Mechanical Design Engineer, Bipedal Robotics

Key Skills

Apache Kafka, AWS, HTML, JavaScript, Linux Operating system, MongoDB, UX design

Job Description

Your New Role and Team

Sanctuary–a multi award-winning LinkedIn Top Startup company–is seeking a Mechanical Design Engineer, reporting to our Sr Roboticist. As our Design Engineer, you will bring hands-on experience in mechanical and mechatronics design, optimization, and manufacturing to help develop cutting-edge robots that match or exceed the performance of human bi-pedal locomotion across a wide range of criteria.

You will have the opportunity to gain cutting-edge career experience as you integrate advanced mechanisms, sensors, and control systems into humanoid general-purpose robots. Design Engineers at Sanctuary work among a talented team to meet complex design requirements, tackle research problems, coordinate manufacturing production, provide technical support to end users, and maintain technical documentation.

If you are passionate about robotics and have a proven track record of designing and manufacturing innovative solutions, we would love to hear from you.

Our Success Criteria

• Bring on hands-on experience in mechanical design, optimization, and fabrication of bi-pedal humanoid general-purpose robots
• Expand your engineering experience by developing high power-density, transparent actuators, space constrained mechanisms, and advanced sensors
• Partner with leaders to meet design requirements, research, and coordinate production and document technical updates for company-wide visibility
• Gain cutting-edge robotics experience as you integrate actuators, sensors, and electronics including wiring into a space-efficient package that is also conducive for assembly and serviceability of our robots
• Tap into your mentoring skills as you work with junior engineers, co-ops, and other teams to build the world’s most versatile humanoid general-purpose robots

Your Experience

Qualifications

• Masters or PhD in Mechanical Engineering or equivalent experience in the field
• 5+ years of experience in mechanical design, ideally for robotic systems
• 3+ years of design/build experience with bi-pedal robotic locomotion systems
• Expertise in linkage synthesis and unique kinematic configurations to transfer power and torque while keeping an eye on the mechanical integrity of the overall system
• Expertise with actuator selection, sensor integration, and electronic packaging design
• Familiarity with walking gaits and control methods
• Have worked through the complete life cycle of building and manufacturing high performance electromechanical assemblies
• Experience with implementing DFMA and DFMEA
• Experience with engineering for reliability
• Prior experience with joint and structure optimization for mass, stiffness, and cost

Skills

• R&D skills necessary for fabricating prototypes, iterating rapidly, and advancing concepts through to volume production
• Fundamental understanding of power density, transparency, and dynamic performance of bi-pedal robot locomotion
• Design skills as applied to human-like robotic systems and intrinsic mechanical couplings
• Knowledge of linkage synthesis used to create unique kinematic configurations that transfer power and torque while maintaining mechanical integrity
• Proven ability to work with interdisciplinary teams on integrating mechanical, electrical, and control components of a robotic system
• Working knowledge of analytical methods for calculating and simulating mechanical designs/structures and optimization of mechanical components
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills
• Proficient in CAD software

Traits

• Above all else, a consistently positive attitude and a willingness to do whatever it takes to create robust solutions to complex problems
• Optimistic listening and conflict resolution capabilities
• Demonstrated ability to influence others without authority
• Eager to take on new challenges with tenacity and positivity
• Patience, persistence, and attention to detail when resolving performance issues
• Obsession with bringing human-like intelligence to machines

Please submit a design portfolio or personal website with your resume. If you do not have a design portfolio, pictures of your design projects with a short description is required. Applications without a design portfolio or equivalent will not be considered.

Entry-rate Annual Salary: $80,000 CAD and up

Compensation:

At Sanctuary, we provide above average total compensation that includes three components: salary, equity, and benefits. Our goal is to ensure fairness in pay and we strive to make the overall package highly competitive with current market rates.

Equity:

Equity will play a significant role in the total compensation for this role. Our goal is to provide a generous equity compensation package, exceeding what is typically offered by companies of our size. The specific amount of equity will be communicated to candidates upon receiving an offer.

Benefits - Canadian permanent employees are eligible for:

• Medical Insurance
• Dental
• Vision
• Hearing Aids
• Life Insurance and AD&D
• Prescriptions
• Paramedicals
• Hospital
• Travel
• $500 per calendar year Healthcare Spending Account
• Unique complimentary beverages and snacks at our head office

The compensation and benefits details provided for this role in Vancouver, BC are based on Sanctuary's market evaluation and may be subject to changes in the future. Your pay within the specified range will depend on various job-related factors, such as your past work experience, relevant education, and performance during interviews or work trials. Salary minimum provided is an entry-level rate for this role, as a requirement of the Pay Transparency Act in British Columbia.

 Please do not submit any information that is confidential to you or any third party. By submitting an application, you acknowledge and agree that your application does not contain any information that is confidential to you or any third party.

Working at Sanctuary

Sanctuary is an equal opportunity employer; employment with Sanctuary is governed based on skills, competence, and qualifications and will not be influenced in any way by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status. In 2023, Sanctuary moved into a state-of-the-art office facility and has been recognized by LinkedIn as a Top Startup company.

Benefits

Full time (non co-op) employees enjoy medical/dental/vision coverage, life insurance, wellness programs, stock options, paid time off (3 weeks vacation accrued annually, 12 paid holidays, 5 days of annual sick leave, and parental leave), scheduling and worksite flexibility by role, and more.

About Sanctuary

Founded in 2018 by Geordie Rose, Suzanne Gildert, Olivia Norton, and Ajay Agrawal, Sanctuary is a Vancouver, Canada-based company. Sanctuary is on a mission to create the world’s first human-like intelligence in general-purpose robots that will help us work more safely, efficiently, and sustainably. And in the not-too-distant future, help us explore, settle, and prosper in outer space.

Members of the Sanctuary team founded D-Wave (a pioneer in the quantum computing industry), Kindred (first use of reinforcement learning in a production robot), and the Creative Destruction Lab (pioneered a revolutionary method for the commercialization of science for the betterment of humankind). The team has experience launching market-defining innovations rooted in previously unsolved and deep scientific problems.