At the heart of product innovation and development, our Systems Engineering Department transforms market demands into safe, certifiable, and competitive solutions and architectures. By collaborating closely with software, hardware, safety, and certification teams, we ensure every product meets the highest standards while adapting to fast-evolving market needs. Our mission is to enable seamless human-robot collaboration and deliver solutions that are safe, compliant, and ready for the future. Join us to shape the next generation of human-robot systems by owning system-level requirements, integration, and alignment, with architectural responsibilities as needed. If you thrive in cross-functional teamwork and technical excellence, you’ll find extraordinary opportunities with us.
Locomotion & Whole-Body Control Engineer (human)
Neura Robotics • Bielefeld
Shape the Future of Human-Robot Collaboration
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Full-time
Bielefeld
We are growing our legged-robotics capability on NEURA's humanoid (4NE1) and quadruped platforms. This role spans both core layers of the legged control stack: trajectory optimization and MPC for kino-dynamic motion generation, and QP-based instantaneous whole-body control for executing those motions on real hardware at 1 kHz.
The work is focused on contact-rich dynamics, real-time optimization, and reliable execution on physical robots. You will collaborate closely with state estimation, simulation, low-level control, and hardware stakeholders, and with the application teams whose tasks ultimately depend on robust, predictable locomotion and whole-body behaviour.
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Whole-body motion generation and control for floating-base legged platforms — locomotion, balance, contact transitions, and loco-manipulation (walking while manipulating).
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Trajectory optimization and model-predictive control pipelines over robot state, contact schedules, ground reaction forces, centroidal momentum, and joint trajectories — using reduced-order locomotion models such as LIPM, SRBD, and centroidal dynamics.
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QP-based task-space inverse dynamics for executing instantaneous whole-body control from MPC and trajectory-optimization references at 1 kHz on the real robot.
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Whole-body modelling for the platform: floating-base rigid-body dynamics from URDF / MJCF, joint configuration, FK / IK, Jacobians, and mass / Coriolis / gravity computation.
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Constraint formulation across the MPC and QP layers — contact, friction, torque, joint, kinematic, and stability constraints — with task-hierarchy design appropriate to the platform.
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Solver performance work across both layers: warm-starting, numerical conditioning, constraint handling, and real-time reliability at 500 Hz – 1 kHz.
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Deployment, tuning, and debugging of MPC, trajectory optimization, IK, and inverse dynamics pipelines on physical robots — including platform-specific contact-model calibration and validation against real robot data.
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High-performance C++ for real-time execution; Python tooling for analysis, prototyping, and debugging.
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MSc or PhD in robotics, controls, mechanical or electrical engineering, computer science, or a related field.
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4+ years of hands-on experience developing trajectory optimization, MPC for locomotion, and / or whole-body control on physical robots.
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Strong foundation in floating-base articulated rigid-body dynamics and contact modelling.
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Strong working knowledge of reduced-order locomotion models (LIPM, SRBD, centroidal dynamics, or equivalents) and their use inside MPC.
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Strong foundation in optimal control, constrained numerical optimization, and model-predictive control for legged robots.
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Hands-on experience with whole-body QP / TSID frameworks on real robot data — including QP / DDP solver internals.
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Hands-on experience deploying real-time control / MPC / WBC pipelines at 500 Hz – 1 kHz on hardware.
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Strong C++ for real-time robotics software; Python for analysis, tooling, prototyping, and debugging.
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Practical understanding of how contact dynamics, actuator limits, latency, state-estimation error, solver failure modes, and model mismatch behave on real hardware.
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A collaborative working style: shared design, constructive code review, proactive communication, and reliable coordination across control, estimation, simulation, low-level control, and hardware disciplines. Strong teamwork is essential for this role.
Nice to Have
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Hands-on experience on humanoids, quadrupeds, or other high-DOF legged robots.
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Familiarity with Pinocchio, MuJoCo, Crocoddyl, IPOPT, TSID, OCS2, or similar open-source tools.
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Hierarchical QP, weighted QP, task prioritization, contact force optimization, or operational-space control.
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Contact planning, gait optimization, balance recovery; CPG-based or hybrid CPG / MPC controllers.
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Multi-contact WBC: foot contact, bimanual grasping, or base-arm coordination.
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Contact-consistent dynamics and impact-aware control transitions.
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Experience with torque-controlled robots and high-bandwidth electric actuation.
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Publications at RSS, ICRA, IROS, or CoRL in legged locomotion or whole-body control.
What you can look forward to
Creative Freedom and Agility
Enjoy a dynamic, self-reliant work culture with flat hierarchies, flexible hours, and 30 vacation days. Ideal for those seeking an inspiring professional setting, whether you're starting out or an experienced exec.
Passion for Winning
A passionate and highly skilled team of international experts aiming to redefine robot assistants.
Attractive Compensation
Enjoy a competitive salary package along with exclusive employee discounts.
One Team
Whether it's a summer party or company town hall meetings, we celebrate our successes together.
Professional Growth
Support for your personal and professional development.
Our values. The cornerstones of our success.
We are a team. We strive to achieve great things by promoting the success of our colleagues and partners.
We strive for technological progress in order to give people back their valuable time for enjoyable activities.
We strive to revolutionize the world of robotics by pushing the boundaries of technology every day.
We live a high level of appreciation through open communication and transparency.
We do our best to always be two steps ahead. We achieve this through empowerment, freedom of action and personal responsibility.
People are at the center of everything we do.
Our Location
In Bielefeld, you'll find one of our specialized development teams. The location offers a creative and focused work atmosphere, perfect for technological and productive collaboration.
Bielefeld itself is a vibrant place that blends tradition with modernity. With the Teutoburg Forest right at your doorstep, the region provides fantastic opportunities to enjoy nature—whether hiking, cycling, or simply unwinding. Meanwhile, the city center invites you to explore its cafes, restaurants, and cultural offerings.
Our office is more than just a workplace; it's a space where ideas flourish and are brought to life in a dynamic team environment. Bielefeld's central location in the East Westphalia-Lippe region also ensures strong connections to the area's technology and innovation landscape.
Bielefeld is the ideal spot for anyone looking to work in a highly skilled team while appreciating a city that perfectly balances career opportunities and quality of life.
Our application process
We ensure a transparent and efficient process and look forward to getting to know you during the application process.
Your insight into our daily work
Unsere Mission
"Our goal was to develop the world's first cognitive robot that can work with people, learn from them and provide them with targeted support. And that is exactly what we have achieved. But there is much more to come!"
