Staff Embedded Controls Engineer, Vehicle Motion
Ford · Palo Alto, CA
- Level
- Senior
- Team
- Controls
- Base pay
- $150k–$284k
- Degree
- Required (or equivalent experience)
- Experience asked
- 6+ years
- Industry
- Automotive
- Posted
- 30+ days ago
The role in 30 seconds
A senior controls role at Ford (automotive) in Palo Alto, CA.
- They ask for
- 6+ years · degree required (or equivalent experience)
- Tools it names
- Validation (IQ/OQ/PQ), Automation
- Base pay
- $150k–$284k
- Day to day
- some off-shift / weekend coverage
Read from the posting. The full description is below.
How this role compares
Against 82 other live controls postings in California.
- Base pay
- About 44% above similar roles
- Experience asked
- More than usual (6+ vs 5+)
Typical $123k–$179k, from 54 postings that list pay.
Similar roles usually ask 5+ years.
Skills these teams ask for most
- ✓ Automation 60%
- PLC 45%
- ✓ Python 40%
- ✓ Validation (IQ/OQ/PQ) 37%
- Robotics 31%
✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.
At a glance
Pulled from the posting text. If it's not listed here, the posting didn't say.
How to get in at this plant
Five moves over a week or two. The first one takes ten minutes.
- 1
Pick 2–3 people on the Controls team at Ford
We found 10 people at this company and state: 8 on the team, 2 leaders. Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. See them ↓
- 2
Send a short, curious note
One real question about their work. No favors yet. Each person gets a different note, written for this role.
Write to Douglas → (free) - 3
Turn a reply into a short call
Questions worth asking about this team:
- What does a normal week look like on your team?
- How does off-shift and weekend coverage work?
- How did you land the job? What stood out in your interviews?
- 4
Apply with someone vouching for you
If the call went well, ask whether they’d pass your résumé to the hiring manager. Send your résumé link, apply that day, and let them know.
- 5
Bring proof to the interview
One page of before-and-after numbers from projects you led: scrap, OEE, cycle time, cost. Plant managers hire on results.
This plant: Ford in Palo Alto
6 other open roles at this site · 10 people we found on the controls team.
- Senior Validation Engineer - DCE · Quality · Senior
- Senior Embedded Controls Engineer, Vehicle Motion · Controls · Senior
- Senior Embedded Controls Engineer, Body Controls · Controls · Senior
- Embedded Controls Engineer, Body Controls · Controls
- Lead Engineering Technician | Vehicle · Manufacturing · Manager
- Lead Engineering Technician | Vehicle Systems (Powertrain) · Manufacturing · Manager
Full description from FordAs posted on their careers site.ShowHide
requirements
to electrical hardware and systems teams.
- ✓Understand functional safety principles and participate in functional safety analyses of complex vehicle subsystems.
- ✓Develop comprehensive test plans and perform thorough testing to validate firmware functionality, stability, and performance under various conditions.
- ✓Author subsystem block diagrams and lead subsystem reviews through all vehicle program development phases
- ✓Collaborate with other system integration leads to capture component level requirements, provide subject matter expertise in sourcing discussions, and collect and approve Device Transmittals.
- ✓Early phases of firmware development will focus on hardware validation, labcar testing, and setting up the automation framework for unit, SIL and HIL testing.
You'll have...
- ✓Master’s degree in electrical engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or Computer Science, with evidence of exceptional ability, or equivalent.
- ✓6+ years of experience on embedded controls systems such as chassis systems, VCM, or similar dynamic functions.
- ✓6+ years of experience on electrical hardware applications, prototype bring-up, and systems development.
- ✓6+ years of experience with Vehicle Network Protocols such as CAN, LIN & Automotive Ethernet
- ✓6+ years of experience with C, Python, Git, Bazel, CANape, and RTOS
- ✓Strong EE fundamentals and hands-on experience with electrical test equipment (oscilloscopes, DMMs, signal generators, power supplies, etc.)
- ✓4+ years of experience using embedded networking interface tools for automotive, aerospace, or similar field
- ✓Experience and working knowledge of systems development, vehicle architecture, battery technologies, software/hardware tool development, motor calibration technologies, OBD calibration, functional safety, network, and diagnostics processes
- ✓Experience with creating and executing component-level test procedures and owning all test results.
Show full description ↓Show less ↑
The dynamics that a driver feels as lateral and longitudinal forces in a vehicle define the vehicle's DNA. Join us in developing our next-generation centralized vehicle motion control system, where we can further bridge the interaction between the driver and the vehicle in a natural and intuitive way.
We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Staff Embedded Controls Software Engineer to join our team. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in embedded development for complex, distributed, safety-critical embedded systems and hands-on experience developing math- and physics-based control strategies.
What you'll do...
- •Create and implement the control strategy for various vehicle motion attributes and functions, including lateral and longitudinal vehicle dynamics.
- •Work with suppliers to define functions and interfaces into 3rd party components, driving further consolidation and integration of vehicle functions into our centralized vehicle motion control system.
- •Collaborate with software integration teams to bring up core functions and broadcast software level
Even better, you may have…
- •Highly collaborative mindset and strong communication skills
- •Experience developing features such as hill hold, stability controls, anti-lock braking, park assist, cruise or adaptive cruise control, or other similar vehicle dynamic features.
- •Experience with software build tools like Bazel, Scons, Cmake etc.
- •Experience with fundamental hardware components on PCB and their analysis tools.
- •Ability to write testing scripts for using scripting languages (Python)
- •Fluent in software fundamentals including software design and maintainability.
- •Hands-on experience in hardware bring-up, system debugging, and code optimization
- •Knowledge of electrical engineering fundamentals including circuit analysis and design
You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!
As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:
- •Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
- •Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more
- •Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
- •Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
- •Tuition assistance
- •Established and active employee resource groups
- •Paid time off for individual and team community service
- •A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
- •Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.
This position is a leadership level 6 and ranges from $150,200-$283,500.
Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.
For more information on salary and benefits, click here: https://fordcareers.co/LL6
Visa sponsorship is available for this position.
Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.