Robotics Engineers
Research, design, develop, or test robotic applications.
Also Known As:
Automation Engineer
Autonomous Vehicle Design Engineer
Design Engineer
Factory Automations Engineer
Research Engineer
Robotic Systems Engineer
Job Outlook
Below Average
New job opportunities are less likely in the future
Connecticut's
2034 Projected Employment
2,840
11% Change From 2024
United States
2034 Projected Employment
162,100
2% Change From 2024
Explore Mechatronics Engineers and Emerging Engineering Fields video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Build, configure, or test robots or robotic applications.
- Automate assays on laboratory robotics.
- Evaluate robotic systems or prototypes.
- Write algorithms or programming code for ad hoc robotic applications.
- Design robotic systems, such as automatic vehicle control, autonomous vehicles, advanced displays, advanced sensing, robotic platforms, computer vision, or telematics systems.
- Build, configure, or test robots or robotic applications.
- Investigate mechanical failures or unexpected maintenance problems.
- Design end-of-arm tooling.
- Install, calibrate, operate, or maintain robots.
- Plan mobile robot paths and teach path plans to robots.
- Provide technical support for robotic systems.
- Integrate robotics with peripherals, such as welders, controllers, or other equipment.
- Build, configure, or test robots or robotic applications.
- Install, calibrate, operate, or maintain robots.
- Design or program robotics systems for environmental clean-up applications to minimize human exposure to toxic or hazardous materials or to improve the quality or speed of clean-up operations.
- Install, calibrate, operate, or maintain robots.
- Make system device lists or event timing charts.
- Create back-ups of robot programs or parameters.
- Document robotic application development, maintenance, or changes.
- Supervise technologists, technicians, or other engineers.
- Process or interpret signals or sensor data.
- Design software to control robotic systems for applications, such as military defense or manufacturing.
- Review or approve designs, calculations, or cost estimates.
- Design automated robotic systems to increase production volume or precision in high-throughput operations, such as automated ribonucleic acid (RNA) analysis or sorting, moving, or stacking production materials.
- Debug robotics programs.
- Conduct research on robotic technology to create new robotic systems or system capabilities.
- Conduct research into the feasibility, design, operation, or performance of robotic mechanisms, components, or systems, such as planetary rovers, multiple mobile robots, reconfigurable robots, or man-machine interactions.
- Design robotics applications for manufacturers of green products, such as wind turbines or solar panels, to increase production time, eliminate waste, or reduce costs.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")