Systems Engineer R&D

Intuitive•Sunnyvale, CA

6d•Onsite

About The Position

The Advanced Product Development (APD) team is focused on designing and developing the next generation of surgical robotic systems. The Systems Engineer R&D works closely with the Systems Analysis and NPI teams to integrate software capabilities into manufacturing and test workflows for next-generation daVinci platforms. Reporting to the Sr. Manager R&D, this role connects R&D outputs to production processes, building and maintaining the software infrastructure that supports system bring-up, test, and manufacturing at scale. The right candidate is comfortable working across software, hardware, and manufacturing contexts, and takes satisfaction in building reliable, well-organized systems that other teams depend on. Experience in a cross-functional product development environment is a plus.

Requirements

Strong Python scripting skills; experience building data processing pipelines, automation frameworks, and test tooling.
Proficiency in MATLAB for data analysis, signal processing, and algorithm validation.
Solid software and systems-level engineering background with demonstrated ability to integrate software components across hardware and software boundaries.
Familiarity with electromechanical system design and integration in a lab or production environment.
Experience developing automated test frameworks and working with cross-functional teams to define test strategies and acceptance criteria.
Comfortable with data visualization and presenting data-driven findings to both technical and non-technical audiences.
Experience with FDA QSR 21 CFR Part 820, ISO 13485, IEC 60601, and other applicable external standards.
Strong communication and documentation skills; able to explain technical work clearly to cross-functional teams.
Ability to learn rapidly and adapt in a fast-moving R&D environment.
BS or MS in Software Engineering, Systems Engineering, Mechatronics, Computer Science, or a related engineering or scientific discipline.
Minimum 4 years of relevant systems-level or software engineering experience; medical device experience preferred.

Nice To Haves

Genuine interest in building tools and processes that other teams rely on.
Experience in a New Product Introduction (NPI) or manufacturing engineering environment.
Familiarity with robotic systems, surgical devices, or other safety-critical electromechanical products.
Experience with version control systems (e.g., Git) and software development best practices in a regulated environment.
Knowledge of statistical process control (SPC) or other manufacturing quality methodologies.
Experience with database tools or SQL for managing and querying large test datasets.

Responsibilities

Work with the Systems Analysis team to integrate software features into NPI and manufacturing workflows; develop and maintain the tooling that supports their use in production and test environments.
Work with the NPI team to understand and integrate manufacturing processes; develop automation to reduce manual steps and improve consistency across the production line.
Build data analysis scripts and pipelines to aggregate, process, and visualize test and performance data across all units built; summarize findings and share results with engineering and operations teams.
Own and execute first-level software sanity tests across cross-functional bring-up activities; work with each team to define pass/fail criteria and ensure repeatable execution.
Develop and maintain long-term production test suites in collaboration with Systems, NPI, and Test Engineering teams; track trends and flag anomalies as unit volume increases.
Perform system-level bring-up of new hardware (mechanical and electrical); analyze and troubleshoot issues in close collaboration with cross-functional teams to identify root cause.
Develop characterization test methods for new and existing hardware and software designs; work with cross-functional teams to define and validate acceptance criteria.
Maintain clear documentation of scripts, tools, test processes, and data pipelines; ensure traceability in accordance with FDA design history file requirements.
Provide software engineering support to related functions (manufacturing, test engineering, service) to facilitate design transfer and production readiness.