Staff Design for Reliability (DfR) Engineer - Joby Aviation

Joby Overview:Located in Northern California, the team at Joby Aviation is driven by our goal of creating an affordable, all-electric air transportation system. Imagine a piloted air taxi that takes off vertically, then quietly carries you and your fellow passengers over the congested city streets below, enabling you to spend more time with the people and places that matter most. Since 2009, our team has worked steadily to make this dream a reality. We’ve designed and tested many generations of prototype aircraft capable of serving in a network of electric air taxis. We’re looking for talented, committed individuals to join our team as we push onwards toward certifying the Joby aircraft with the Federal Aviation Administration, scaling our manufacturing, and preparing to launch commercial service in 2025.Overview:

Joby Aviation is seeking a motivated and organized Staff Design for Reliability (DfR) Engineer with first principles-based reliability analysis background to join our growing reliability team. The main responsibility of the DfR team, in support of certification, is to assess the reliability of airborne electronic and mechanical hardware that are critical to the flight of Joby S4 aircraft, and ensure the aircraft inherent reliability and safety is never compromised. Another responsibility is to ensure constant reliability growth, to support entry to service with Joby S4 aircraft.

 

The Staff DfR Engineer’s main responsibility would be two-fold. First, work with designers in procuring design information, performing failure rate and physics-of-failure (PoF) based simulations and providing design feedback to meet reliability goals. Second, use PoF analysis results and design accelerated stress tests, to evaluate product reliability. This role will be focused on airborne electronic hardware that are part of energy storage systems and high power distribution (includes modules, Battery Controls and distribution modules, Charge Port and Pump, HV interconnects etc.)

Responsibilities:

• Drive Design-FMEA efforts by working with various functional teams (including Design Engineers, Systems Engineers, System Safety Engineers, and Test Engineers).
• Assist with defining reliability requirements (MTBF, MTBR, MTTR, Mission Reliability), allocating these to equipment level targets, and tracking the up to date metrics for our aircraft.
  Create a methodology for establishing reliability assessments at the cell, module, and system levels for diverse technology products incorporating Li-ion cells, including Energy Storage and Distribution Systems (ESDS).
• Perform Reliability Assessment on battery performance or other chosen equipment(s) and improve reliability using Physics of Failure-based simulation methods and correlate with simulation results.
• Perform NPRD/MIL 217 based failure rate estimation to support the assessment of failure probabilities on said airborne hardware.
• Take ownership of ESDS or other system reliability prediction and ensure there is clarity around how inherent aircraft safety- & reliability- can be maintained.
• Support the implementation of centralized closed-loop FRACAS system for testing and service performance.
• Work with Maintenance engineering/operations, Designers, and other stakeholders to create maintenance plans which will help us meet our inherent safety requirements.

Required:

• B. S. in Mechanical/Electrical Engineering or relevant discipline with 8+ years of work experience in a relevant industry performing DfR activities.
• Experience with known methods and standards for reliability and durability testing.
• Hands-on experience with Reliability Software tools (examples, ReliaSoft, Quanterion, Ansys, Sherlock, Etc...)
• Strong communication and collaborative skills. Imparting influence with people- and technical skills will be a key trait for success in this role.
• Excellent problem-solving skills with a strong analytical background and high attention to detail.
• Prior experience performing DfR activities for energetic storage systems and propulsion technology.

Desired:

• M.S. & 6+ years of experience.
• Prior experience as a Battery Reliability Engineer
• Prior experience with taking a product from concept until fielding.
• Strong fundamentals in designing equipment for vibration will be key since many energy storage systems are located in zones with moderate to high vibration.
• Reliability statistics – Weibull statistics, sample size estimation, etc.
• Materials used in the construction of PCB assemblies.
• Knowledge of key standards used in reliability engineering, such as MIL, JEDEC, IPC & IEC.
• Knowledge of failure analysis (nondestructive) of electronics hardware and High Voltage equipment, to support root cause analysis.

 

EEO:

Joby is an Equal Opportunity Employer.