# R. Davis Born > I like telling robots how to think and move Location: Los Angeles, California, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/rdavisborn https://www.rdborn.me ## Work Experience ### Senior Controls Engineer @ Parallel Jan 2026 – Present | Los Angeles, California, United States ### Senior Software Engineer (Robotics) @ Pyka Jan 2023 – Jan 2025 | Oakland, California, United States ----------------------------- | R e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s - Evaluate & select hardware for largest ever FAA-approved commercial Uncrewed Aerial System - Design & implement algorithms for autonomy & control of all aircraft subsystems - Develop GUI for operators to interact with & monitor the aircraft - Determine root cause of issues reported from the field & implement resolutions - Develop & maintain embedded C++ software - Support flight testing & operations ### Senior Software Engineer (Controls) @ Heliogen Jan 2021 – Jan 2023 | Los Angeles Metropolitan Area ----------------------------- | R e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s - Designed and implemented embedded C to run thousands to millions of robotic mirrors at concentrated solar power (CSP) plants - Created models and algorithms for planning and control of CSP fields in C# and Python - Supported development of autonomous robotics capabilities throughout the plant - Integrated complex software components into safety-critical systems - Used gRPC and Protocol Buffers to establish communication links between software subsystems ----------------------------- | T i t l e s Senior Software Engineer (2023 - 2023) Controls Software Engineer (2021 - 2023) ### Robotics Engineer II - Robotic Manipulation & Sampling Group @ NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Jan 2018 – Jan 2021 | Greater Los Angeles Area ============================== || M A R S . 2 0 2 0 . R O V E R || S A M P L E . C A C H I N G . S U B S Y S T E M -------------------------------------------------- | C o n t r o l s . L e a d Determined performance and safety of integrated subsystem by... ...formulating linear model(s) describing all actuators within subsystem. ...developing / maintaining simulations capturing nonlinear effects to augment models. ...comparing analysis / simulation / test data to assess results and verify assumptions. -------------------------------------------------- | S y s t e m s . E n g i n e e r - Planned & executed verification & validation test campaigns. - Analyzed telemetry to evaluate risk and support anomaly investigations ============================== || E U R O P A . L A N D E R || R O B O T I C . T E S T B E D S -------------------------------------------------- | E m b e d d e d . S o f t w a r e . D e v e l o p e r - Developed full-stack C / C++ / Python software to operate ROS2 research testbeds. - Debugged & provided ongoing support for deployments of testbed software. ============================== || T I T L E S -------------------------------------------------- Robotics Engineer II (2020 - 2021) Robotics Engineer I (2018 - 2020) ### Research Staff @ Hopkins Marine Station Jan 2018 – Jan 2018 | Pacific Grove, CA Designed and implemented (Python) algorithms for analysis of biologging data from tags deployed on wild giant bluefin tuna, sea lions, manta rays, and sharks. ### Launch Intern - Ground Segment (2x) @ Major aerospace company Jan 2016 – Jan 2017 | California, United States -------------------------------------------------------------- | N i n e - m e t e r . A n t e n n a . R e f u r b i s h m e n t - Led the effort to begin a major refurbishment effort on Apollo-era antennas. - Extensively researched and documented all available information during the early stages of this project. - Worked with suppliers and industry experts to gain specific knowledge of various subsystems and develop/maintain relationships that would aid in this and future projects. - Conducted extensive trade studies and cost analyses for various rebuild and retrofit strategies. - Gradually handed the project off while being available for support to ensure a smooth transition after my departure. ----------------------------- | G r o u n d . S o f t w a r e - Developed embedded software libraries to operate optical equipment through a Raspberry Pi. - Designed, analyzed (Scilab / Simulink), & implemented (C++) nonlinear position control algorithms for precision position control - Used Python for prototyping to verify functionality, and used C++ with Doxygen standard documentation for actual deployment. - Designed custom Raspberry Pi shield for use on equipment with non-standard serial interfaces - Developed a thread-safe event handler used to control the timing of event loops, specifically for use in observe-act control sequences. Event loop ran with <1% timing error on non-dedicated hardware. ---------------------------- | G r o u n d . S u p p o r t - Traveled to Cape Canaveral Air Force Base regularly to provide support for miscellaneous projects as well as to oversee the actual refurbishment of the aforementioned communication equipment. - Designed and provided structural analyses of various ground support equipment using basic solid mechanics and ANSYS software when necessary. * Two internships, one from June to August 2016, and the other from August to December 2017 ### Vehicle Engineering Intern - Environmental Control and Life Support Systems @ Major aerospace company Jan 2015 – Jan 2015 | California, United States ------------------------------------------------- | G e n e r a l . T e s t . V e n u e . S u p p o r t - Designed and constructed test setups from scratch for determining various parameters of several components including moisture buildup on heat exchangers and the effects of line restrictions when pulling a hard vacuum. - Refurbished old test carts used for analyzing vapor compression circuits. This included rewiring data acquisition hardware, writing custom GUI's (LabView), and operating the carts for debugging purposes. --------------------------------------- | A u t o m a t e d . T e s t . P a n e l - Designed, sourced, documented, and constructed a fully automated pressure panel for safely and efficiently executing qualification and acceptance testing on flight components. - Prepared CAD models and drawings (NX), hydraulic and electrical schematics (Visio), custom GUI's (LabView), bill of materials, and return on investment calculations (Excel) - Fabrication and assembly involved tube bending and sealing fittings. - Calculations suggested a minimum of 40% ROI over two years. ### Engineering Learning Assistant @ University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Jan 2013 – Jan 2014 | Champaign, Illinois - Lectured a tri-weekly class of 19 freshmen engineering students and offered weekly office hours to mentor students on how to be successful at Illinois and in the workplace. - Managed first-year project groups to help bring various one-semester projects from conception to completion. ### Summer Intern @ JPL (NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory) Jan 2014 – Jan 2014 | Pasadena, California Developed MATLAB tools to interface with Thermal Desktop and Microsoft Office to automate pre-processing and post-processing of large data sets. Focus on: user interface and customization, run time, and re-usability Conducted various trade studies within Thermal Desktop including: - High-level costs and benefits of using an independent shade to block solar radiation - Heating power implications of insulating internal components of an orbiting telescope ### Product Engineer Intern @ John Deere Jan 2012 – Jan 2012 Overseeing and assisting in timely completion of an experimental machine were my primary responsibilities. This included the design, manufacture, and installation of vital structural components. The machine was successfully completed in time for the testing phase. Additionally, I increased office workflow efficiency by identifying and documenting time consuming problems and the respective solutions. I was offered a returning position for the following summer. ### Part-time Employee @ Energy Visuals Incorporated Jan 2007 – Jan 2011 | Champaign, Illinois Used specialized computer software to generate maps of the American power grid, fixed inherent errors the program creates, and wrote algorithms to fix these problems in the future. ## Education ### Master of Science (M.S.) in Mechanical Engineering Stanford University ### Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Mechanical Engineering University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign ### Bachelor's degree (study abroad) in Mechanical Engineering UNSW ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/rdborn - Website: https://www.rdborn.me --- Source: https://flows.cv/rdavisborn JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/rdavisborn/resume.json Last updated: 2026-03-23