MERL is looking for a self-motivated intern to work on problems at the intersection of computer vision and robotic manipulation for solving tasks such as vision-based robotic tool manipulation. The ideal candidate would be a PhD student with strong mathematical background in machine learning/reinforcement learning, modeling contact-physics for object manipulation, and experience in working with and training deep models on large scale computer vision datasets. Proficiency in PyTorch and (differentiable) robotic simulators is expected. Knowledge of meta-learning, hierarchical RL, self-supervised learning, and scene graph based visual reasoning would be useful. The intern will conduct original research with MERL researchers towards scientific publications.

MERL is looking for a highly motivated and qualified candidate to work on Bayesian Optimization and predictive control for net-zero energy buildings. The ideal candidate will have a strong understanding of control, optimization, and/or machine learning with expertise demonstrated via, e.g., publications, in at least one of: Bayesian optimization, (stochastic) model predictive control, reinforcement learning, controller tuning; additional understanding of energy systems is a plus. Hands-on programming experience with numerical optimization solvers and Python is preferred. PhD students are strongly preferred, as an expected outcome of the internship is a publication in a high-tier venue. The minimum duration of the internship is 12 weeks; start time is flexible.

MERL is looking for a highly motivated and qualified candidate to work on estimation and model structure identification for digital twins of multi-physical systems. The research will involve study and development of white-box and grey-box model calibration and identification methods suitable for large-scale systems. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in one or multiple of the following topics: nonlinear estimation, model identification, optimization, data-driven and reduced order modeling, and machine learning; with expertise demonstrated via, e.g., peer-reviewed publications. Prior programming experience in Julia/Modelica is a plus. Senior PhD students in mechanical, electrical, chemical engineering or related fields are encouraged to apply. The typical duration of internship is 3 months and start date is flexible.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified individual to conduct research in the integration of model- and learning-based control to achieve high performance with guaranteed safety and robustness. The ideal candidate should have solid backgrounds in dynamical system estimation and uncertainty quantification, model-based control and adaptive/learning control for output tracking, and coding skills. Prior experience on ultra-high precision motion control system is a big plus. Ph.D. students in mechatronics and control are encouraged to apply. Start date for this internship is flexible and the duration is about 3 months.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified individual to conduct research in model-based robotic system design. The ideal candidate should have solid backgrounds in robotic dynamics and simulation, motion planning and control, simulation-based optimization, surrogate modeling, and coding skills. Demonstrated experience on implementing robotic dynamics and simulation/optimization software such as Matlab is a necessity. Ph.D. students in mechanical engineering, robotics, computer science, and electrical engineering are encouraged to apply. Start date for this internship is flexible and the duration is about 3 months.

The Data Analytics Group at MERL is seeking a highly motivated, qualified individual to join our internship program in the summer of 2023. The ideal candidate will be a Ph.D. student specializing in engineering, applied mathematics, computer science or similar fields with solid background in scientific machine learning, deep learning, and non-convex optimization. Research exposure to one of the following is very desirable but not necessary: PDE-constrained optimization, Koopman theory, dynamical systems, operator learning (DeepONet, FNO, etc.), and Physics-informed Neural Nets (PINNs). Ideal candidate is familiar with PyTorch, TensorFlow, or Jax. Publication of results obtained during the internship is expected. The starting date is flexible and the internship will last about 12 weeks.

The Data Analytics Group at MERL is seeking a highly motivated, qualified individual to join our internship program in the summer of 2023. The ideal candidate will be a Ph.D. student specializing in engineering, applied mathematics, computer science or similar fields with solid background in control, estimation, and dynamical systems. Research exposure to one of the following is very desirable but not necessary: reduced-order models (ROMs), reinforcement learning, nonlinear control, PDEs, and robust control. Publication of results obtained during the internship is expected. The starting date is flexible and the internship will last about 12 weeks.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified intern to collaborate with the Control for Autonomy team in research on planning and control for autonomous vehicles. The research domain includes algorithms for path planning, vehicle control, high level decision making, sensor-based navigation, driver-vehicle interaction. The ideal candidate is expected to be working towards a PhD with strong emphasis in vehicle guidance and control, and to have interest and background in as many as possible of: vehicle dynamics modeling and control, predictive control algorithms linear and nonlinear systems, motion planning, convex, non-convex, and mixed -integer optimization, statistical estimation, cooperative control. Good programming skills in MATLAB, Python or C/C++ are required, knowledge of rapid prototyping systems, automatic code generation or ROS is a plus. The expected start of of the internship is in the late Spring/Early Summer 2022, for a duration of 3-6 months.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified intern to collaborate with the Control for Autonomy team in research on design and analysis of model predictive control algorithms for systems subject to environment uncertainty that can be reduced by perception. The research domain includes algorithms for stabilizing uncertain and stochastic model predictive control, uncertainty quantification and reduction via estimation, optimization algorithms for uncertain and stochastic predictive control. The ideal candidate is expected to be working towards a PhD with strong emphasis in some of: stochastic model predictive control, statistical estimation, uncertainty quantification, and sensing-driven control. Good programming skills in MATLAB, Python are required, knowledge of C/C++ or ROS are a plus. The expected start of of the internship is in the late Spring/Early Summer 2022, for a duration of 3-6 months.

MERL is seeking highly motivated interns for research positions in guidance, navigation, and control of spacecraft. The ideal candidates are PhD students with experience in one or more of the following topics: astrodynamics, the three-body problem, relative motion dynamics, rendezvous, landing, attitude control, orbit control, orbit determination, nonlinear estimation, and optimization-based control. Publication of results produced during the internship is expected. The duration of the internships are 3-6 months, and the start dates are flexible.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified intern to collaborate with the Control for Autonomy team in research on risk-aware, fault-tolerant planning and control of autonomous vehicles. The ideal candidate is expected to be working towards a PhD with strong emphasis in control or planning algorithms, and to have interest and background in as many as possible of: physics-based and data-based prediction models, formal methods for probabilistic validation, invariance and set-based control, predictive control algorithms for linear and nonlinear systems and vehicle modeling and control. Good programming skills in MATLAB, Python are required. Knowledge of ROS and C/C++ are a plus. The expected start of of the internship is in the late Spring/Early Summer 2022, for a duration of 3-6 months.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified intern to work on fundamental algorithms for motion planning and control of multiple autonomous quadrotor aerial vehicles. The ideal candidate should have a background in nonlinear control, estimation theory, and applied optimization. The candidate should have experience in one or multiple of the following topics: optimal control, Lyapunov stability theory, quadrotor dynamics, Kalman filtering, particle filtering, and machine learning. Capability of implementing the designs and algorithms in Matlab and Simulink is expected, and experience with platforms such as the Crazyflie is a plus. Publication of relevant results in conference proceedings or journals is expected. MS or PhD students in control, robotics, electrical engineering, computer science, or related areas, are encouraged to apply. The expected duration of the internship is 3-6 months and the start date is flexible.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified intern to collaborate with multiple researchers on the improvement, real-time implementation and experimental validation of algorithms for path/motion planning, constrained state estimation, optimal control and reference tracking in autonomous articulated vehicles. The ideal candidate should have a background in either path/motion planning, state and parameter estimation and/or model predictive control (MPC) for autonomous (articulated) vehicles, and the candidate should have experience in one or multiple of the following topics: optimal control, MPC, vehicle dynamics, A* search, RRT, Kalman filtering, particle filtering, and machine learning. Capability of implementing the designs and algorithms in Matlab and Simulink, and using C/C++ code generation is expected. Any experience with dSPACE (e.g., MicroAutoBox or Scalexio), CasADi, and/or experience with vehicle experiments or simulators (e.g., TruckSim or CarSim) is a plus. Publication of relevant results in conference proceedings or journals is expected. MS or PhD students in control, robotics, electrical and mechanical, or related areas, are encouraged to apply. The expected duration of the internship is 3-6 months and the start date is flexible.

MERL is looking for a highly motivated individual to work on optimization-based techniques for coordination and control of connected autonomous vehicles (CAVs), in the presence of other CAVs and human driven vehicles (HDVs). The research will involve the development, implementation, and validation of optimization-based coordinated control of vehicles through traffic intersections and/or merging scenarios. The ideal candidate should have experience in either one or multiple of the following topics: vehicle modeling and/or traffic modeling, mixed-integer programming, (stochastic) model predictive control, reinforcement learning, data-driven (e.g., Gaussian Process) modeling, hybrid dynamical systems, coordination and control of CAVs. Knowledge of one or multiple vehicle and/or traffic simulators (SUMO, CARLA, CarSim, Vissim, etc.) is a plus. Publication of relevant results in conference proceedings or journals is expected. Good programming skills in Matlab are required and knowledge in Python or C/C++ is a merit. PhD students in engineering, mathematics, or similar are encouraged to apply. The expected duration of the internship is 3-6 months and the start date is flexible.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated intern for a research position in spacecraft attitude dynamics and control. The ideal candidate is a PhD student with experience in attitude kinematics and dynamics, multi-body dynamics, Lagrangian or Hamiltonian mechanics, optimization, and control of rigid bodies. Experience in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) using OpenFOAM, multi-phase flow modeling, and volume-of-fluid approach is desirable. Publication of results produced during the internship is expected. The duration of the internship is 3-6 months, and the start date is flexible.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified intern to collaborate with the Control for Autonomy team in research on planning and control for autonomous vehicles in uncertain surrounding environments. The research domain includes algorithms for path planning and control in environments that are uncertain and perceived by sensing and predicted according to models and data. The ideal candidate is expected to be working towards a PhD with strong emphasis in vehicle guidance and control, and to have interest and background in as many as possible of: vehicle dynamics modeling and control, sensor uncertainty modeling, data-driven prediction, predictive control for uncertain systems, motion planning. Good programming skills in MATLAB, Python are required, knowledge of C/C++, rapid prototyping systems, automatic code generation, vehicle simulation packages (CarSim, CarMaker) or ROS are a plus. The expected start of of the internship is in the late Spring/Early Summer 2022, for a duration of 3-6 months.