Principal Engineer, State Estimation (R4602)

United States / San Diego, California / Dallas, Texas / Boston, MA / Washington, DC / Remote

X-BAT Division – X-BAT Engineering - Software /

Full Time Employee /

On-site

Founded in 2015, Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software and V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.

Job Description:

We are looking for an experienced state estimation engineer to design, develop, and support the deployment of safety-critical navigation solutions for aerospace platforms. This role requires deep expertise in state estimation theory, extensive practical experience implementing ownship navigation systems in the aerospace domain, and strong software development skills for production-quality navigation code. The engineer will design and implement a unified navigation architecture that supports traditional GNSS/IMU fusion while being extensible to all-source navigation strategies incorporating diverse sensing modalities for GPS-degraded and denied environments.

What you'll do:

Navigation System Architecture & Design:

Establish navigation performance requirements and error budgets for safety-critical applications
Support decomposition of navigation requirements into allocations for sensors, estimation algorithms, and software components
Design detailed software architecture for state estimation implementations, including module interfaces and data flow

Algorithm Development & Implementation:

Design and implement Extended Kalman Filter algorithms for navigation applications, with broad understanding of state estimation theory and alternative filtering approaches
Implement tightly-coupled and loosely-coupled GNSS/INS integration algorithms
Integrate diverse sensing modalities (vision, RF, celestial etc.) into multi-sensor fusion framework for GPS-degraded environments
Develop fault detection, isolation, and recovery (FDIR) strategies for navigation systems
Implement integrity monitoring and protection level calculations for safety-critical operations

Certification & Verification:

Develop verification and validation test plans for navigation algorithms
onduct performance analysis including Monte Carlo simulation, covariance analysis, and flight test data evaluation
Document navigation system design, requirements allocation, and compliance evidence
Support safety assessment activities including failure modes and effects analysis

Technical Leadership:

Provide technical guidance on navigation architecture and state estimation approaches
Support trade studies evaluating navigation sensor suites and fusion strategies
Mentor junior engineers on state estimation theory and implementation

Required qualifications:

MS or PhD in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or related field 15+ years of experience developing state estimation algorithms for aerospace navigation applications
Demonstrated experience implementing GNSS/INS integration solutions
Experience with safety-critical system development and certification processes
Deep understanding of state estimation theory
Experience implementing multi-sensor fusion algorithms in production systems
Strong background in inertial navigation, GNSS positioning, and sensor error modeling
Strong programming skills in C/C++ and Python/MATLAB for algorithm development and analysis
Understanding of integrity monitoring, protection levels, and safety assessment methods
Experience with requirements management and verification/validation processes for certifiable systems
Understanding of GPS/GNSS signal structure, error sources, and performance characteristics
Knowledge of IMU error models, calibration, and Allan variance analysis
Familiarity with alternative navigation sensors (camera, RF ranging, celestial, etc.)
Understanding of navigation performance metrics (accuracy, integrity, continuity, availability)
Must be eligible to obtain a clearance
Ability to obtain a S//SAR level security clearance desired.

Preferred qualifications:

PhD in relevant field with focus on state estimation or navigation
Direct involvement in certified navigation system development from requirements through flight test
Experience with specialized navigation approaches (vision-aided navigation, terrain-referenced navigation, celestial navigation, etc.)
Publications or patents in navigation or state estimation
Experience with GPS/GNSS jamming and spoofing mitigation techniques

$270,000 - $400,000 a year

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Full-time regular employee offer package:

Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity

Temporary employee offer package:

Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)

Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.

Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.

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