Embedded Systems Engineer — Autopilot Hardware

Mission
At TEKEVER, our autopilot runs on avionics hardware we design ourselves, for aircraft that operate in the most demanding environments.
As Embedded Systems Engineer on the Autopilot Hardware side, you will own the electronics that host our flight control software: mixed-signal PCBs, sensor interfaces, power conditioning, and the test infrastructure that proves they work.
You will take designs from schematic and layout through bring-up, environmental qualification, and DO-254 evidence — making sure every board that goes into a TEKEVER aircraft is verifiably safe to fly.
Mission
At TEKEVER, our autopilot runs on avionics hardware we design ourselves, for aircraft that operate in the most demanding environments.
As Embedded Systems Engineer on the Autopilot Hardware side, you will own the electronics that host our flight control software: mixed-signal PCBs, sensor interfaces, power conditioning, and the test infrastructure that proves they work.
You will take designs from schematic and layout through bring-up, environmental qualification, and DO-254 evidence — making sure every board that goes into a TEKEVER aircraft is verifiably safe to fly.
What Will Be Your Responsibilities
Design schematics and multi-layer PCB layouts for autopilot avionics — analog, digital, and mixed-signal — including MCU subsystem, sensors, power, communication, and protection circuitry.
Translate system and software requirements into hardware solutions;
trade off performance, cost, qualification level, supply chain, and certification implications.
Select active and passive components with attention to lifecycle, second sourcing, and qualification (industrial / automotive / aerospace grade).
Manage signal integrity, power integrity, EMC/EMI, and thermal performance from schematic through layout, simulation, and bench validation.
Define test control points and Design-for-Test access early in the design — test pads, headers, JTAG/SWD, boundary scan, observation nets — so every board can be characterised, debugged, and produced reliably.
Lead board bring-up: validate power rails, clocks, resets, peripherals, and signal quality;
collaborate with the firmware team to debug at the silicon/board boundary.
Integrate and characterise sensors (IMU, GNSS, magnetometer, barometer, pitot/air-data) at the hardware level — sensor interfaces, isolation, timing, and noise budgets.
Plan and execute hardware validation campaigns aligned with DO-160 environmental categories: functional verification, temperature, vibration, shock, EMC/EMI, lightning, and accelerated life testing.
Own the hardware validation process end-to-end: requirements traceability, test plans, test cases, test rigs, and test reports.
Produce DO-254 evidence — Plan for Hardware Aspects of Certification (PHAC), Hardware Design Plan, Hardware Verification Plan, Configuration Management and Process Assurance artefacts — and support certification interactions.
Maintain technical documentation: schematics, BOMs, Gerbers, fabrication and assembly files;
manage engineering change notes and revision control.
Work with PCB fabricators and EMS partners on fabrication, assembly, rework, and quality;
support production ramp.
Collaborate with firmware, flight control, mechanical, propulsion, production, and quality teams to keep the hardware coherent with the full system.
Profile And Requirements
Degree in Electrical, Electronic, or Telecommunications Engineering, or a closely related field.
Hands-on schematic capture and multi-layer PCB layout experience (Altium Designer preferred;
KiCad, OrCAD, or Mentoralso valued).
Strong analog and digital electronics fundamentals;
comfort designing mixed-signal boards.
Working knowledge of signal integrity, power integrity, EMC/EMI, and thermal design for embedded avionics.
Experience selecting components with attention to lifecycle, second sourcing, and supply-chain resilience.
Comfort with DFM, DFA, and DFT — and with producing complete fabrication and assembly packages.
Experience designing for embedded interfaces and buses: CAN, SPI, I2C, UART, RS-422, and at least one high-speed bus (USB, Ethernet, or similar).
Lab proficiency: oscilloscope, logic analyser, spectrum analyser, multimeter, JTAG/SWD;
comfortable bringing upa new board from cold.
Familiarity with environmental and reliability testing (thermal chamber, vibration table, EMC).
Comfort reading datasheets, application notes, and reference designs.
Familiarity with Git, Agile/Scrum, and tools like Jira.
Professional Portuguese and English (B2/C1 minimum).
High sense of responsibility, organisation, and ownership of deadlines;
strong collaborator across disciplines.
Nice To Have
Direct experience with DO-254 (airborne electronic hardware) or work on DO-254-targeted programmes;
familiarity with PHAC, HDP, HV