Control Engineering

Control Engineering

Control Engineering

Control engineering is at the very core of our drives. A control engineer has a strong foundation in modeling and control of dynamic systems. A dedicated relationship to the product and the customer applications making them system experts. When called upon, the control-engineer will come and show a way forward: In the office, laboratory or at customer-site.

The 3 main responsibilities when it comes to the products are: Motor-control, Grid-control and Drive-protection.

As a pure player, Danfoss Drives must support many different applications and we need to have a wide range of capabilities and control algorithms. Keeping up with customer needs, motor-types, grid-demands and new technology-trends will keep us busy in all future.

A control-engineer can internally advance as senior- and lead-control engineer.

Tools and languages

Our control algorithms are mainly implemented with MATLAB and Simulink, but our developers will also work in (embedded) C and C++, as well as Python for test and various build environments. 

Our infrastructure is based around Azure DevOps and GIT. All our developers will work across these technologies and are expected to be able to handle most aspects of software development from code to successful build, integration, and test. 

Methodologies  

At Danfoss Drives, we practice agile principles and our developers take responsibility for their tasks and all aspects of the product software. This is done as part of product focused multi-disciplinary teams. 

 

My name is Arto Sankala and I’m a 35yr old guy living with my family (wife and two sons) in the little village of Sahalahti ½ hour away from the Danfoss’ Tampere office in Finland. Before starting my career at Vacon / Danfoss in 2014 I was a doctoral researcher at the Lappeenranta University of Technology. I did my dissertation in a research program on Medium Voltage Drives that was financed by Vacon. I defended my dissertation and graduated in 2015. One of the Vacon’s contact persons within the research project hinted about the open position (Development Engineer, Motor Control) which I then applied to and got the position. So my road to Vacon / Danfoss began many years before I actually became a Vacon employee. My title has changed first from Development Engineer to Control Engineer after the Vacon / Danfoss merger and then to Senior Control Engineer, while my actual job has not changed much.

 

I’m working in the Danfoss Drives product management and development organization on infrastructure in a Finnish team. I have a dual-role in the team: I’m one of the developers but I’m also the Scrum Master of the team. The team’s responsibilities cover motor control, grid-tied-converter control and DCDC converter control. The main tools are Matlab for control algorithm development through simulation and code generation, and for verification and fine-tuning of algorithms we use Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) simulations and testing with real frequency converters and motors in the laboratory. The work is related to the Viking Program.

 

The best parts of my work are 1. the ability to influence on the content of my own work, 2. being trusted by coworkers, and 3. being able to utilize and develop my knowhow. These are the reasons I like to work at Danfoss.

 

Ready to join us?

A series of megatrends are transforming the world as we know it: Increased digitalization, electrification, and urbanization, as well as the challenges connected to food supply and climate change. At Danfoss, you will help develop energy-efficient and sustainable solutions that contribute to solving the global issues of today and tomorrow.

Whether you are an experienced professional or just starting out, we provide a variety of opportunities for you to make your career matter.

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