Mechanical Engineer, Camera & Optical Modules

About You and The Role 

Zipline builds and operates autonomous delivery systems that move critical goods reliably and safely. Cameras and optical modules provide critical perception inputs used by our aircraft and autonomous systems. Their mechanical design directly affects image quality, calibration stability, environmental robustness, electromagnetic compatibility, and ultimately the system’s ability to operate safely.

As a Mechanical Design Engineer for Camera and Optical Modules, you will own the mechanical architecture and detailed design of camera assemblies from early concept through validation, production ramp, and fleet operation. You will integrate image sensors, lenses, optical windows and filters, electronics, flexes, connectors, thermal paths, shielding, seals, and cleaning or contamination-control features into compact, lightweight, production-ready assemblies.

This is a hands-on individual-contributor role. You will work at the boundary of mechanical engineering, optics, electronics, perception, thermal design, and high-volume manufacturing. Your designs must preserve alignment and image quality through vibration, temperature cycling, shock, contamination, weather exposure, and years of field operation.

What You'll Do 

• Own end-to-end mechanical design for camera and optical assemblies, including requirements, architecture, concept selection, CAD, drawings, specifications, tolerance analysis, BOMs, and production release.
• Translate perception, optical, electrical, environmental, and aircraft-level requirements into measurable mechanical requirements and acceptance criteria.
• Establish datum, alignment, and calibration strategies to control lens-to-sensor focus, tilt, decenter, optical-axis orientation, stereo baseline, and camera-to-vehicle boresight.
• Develop tolerance models that correlate component and assembly variation with image quality and perception performance, including focus retention, modulation transfer, calibration accuracy, and field-of-view stability.
• Design lightweight housings, mounts, lens barrels, optical-window interfaces, thermal paths, shields, seals, vents, and connector interfaces for high-volume manufacturing.
• Integrate image sensors, lenses, filters, PCBAs, SerDes electronics, flex circuits, connectors, heaters, cleaning devices, and local sensors into robust camera modules.
• Design for environmental durability, including protection against rain, dust, mud, insects, condensation, fogging, icing, UV exposure, cleaning chemicals, and other contamination sources that affect optical performance.
• Evaluate contamination-control solutions, including hydrophobic and oleophobic coatings, protective windows, heaters, air-based cleaning, ultrasonic cleaning, and shutters.
• Define EMI shielding, grounding, and bonding strategies across housings, lens apertures, sensor PCBs, flex circuits, and connector interfaces, ensuring intentional grounding without resonant or floating conductive structures.
• Perform first-principles analysis, hand calculations, tolerance analysis, structural FEA, thermal analysis, and vibration and fatigue assessments to establish robust design margins.
• Define and support mechanical, environmental, and image-quality validation testing, including vibration, shock, thermal cycling, humidity, ingress protection, solar loading, contamination, and lifetime exposure testing.
• Lead investigations into prototype, production, and field failures, identify root causes, implement corrective actions, and verify reduced recurrence rates.
• Maintain comprehensive interface control documentation, design assumptions, engineering analyses, validation evidence, and production release records.

What You'll Bring

What Success Looks Like

• Deliver camera modules that consistently meet image quality, calibration, thermal, mass, and environmental performance requirements across manufacturing variation and operational life.
• Ensure optical alignment and focus remain stable through vibration, shock, temperature cycling, contamination, and extended fleet use.
• Drive designs from development through production while achieving agreed-upon yield, cost, cycle time, and supplier capability targets.
• Develop cleaning and environmental protection features that measurably reduce obscured images, maintenance requirements, and camera-related aircraft downtime.
• Implement mechanical and EMI design improvements that reduce camera-related perception faults, GNSS desense risks, and field failures.
• Create scalable mechanical architectures that support future camera generations, sensor upgrades, and cost reductions without requiring complete redesigns.

What Else You Need To Know

Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.

We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!