Job Details
The Fraunhofer USA Center for Manufacturing Innovation CMI in Boston, MA is part of Fraunhofer USA, a 501 (c) (3) non-profit contract R&D organization, affiliated with Fraunhofer Gesellschaft, Europe's largest contract R&D group. Fraunhofer USA CMI's interdisciplinary Energy Systems team is dedicated to serving the applied research needs of the sustainable energy community, helping established industry players and startup companies develop and deploy clean energy technologies. The Center has active projects in the areas of building energy systems, deep energy retrofits, and integrating renewable energy with the electric grid. For additional information please view our website at https://www.cmi.fraunhofer.org/en/services/energy-systems.html .
We seek a team member to work closely with the Energy Systems team to develop, test, and evaluate algorithms that enable digitalization of the deep energy retrofit design and delivery processes. You will also contribute to new project proposals and the design of field-testing experiments, as well as publication in top-tier journals and conferences.
Specifically, the position will focus on developing computational algorithms that automatically convert laser scan point cloud data from residential building exteriors into dimensionally accurate geometric models of different building elements, such as opaque walls, windows, doors, soffits, power meters, etc. The methods may involve image processing techniques to segment data and machine learning techniques to classify the segments into different building elements (doors, windows, power meters, etc.). You will also develop algorithms to solve for the optimal set of insulated panels to clad the opaque wall areas extracted by the point-cloud data processing algorithm.
Responsibilities:
- Develop algorithms for processing point-cloud data to reliably extract the edges of building façade elements and accurately characterize their dimensions.
- Validate the developed algorithms using point cloud data and images and measurement from actual buildings.
- Develop a software solution that solves for the optimal set of insulated panels to clad opaque wall areas.
- Help integrate the point-cloud processing algorithms with other portions of the digital workflows to create an automated end-to-end process.
- Contribute to and co-author reports and research papers that effectively communicate research findings to different audiences, as well as government and industrial proposals.
- Master’s or Ph.D. degree in a relevant field with a focus on data processing.
- Experience applying image processing techniques (e.g., image segmentation, edge detection) is preferred.
- Experience with programming (e.g., Python, MATLAB) and databases.
- A strong interest in applying analytical techniques to “noisy” real-world problems and in learning and applying new techniques.
- Building energy systems experience preferred but not essential.
- An excellent academic record.
- Strong verbal and written communication skills and good interpersonal skills.
- Ability to work effectively independently with limited oversight.
Fraunhofer USA, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer of Individuals with disabilities, protected veterans and is a federal contractor.
In your cover letter, please explain what motivates you to apply and succinctly describe your most relevant work experience.