Senior Staff Embedded Software Engineer

Open Position – Senior/Staff Embedded Software Engineer

Horizon Surgical Systems Inc.

Horizon Surgical Systems Inc. is revolutionizing the world of surgical ophthalmology by developing a novel, AI driven, and imaging-guided surgical robotic system. Horizon Surgical Systems Inc. aims to expand access to care, provide superior capabilities to the human surgeon, and enhance patient outcomes. Microsurgery in general and Ophthalmology are subfields of surgery for which the surgical outcomes can be significantly improved by robotic systems to allow superior dexterity, precision, accuracy, and visualization beyond the human surgeon’s own capabilities.

We are seeking highly motivated, and intellectually inquisitive individuals looking to make a positive impact on healthcare via the development of robotic technology. The core values of Horizon Surgical Systems Inc. are:

• Commitment to Excellence: We aim to deliver superior patient outcomes and surgeon experiences
• Passion for Creativity and Innovation: We are driven by new ideas and aim to push the boundaries of what's possible
• Teamwork and Camaraderie: We achieve our best when we collaborate and work together
• Welcoming of Critical Opinion: We are enriched by constructive criticism and support the best ideas
• Personal Accountability: We honor our commitments and take responsibility for our actions

Horizon Surgical Systems Inc. offers:

• An opportunity to build autonomous surgical robotic systems driven by image guidance and AI technology for the future of affordable, high-quality healthcare.
• The opportunity to work alongside clinicians, engineers, and global leaders in cutting-edge AI, imaging, and robotics technology.
• Competitive compensation and an excellent company-paid benefits package.

Role Description

In your role as an Embedded Software Engineer at Horizon Surgical Systems, you will contribute to the architecture and design of a cutting-edge surgical robotics system, implementing and verifying mission-critical software modules. The ability to enforce deterministic timing, and fail-safe behaviors, in the controls software is paramount to its clinical efficacy and regulatory approval. You will be responsible for supporting a robotic system with EtherCAT servo drives and redundant control-diagnostic checks, and so you will be debugging issues with peripheral hardware, Linux kernel latency, and real-time safety. Working closely with the hardware team, you will work to bring up new peripherals, and you will need to consider the fail-safe implications in the event of motor controller failure. Your development and testing will be performed primarily with Linux, and embedded targets where required to interface with hardware. The ability to optimize code for a true RTOS on a microcontroller as well as for PREEMPT_RT Linux, and to design protocols between these environments, is especially valuable for this role.

Required Qualifications & Abilities:

Educational Background:

• Bachelor's, Master’s or Ph.D. degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field.

Technical Skills:

• Strong proficiency in modern C++ (at least C++11) is a must.
• Ability to write real-time C / C++ on a bare-metal embedded system, or with FreeRTOS / SafeRTOS / QNX.
• Ability to implement and optimize control loops that integrate servo drives.

Experience:

• 5+ years of developing C++ robotics software that interfaces with hardware.
• 5+ years deploying and testing Linux software and RTOS or bare-metal firmware environment.
• Prior experience working on mission-critical software.
• Prior experience with medical device development is a plus.

Knowledge:

• Ability to independently implement Linux user-space drivers and custom wire interface protocols for controls data. (Kernel development experience is not required, but you should be comfortable designing a servo drive control daemon from scratch.)
• Ability to analyze latency and jitter of high-frequency data in a distributed system.
• Working knowledge of typical embedded protocols (I2C, SPI, CAN, etc.).
• Experience with CANOpen (DS-402) servo drive control, or EtherCAT, strongly preferred.
• Experience with some formal software or motion control safety standard (e.g., ISO 26262, IEC 61800-5-2), and/or software verification by an independent safety certifying body, is advantageous.
• Experience with motor control for serial robotic manipulators is preferred.
• Experience with kinematics and rigid-body dynamics is helpful for collaborating on control algorithms which use the servo drives that you integrate.
• Ability to read electrical schematics in collaboration with PCB design engineers.

Soft Skills:

• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and organizational abilities.
• Good communication skills to collaborate with interdisciplinary teams, including software engineers, electrical/mechanical engineers, and product managers.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic work environment and adapt to new challenges.

Other Requirements:

• Comfortable working in a lab or workshop environment alongside surgical robotic systems.
• Ability to work on-site for hands-on software integration.

Responsibilities: 

• Software Implementation:
• Designing, implementing, and testing embedded and Linux controls software for multiple generations of surgical robotic systems.
• Performing device failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) for the hardware / software boundary, and implementing appropriate diagnostics to mitigate risks.

• Integration & Collaboration:
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure high performance of software modules.
• Engage in pair programming, code reviews, and design discussions to maintain high coding standards.

• Testing & Reliability:
• Test your software with and without hardware, implementing the appropriate virtual fixtures where it saves time and aids in automation.
• Strive for the simplest possible, most easily testable software design, to make unit- and integration-test coverage seamless.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a high-tech startup that is poised to revolutionize surgical robotics in ophthalmology.