of any accommodation measures required to help you to be assessed in a fair and equitable manner. Please note that the information you provide will be treated confidentially. 

Help us solve problems for Canada. Grow your career with us today!

Notes

• Relocation assistance will be determined in accordance with the NRC's directives.
• A pre-qualified list may be established for similar positions for a one year period.
• Candidates must use their cover letter to demonstrate how they meet the education and experience factors listed on the poster. 
• Preference will be given to Canadian Citizens and Permanent Residents of Canada. Please include citizenship information in your application.
• The incumbent must adhere to safe workplace practices at all times.
• We thank all those who apply, however only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.