Robotics Design Engineer

We are seeking a full-time Robotics Design Engineer to join our team at Oxford Robotics Institute (ORI), an institute within the Department of Engineering Science in central Oxford. The post is fixed-term to Jan 31st, 2026 in the first instance.

A recent winner of The Queen’s Anniversary Prize for innovation in autonomous robotic technologies, the ORI is a diverse and collaborative community composed of researchers, engineers, and students all united in our drive to transform what robots can do for us. Our current interests are diverse – from flying to grasping, from inspection to running, from haptics to driving, from exploring to planning. We are the only group in the UK that specialises in large-scale mobile autonomy - both indoors and outdoors. We validate our thinking and challenge ourselves by deploying robotic systems in real application environments.

As the successful candidate, you will have a background in developing bespoke electro-mechanical hardware and be comfortable working with software such as Linux, ROS, Python etc. You will be part of a diverse team who are responsible for designing building, programming, testing, and maintaining a large fleet of robots and systems.

The scope of the role spans the entire concept-to-deployment process. You will get to work on projects such as developing long term autonomy, quadrupeds exploring underground tunnels, to navigating in extreme weather using RADAR. As part of the engineering team, you will have the opportunity to provide hardware support during field trials; working with on-site teams to oversee robotic platforms from both a technical and health and safety standpoint. For more information about the ORI, please see: ori.ox.ac.uk

Informal enquiries may be addressed to Chris Prahacs (email: [email protected])

The Department holds an Athena Swan Bronze award, highlighting its commitment to promoting women in Science, Engineering and Technology.

For more information about working at the Department, please see: www.eng.ox.ac.uk/about/work-with-us/.

Only applications received before midday on the 17th January 2024 can be considered.

You will be required to upload a covering letter/supporting statement, (describing how past experience fit with the advertised position), CV and the details of two referees as part of your online application.