Robotics Simulation Engineer

• Position: Robotics Simulation Engineer
• Location: Remote
• Duration: 12+ month contract
• Interview: 1video conference interview

Note: A candidate missing robotics simulation, CAD-to-simulation conversion, or robotics kinematics would likely not be competitive for this role.

Top Skills

• Robotics simulation (URDF/SDF/Gazebo/Isaac Sim/Drake/MuJoCo)
• CAD Simulation asset conversion
• Robotics kinematics (FK/IK)
• Python
• 3D modeling and mesh/collision processing
• Robotic workcell or digital twin experience
• 5+ years of software development experience

Summary
We're looking for a Simulation Modeling Engineer to join our team for building physics-based simulation environments for Client. You'll create, import, and maintain high-fidelity 3D models of robotic workcells, converting CAD designs into simulation-ready assets that enable robot motion planning, controls development, and system validation before physical hardware exists.

This role sits at the intersection of 3D content creation and robotics engineering. You'll work directly with mechanical engineers, controls teams, and simulation developers to translate hardware designs into accurate digital twins. You'll operate with the autonomy and ownership expected of an L5 individual contributor: independently driving asset delivery end-to-end, making technical trade-offs, and influencing modeling standards across the team.
What You'll Do

• 3D Asset Pipeline: Convert SolidWorks/CAD assemblies into simulation-ready formats (SDF, URDF, glTF, VTK) with accurate kinematics, collision geometry, inertia properties, and visual materials (PBR)
• Station Configuration: Build and maintain robotic workcell configurations including robot arms, rails, sensors, end-effectors, pods, conveyors, and environmental structures
• Collision Modeling: Create and optimize collision meshes using tetrahedral meshing workflows (RoLoPoly, TetGen, Drake mesh refiner) for accurate physics contact simulation
• Sensor Setup: Configure simulated cameras, depth sensors, and other perception hardware with accurate field-of-view parameters
• Validation: Build model integrity tests, verify FK/IK accuracy against real hardware, and maintain asset quality standards (mass, inertia, texture transparency, mesh integrity)
• Customer Delivery: Independently manage asset import/update requests from robotics program teams, meeting SLA timelines for new station deliveries

What We're Looking For
Required:

• 5+ years professional SW development experience.
• 1+ year working with 3D modeling tools (Blender, SolidWorks, Maya, or equivalent)
• Experience with robotics simulation formats: URDF, SDF, MJCF, or similar
• Familiarity with mesh processing: decimation, convex decomposition, tetrahedral meshing, collision geometry generation
• Understanding of rigid body kinematics (joint types, coordinate frames, forward/inverse kinematics)
• Proficiency in Python for scripting asset pipelines and automation
• 1+ year cumulative experience with at least one of: game engines (Unreal, Unity), physics engines (Drake, MuJoCo, Bullet, PhysX), or robotics simulation platforms (Gazebo, Isaac Sim)
• Demonstrated ability to independently own and deliver technical work with minimal oversight

Preferred:

• Experience with USD (Universal Scene Description) model format
• Familiarity with PBR materials, glTF format, and real-time rendering pipelines
• C++ experience (our simulator core is C++)
• Web 3D visualization (Three.js, WebGL)
• Understanding of simulation contact models and deformable body simulation
• Experience converting CAD (SolidWorks, STEP, IGES) to simulation-ready assets
• Familiarity with camera simulation (intrinsics, distortion models, synthetic data generation)

Day-to-Day Examples

• Import a new robot prototype station from SolidWorks CAD into the simulator with accurate arm kinematics, rail geometry, sensor placement, and tote collision models
• Tune simulation assets to balance detail vs execution speed of simulation
• Convert OBJ collision meshes to VTK tetrahedral format to improve physics contact accuracy for robotic manipulation
• Build a model validation script that checks inertia values, texture transparency, and mesh integrity at build time