Engineer– Embodied AI Lab Automation: Vision-Guided Real Time Robotic Manipulation

About this role

Brookhaven National Laboratory’s National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II) is seeking an engineer to develop an automated protein crystal harvesting system at the Center for BioMolecular Structure (CBMS).

This position is a 2-year term, with the possibility of renewal contingent on performance and funding availability

The successful candidate will develop vision-guided robotic manipulation capabilities for detecting, tracking, and harvesting fragile micron-scale protein crystals suspended in liquid droplets. Working closely with a multidisciplinary team of crystallographers, beamline scientists, controls engineers, mechanical engineers, and data scientists, the candidate will help integrate computer vision, machine learning, and robotic manipulation into an automated crystal harvesting platform.

This is a hands-on role centered on building and deploying closed-loop perception, visual servoing, and robotic control systems in a real laboratory environment. The position offers the opportunity to advance machine vision, robotic manipulation, and embodied AI techniques while addressing a scientifically impactful problem in structural biology.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities: • Develop and implement vision-guided real-time robotic manipulation methods for crystal harvesting

• Design and deploy closed-loop perception and control pipelines using visual feedback

• Contribute to vision-based servoing approaches for precise, real-time positioning

• Integrate perception outputs with motion planning and execution using ROS2 and MoveIt2

• Perform system calibration (e.g., hand-eye calibration, camera calibration) to ensure accurate 3D spatial alignment

• Evaluate and improve system robustness, including perception uncertainty and failure modes

• Collaborate closely with domain experts across crystallography, controls, and engineering

• Participate in system testing, tuning, and performance evaluation

• Document methods and results; contribute to reports, publications, and presentations

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: • B.S. in Robotics, Computer Science, Physics, Applied Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering or a related field

• Demonstrated experience developing and implementing robotics systems.

• Strong programming skills in Python and/or C++

• Knowledge of robotic systems: • Robot kinematics and coordinate transformations

• Motion planning and trajectory generation.

• Calibration methods

Preferred Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: • M.S. in Robotics, Computer Science, Physics, Applied Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering or a related field

• Experience developing robotic systems that integrate vision-guided control in real-world settings

• Experience working with ROS2-based ecosystems

• Experience with camera calibration, hand-eye calibration, and coordinate frame registration

• Experience integrating machine learning models into robotics

• Familiarity with: • Micro-Manipulation

• Sensor fusion or state estimation

• Real-time system debugging and performance tuning

What Success Looks Like: • Development of a system capable of reliably detecting and localizing protein crystals

• Implementation of closed-loop robotic manipulation using visual feedback

• Improved robustness and reliability of the crystal harvesting process under real-world conditions

Application Instructions: Candidates should submit a brief cover letter outlining how their experience and career goals are suitable for the position along with their resume or CV.

Other Information: • This is an on-site position based at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, New York. • Candidates should submit a brief cover letter outlining how their experience and career goals are suitable for the position

• Candidates must have completed all degree requirements by the commencement of employment

• Brookhaven Laboratory is committed to providing fair, equitable and competitive compensation. This is a multi-level role and the full salary range for this position is $71,900-$119,000 / year. You will be placed at the level and salary commensurate with your experience.  Salary offers will be commensurate with the final candidate’s qualification, education and experience and considered with the internal peer group.

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Brookhaven National Laboratory is committed to employee success and we believe that a comprehensive employee benefits program is an important and meaningful part of the compensation employees receive. Review more information at BNL | Benefits Program

Brookhaven National Laboratory requires all non-badged personnel including visitors to produce a REAL-ID or REAL-ID compliant documentation to access Brookhaven National Laboratory – view more information at  www.bnl.gov/real-id .  This is due to nationwide identification requirements for federal site access as required by the federal  REAL ID Act .   Those not in possession of a REAL ID-compliant document will not be permitted to access the site which includes access to the Laboratory for interviews . 

As a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory requires employees to obtain and maintain a DOE Uncleared Personal Identity Verification (UPIV) credential in accordance with Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) requirements. The credentialing process is completed as part of onboarding and enables access to DOE facilities and information systems. As a condition of employment, the selected candidate must be able to obtain and maintain a UPIV credential. These requirements are established under DOE Order 206.2 Chg. 2, Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM- Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM) ) , and DOE Order 473.1A- Physical Protection Program- Physical Protection Program .

About Us Brookhaven National Laboratory (www.bnl.gov) delivers discovery science and transformative technology to power and secure the nation’s future. Broo

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