Freelance Embedded Systems Engineer Jobs in Connecticut

At ASSA ABLOY, our global teams collaborate seamlessly to craft products and services that integrate into our users' lives, simplifying their everyday routines and enhancing convenience. By empowering users to control access, we provide unparalleled peace of mind through enhancing safety and visibility.

The Systems Engineer will be a key contributor within the Systems/Solutions Architect team, supporting the design, integration, validation, and troubleshooting of complex access control systems. This role bridges hardware, firmware, software, manufacturing, and field deployments, with a strong emphasis on system-level diagnosis, integration issues, and cross-functional collaboration across global teams.

The ideal candidate is hands-on, technically broad, and comfortable operating across customer sites, labs, manufacturing environments, and engineering teams to quickly identify root causes and drive solutions.

This position will be full-time onsite in Berlin, CT or New Haven, CT reporting to the Senior Manager of Embedded Engineering.

What you will be doing

System-Level Troubleshooting & Field Support

• Travel to customer sites as needed, working alongside OEM teams to perform deep technical diagnosis of system-level issues.
• Analyze complex failures spanning hardware, firmware, software, and mechanical domains.
• Provide actionable findings and recommendations to internal engineering and product teams.

Issue Reproduction & Validation

• Reproduce customer-reported issues in-house through structured testing and analysis.
• Design and execute system-level test scenarios to isolate root causes and validate fixes.
• Document findings clearly for engineering, product management, and quality teams.

Systems Integration and Security Assessment

• Lead or support integration of multi-component systems, including controllers, readers, hubs, sensors, and software applications.
• Diagnose and resolve integration issues across wired and wireless interfaces.
• Evaluate system behavior across edge cases, scale, and real-world deployment conditions.

Cross-Functional & Global Collaboration

• Act as a technical bridge between overseas hardware engineers, firmware developers, and local teams including Product Management, Customer Supports, Design Validation Testing (DVT), and Automated Test Equipment (ATE).
• Communicate system-level issues effectively across time zones and disciplines.
• Support root cause analysis, corrective actions, and continuous improvement efforts.

What we are looking for

• Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related technical field.
• Strong background in one of the following three domains (1) electronics design, (2) firmware development, or (3) software development. Working knowledge of the other two domains.
• If the strong background is electronics design, the ability to draw schematics and PCB layouts, component selection, signal integrity considerations, and low voltage power design, and EMI/EMC counter measurement.
• If the strong background is firmware development, hands-on experience with embedded firmware development in C/C++, including the ability to read, modify, debug, and occasionally develop new firmware features and solid understanding of RTOS concepts, such as task scheduling, inter-task communication, synchronization primitives, timing constraints, and resource management.
• If the strong background is software development, strong programming skills with Python or alike, experience with API definition, relational database design, and familiar with SQL query optimization, indexing, data integrity and debugging.
• Experience working across the hardware-firmware-application software boundary, with a strong understanding of how changes in one domain impact overall system behavior.
• Experience with system integration and system-level debugging.
• Working knowledge of one of the following wired communication protocols such as:  TCP/IP, or RS-485.
• Working knowledge of one of the following wireless technologies:  WiFi, IEEE 802.15.4, Zigbee, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), or NFC.
• Willingness and ability to travel to customer sites as needed.
• Strong technical documentation and communication skills.

Preferred

• Cyber security framework, such as NIST.
• Prior experience in the Physical Access Control Systems (PACS) industry, including exposure to electronic locks, door controllers, readers, credentials, gateways/hubs, or integrated access control solutions.
• Familiarity with end-to-end access control system architectures, from field devices (readers, locks, sensors) through controllers, hubs, and backend software.
• Experience diagnosing issues in real-world access control deployments, including installation variability, environmental factors, wiring practices, and customer-specific configurations.
• Understanding of access control protocols and interfaces commonly used in PACS environments (e.g., OSDP, Wiegand, RS-485, TCP/IP).
• Experience working with multi-vendor or legacy access control systems and resolving interoperability or integration challenges.
• Exposure to regulatory, safety, reliability, or security considerations specific to physical security and access control products.
• Background collaborating with field service, manufacturing, quality, and validation teams within an access control or embedded systems product organization.
• Experience working with globally distributed engineering teams.

Key Attributes

• Systems thinker with a hands-on mindset.
• Comfortably operating in ambiguous, fast-moving situations.
• Curious, methodical, and solution-oriented.
• Able to communicate complex technical issues clearly to diverse audiences.

What we offer

We are passionate about providing amazing opportunities and benefits, so that you can enjoy a lifelong career with us. 

• Annual Bonus.
• Continuous professional development opportunities and an environment that fosters internal growth and mobility.
• Competitive compensation and benefits package which includes multiple healthcare options, tuition reimbursement, and matching 401k.
• Generous holiday schedule and paid time off to refresh and recharge.
• Employee pricing on our products and discount programs for travel, entertainment, and more!

We review applications regularly, so don't hesitate, apply today!

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We are the ASSA ABLOY Group

Our people have made us the global leader in access solutions. In return, we open doors for them wherever they go. With nearly 63,000 colleagues in more than 70 different countries, we help billions of people experience a more open world. Our innovations make all sorts of spaces - physical and virtual - safer, more secure, and easier to access. 

As an employer, we value results - not titles, or backgrounds. We empower our people to build their career around their aspirations and our ambitions - supporting them with regular feedback, training, and development opportunities. Our colleagues think broadly about where they can make the most impact, and we encourage them to grow their role locally, regionally, or even internationally.

As we welcome new people on board, it's important to us to have diverse, inclusive teams, and we value different perspectives and experiences.