Embedded System Engineer

About AssetCool

AssetCool is addressing one of the most pressing challenges in the global energy transition - grid congestion. By combining cutting-edge grid robotics with breakthrough materials science, our technology transforms the physical performance of the grid in situ, increasing current-carrying capacity by up to 30%, at just 5% of the cost and in a tenth of the time compared to conventional approaches.

In addition to enhancing capacity, our solutions tackle other grid constraints including corrosion, electrical noise, and enable the collection of high-value data to build accurate, predictive digital twins. This technology is proving transformative and is being adopted at an accelerating pace, with deployments across Canada, Slovenia, the UK, and the USA, and a strong global deployment pipeline.

AssetCool is a fast-growing company with plans to more than double in size over the next six months. Backed by international investors from the US, mainland Europe, and the UK, we are proud to be one of the most innovation-focused companies in the UK energy sector.

We're looking for ambitious, mission-driven individuals who are excited to work hard alongside their colleagues to build and deploy world-leading technology that tackles some of the planet's most urgent infrastructure challenges.

Role Overview

We are looking for an Embedded Systems Engineer to join our engineering team and own the firmware development that enables the operation of various robotic control and instrumentation modules. You will be responsible for designing and implementing microcontroller firmware, sensor drivers, and control logic to interface with a wide range of hardware including motors, pumps, actuators, RC modules, and an onboard Linux computer.

This is a hands-on role working close to the hardware. You will develop reliable, maintainable firmware for systems operating in harsh outdoor environments, collaborating closely with electronics, mechatronics, and systems engineers to deliver robust robotic solutions for power lines inspection and capacity expansion.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain embedded firmware for microcontroller-based systems used in AssetCool power line robots.
• Develop sensor drivers and hardware abstraction layers for analogue and digital sensors.
• Implement real-time control logic for motors, pumps, valves, actuators.
• Interface with and integrate communication buses including CAN, SPI, I2C, UART/Serial, USB, Ethernet, and wireless links.
• Support board bring-up, hardware–firmware integration, and low-level debugging of new electronics.
• Collaborate with electronics engineers on design, interfaces, operating requirements and constraints, and hardware validation.
• Develop diagnostics, logging, and fault-handling mechanisms suitable for field deployment.
• Contribute to safety-related firmware behaviour, including fault detection, fail safe, and recovery strategies.
• Develop unit tests, integration tests, and production test firmware.
• Support system-level integration and testing of robotic platforms in lab and field environments.
• Analyse logs, telemetry, and field data to diagnose issues and improve firmware robustness.
• Maintain clear technical documentation for firmware architecture, interfaces, and behaviour.

Required Skills & Experience

• BSc or MSc in Embedded Systems, Computer Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Mechatronics, or a related discipline.
• 3+ years of professional experience developing embedded firmware for microcontroller-based systems.
• Strong proficiency in C/C++ for embedded systems.
• Hands-on experience with mainstream embedded platforms including Arduino, STM32, ARM Cortex-M, SAMD21, and ESP32.
• Experience implementing and debugging communication protocols such as CAN, SPI, I2C, UART/Serial, and USB.
• Familiarity with real-time constraints, interrupts, timers, and low-level peripheral configuration.
• Experience with motor and pump closed-loop control systems.
• Experience debugging embedded systems using oscilloscopes, logic analysers, and debuggers.
• Familiarity with bootloaders, firmware update mechanisms, and device provisioning.
• Ability to work hands-on with hardware in a lab and field-testing environment.
• Experience with version control systems (Git) and collaborative development workflows.

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Familiarity with CAN-based higher-layer protocols (e.g. CANopen, DroneCAN).
• Experience working with RTOS-based systems (FreeRTOS or similar).
• Experience developing firmware for battery-powered or low-power systems.
• Experience developing embedded systems for outdoor, industrial, or robotic applications.
• Understanding of safety-related firmware design and fault handling strategies.
• Experience with data streams over wireless interfaces such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
• Public Github repository showing contributions to personal or public open-source projects.

Research shows that some candidates may hesitate to apply unless they meet every listed requirement. If this role excites you but your experience doesn't align perfectly with every qualification, we still encourage you to apply. You might be exactly who we're looking for, either for this role or another opportunity within our team.

We're proud to be an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds. We're committed to building an inclusive, supportive workplace where everyone can thrive, regardless of age, disability, gender identity, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation.

If you have a disability or any specific requirements and need adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process, just let us know and we'll do our best to accommodate your needs.

We may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications.

We are not looking for agency support currently.