Mechatronics Engineer

We are seeking a full time robotics / mechatronics engineer, with strong software skills.

We build assistive robots for the home - social robots to deliver therapy, and robots with arms for domestic tasks for people with disability

Must be willing to travel every 4-6 weeks

About the company

Akin is a Public Benefit AI and Robotics company. We build robots for the home for daily living tasks. Although our technology can be used in any home, we have a focus on supporting people with disability

This is a unique opportunity to apply your skills to a meaningful challenge, creating technology that makes a real difference in people's lives. You will be instrumental in integrating a complex suite of sensors, actuators, and AI software using ROS2. You'll help bring our assistive robots to life, enabling them to perceive, communicate, and interact in a way that provides connection, and meaningful support.

The ideal candidate should bring strong expertise in ROS2 node development and integration, combined with proficiency in Python and C++ for embedded systems. They should understand how to interface with electronics and communication buses, while also being able to connect ROS2 systems to backend databases and cloud services.

Responsibilities

• Whole development lifecycle (
  design, development, printing, assembly and testing social robots)
• Support
  junior engineers
• Develop ROS2 Drivers & Nodes:
  Create and maintain ROS2 packages in C++ and Python to integrate and manage hardware components, including:
• Audio I/O:
  A multi-channel
  microphone array
  and
  speakers
  .
• Visuals:
  A high-resolution
  camera
  and an expressive
  screen
  to display a variety of emotions and information.
• Interaction & Movement:
  NFC/RFID
  readers for secure connectivity and various
  actuators (servos)
  for precise physical movement.
• Implement Onboard AI:
  Work with the
  NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano
  to integrate and optimize machine learning models for:
• Speech:
  Text-to-Speech (TTS) and Speech-to-Text (STT) processing.
• Vision:
  Real-time
  image recognition
  and image processing from the camera feed.
• Cognition:
  Assist in deploying and interfacing with Language Models
• Integrate with External Services:
  Connect the robot's software to external APIs using
  HTTP
  ,
  REST
  ,
  GraphQL
  , and
  WebSockets
  to pull data and trigger actions from cloud services.
• Build CI/CD Pipelines:
  Help design and establish a robust
  Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) pipeline
  using
  Docker
  for containerizing applications, enabling automated testing and Over-the-Air (
  OTA
  ) deployment of the robot's software stack.
• System Integration & Debugging:
  Collaborate closely with hardware and software engineers to troubleshoot and resolve complex integration issues across the entire robotic system.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in preferred combinations of Mechatronics Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science
• Strong programming proficiency in
  C++
  and
  Python
  .
• A genuine passion for using technology to help people.
• Ability to collaborate in multidisciplinary teams, and a great commitment to documentation and continuously learning.
• Experience in system deployment on platforms like Jetson.
• Hands-on experience with
  ROS2
  .
• Experience with embedded platforms.
• Experience with containerization and orchestration tools like
  Docker
  and
  Kubernetes
  .
• Familiarity with web APIs and protocols (
  REST
  ,
  GraphQL
  ,
  WebSockets
  ).
• Previous project work involving sensors (cameras, microphones), actuators (servos), or communication protocols (I2C, SPI, UART).
• An interest in machine learning

What you will gain

This role will provide you with deep, practical tasks, applied to a field with a profound social impact and lot of creativity

• Experience
  end-to-end deployment
  from concept to prototype to manufacture
• Gain invaluable experience in
  edge AI
  and deploying ML models on embedded systems for real-world applications.
• S
  ystems integration
  for complex assistive technology.
• Contribute directly to products that make a
  measurable difference
  in people's lives