Systems & Controls Engineer

Systems & Controls Engineer

DeltaQuad

Duivendrecht, Netherlands

The role

As a Systems & Controls Engineer at DeltaQuad, you take technical ownership of the design and integration of mission-critical control systems for advanced UAV platforms. You are responsible for defining the control architecture and integrating sub-systems such as sensors, actuators, propulsion interfaces, and mission payloads, ensuring stable, safe, and predictable vehicle performance across all phases of flight.

You apply your in-depth knowledge of vehicle dynamics, aerodynamics, model-based controllers, and fault-tolerant design, and are actively involved in simulation, control algorithm development, and verification using MATLAB/Simulink and HIL/SIL testing. You design robust, high-performance flight control solutions suitable for scalable series production, ensuring reliability, manufacturability, and consistent quality.

You enjoy solving complex technical challenges, applying EMC/EMI, redundancy, and fail-operational concepts, integrating multi-actuator and over-actuated control strategies, and refining aerodynamic and propulsion models to improve flight stability and performance.

Your work directly contributes to meaningful innovations that strengthen safety, resilience, and operational capabilities across Europe.

Key tasks and responsibilities

• Analyse and model UAV vehicle dynamics, propulsion, and power systems to support control system design and validation
• Perform system identification using simulation data, CFD results, and flight-test measurements
• Develop and maintain aerodynamic models to improve control accuracy and flight stability, leveraging CFD and aerodynamic stabilisation analysis
• Design, implement, and tune robust flight control algorithms (PX4) with strong wind robustness and gust rejection performance
• Develop model-based control architectures using MATLAB/Simulink, including state-space and advanced controllers
• Design control allocation strategies for multi-actuator and over-actuated UAV platforms
• Implement fault-tolerant and failure-resilient control systems to ensure safe operation under degraded and off-nominal conditions
• Explore and apply reinforcement learning techniques for control optimisation and autonomous performance improvements where applicable
• Validate control performance through SITL, HIL/HITL, and full flight testing, including stability and robustness analysis
• Collaborate closely with systems, aerodynamics, electrical, software, and flight test teams to iterate, integrate, and optimise control solutions

What you bring

• A bachelor’s or master’s degree in engineering Systems & Control, and aerodynamics
• At least 5 years of relevant experience in system integration or product development
• Strong understanding of control systems, embedded controllers, sensors and actuators, and communication interfaces (CAN, UART, Ethernet) for real-time UAV system integration
• Experience working with UAVs or robotic systems is a strong plus
• Hands-on, analytical, and precise. You enjoy turning theory into practice
• A team player who communicates clearly and takes ownership