Nancy Robinson

Systems Engineer - Hardware & Full-Stack Software

Embedded Systems • Circuit Design • Firmware • Backend & Frontend Software

About

I'm a Full-Stack Product Development Engineer specializing in embedded systems, electronic design, firmware, full-stack software, and rapid prototyping. With nearly two decades of professional and personal project experience, I’ve designed, integrated, and delivered complete hardware/software systems across a wide range of technologies and operational environments.
Because I understand each layer of a system, from circuit design and embedded firmware to backend, frontend, and application software, I’m able to architect and integrate solutions that work together cleanly, efficiently, and reliably. My cross-disciplinary expertise allows me to not only work with cross-functional teams more efficiently but also design solutions that best benefit not just one subsystem, but the entire product.

Engineering Capabilities

Hardware & Embedded Systems
  • Custom Circuit Design
    • Cadence, Altium, KiCad
    • PCB layout (2–4 layer)
    • Vendor coordination
    • Component selection & sourcing
  • Validation & Qualification
    • Board bring-up
    • Debug & root-cause analysis
    • Electrical validation & characterization
    • Reliability analysis
    • Test & lab automation scripting
  • Hands On Electronics
    • Lab instrumentation (oscilloscopes, DC supplies, logic analyzers)
    • Soldering & PCB rework
    • Component placement & assembly
Microcontroller Development
  • RISC-based architectures
  • Peripheral integration
    • SPI, I2C, USB
    • UART
    • GPIO
  • Bare-metal and Linux-based firmware
  • Sensor integration
  • Wireless integration
    • Bluetooth, BLE
    • Wi-Fi
    • LoRa, RFID
Software & Applications
  • Embedded Firmware
    • C/C++ (Bare-Metal & Embedded Linux)
  • Web Development
    • Frontend: HTML, CSS, JavaScript
    • Backend: Python (Django), PHP
    • Database: SQL (schema design, query optimization)
    • Frameworks & Platforms: Vue.js, Django, WordPress
  • Mobile Development
    • Android (Android Studio, Java)

Professional Experience

Intel Labs – System Engineer (2015 - 2024)
  • Hardware Team Lead supporting planning and cross-functional coordination.
  • Embedded firmware & system software for research platforms (wearables, sensing systems, drones).
  • Board bring-up and validation of custom research hardware.
  • Designed PCBs and supported rapid prototyping with manufacturing vendors.
EchoStar – Firmware Engineer (2008 - 2015)

  • Characterized and supported satellite set-top box hardware.
  • Developed low-level C/C++ firmware for new hardware platforms.
  • Built Linux-based testing applications for production validation.

CEPD – Product Engineer (2006 - 2008)
  • Developed electrical product prototypes for diverse clients.
  • Supported board characterization, testing, and cross-disciplinary integration.

Education

B.S. Electrical Engineering (2006)
University of Colorado, Boulder

Selected Personal Projects

Electrical Component Search Platform

Developed a WordPress-based web application enabling users to search and filter electrical components by specifications, availability, and pricing.

Recreational Sports Management Platform

Built a WordPress-based web platform supporting bracket creation, group formation, and player discovery to facilitate recreational sports organization.

Shared Budget & Debt Tracking App (Android)

Money management app using the Firebase database built to coordinate spending, budgets, and debt between couples who share finances.

Modular Prototyping Circuit Platform

Designed modular PCB system for compact, higher-performance prototyping. SBIR Phase I advanced.

Django + Vue Web Architecture

Designed and built API-driven CMS platform with Django REST backend and Vue 3 frontend, emphasizing modular architecture, clean service boundaries, and scalable component design.

Off-Grid Modular Mini-Golf Course

Designed and constructed a modular 18-hole mini-golf course in a high-traffic tourist location. The installation was fully off-grid and engineered for temporary deployment, allowing setup and removal without permanent land impact.

Leadership & Community

  • USA Racquetball High School Coach of the Year (2025)
  • Oregon High School Racquetball Board Member (2020–Present)
  • Youth sports camp organizer providing free community programs
  • LDS Missionary, Uruguay (1997–1999)

Languages

  • English
  • Spanish