IoT Hardware Engineer

Hum was founded in 2019 to make rail transportation safer and smarter. Our products provide railroads, rail shippers, and railcar owners with the most advanced sensors for applications like predictive railcar maintenance, live railcar weights as accurate as a scale, and next generation fleet monitoring tools. Hum is now entering a growth phase as it seeks to meet the needs of its customers across multiple continents. Hum is looking for the right people to join our team as we work to create incredible products that modernize rail transportation. Hum is hiring an Embedded Hardware & Firmware Engineer to lead our scaling efforts. As an early hire at Hum, this role comes with the opportunity to lead our hardware engineering team as we build it out or continue as an individual contributor. This is a once-in-a-career opportunity for the right person. What you’ll be doing Skunk Works Developer Hum has a suite of sensors that have opportunities for further refinement and requirements for customer support. We also have a number of products in the pipeline requiring development, some of which have never been done before. This position is on the bleeding-edge of development and requires someone with the ability to integrate the latest technological innovations into their work. Best-In-Class Engineering Hum aims to be the premier engineering firm in the transportation telematics space. Our customers come to us to solve their challenges because our depth of expertise far surpasses anything our competitors can do. We don’t cut corners. We’re not building products for the Walmart bargain bin. We’re building best-in-class hardware and software that pushes the envelope on what’s possible. What we’re looking for Fundamental Thinkers No situation is the same and no two projects or customers are alike. We start from basic principles of physics and mechanics to engineer best-in-class products. MacGuyver Genes There’s no book with answers in the back to solve our customers’ challenges. Our team of engineers are experts in resourcefulness and creativity to unlock the best path forward. Never Satisfied There’s always something more to improve. Even after we deliver for our customers, we’re constantly integrating the latest technology developments to get better every day. Responsibilities Design, develop, and maintain hardware and firmware for next-generation IoT sensors deployed in rail transportation applications. Develop ultra-efficient low-power management strategies to extend device lifespan in remote, battery-powered environments. Drive the integration and optimization of wireless protocols such as LoRa and BLE, ensuring robust, long-range, and low-energy communication. Own PCB design from schematic capture through multi-layer layout in Altium, applying EMC/EMI design rules to ensure reliable operation in harsh industrial environments. Lead board bring-up activities and hands-on troubleshooting using oscilloscopes, multimeters, logic analyzers, and spectrum analyzers. Design and refine filtering solutions to enhance signal quality and reliability under noisy, industrial conditions. Establish best practices for hardware and firmware development, including schematic and PCB design standards, code quality, testing, and documentation. Debug complex, system-level issues and optimize performance across hardware-firmware boundaries. Influence the company’s technical roadmap by evaluating emerging technologies and proposing strategic advancements in IoT and sensor systems. Qualifications 5+ years of experience in embedded hardware and firmware engineering, with a focus on IoT or sensor technologies. Experience with ultra-low power device design and low-power management techniques, demonstrated through successful deployments in energy-constrained devices. Experience with LoRa and BLE, including protocol customization and performance tuning. Strong understanding of vibration analysis and signal processing, with a track record of solving real-world challenges (e.g., predictive maintenance). Good understanding and working experience with C/C++ for MCU-based embedded platforms (e.g., ARM Cortex-M); experience with RTOS environments (FreeRTOS, Zephyr) and bare-metal programming; BSP and SDK development experience is a plus. Proven ability to lead complex projects, from concept to production, in resource-limited settings. Proficiency in Altium for schematic capture and multi-layer PCB layout; strong working knowledge of EMC/EMI design rules and signal integrity best practices. Proficiency with bench test equipment including oscilloscopes, multimeters, logic analyzers, and spectrum analyzers. Excellent communication skills to articulate technical concepts to diverse stakeholders. This position is located in Austin, TX. Candidate must be a US citizen or H1B visa holder. #J-18808-Ljbffr Hum