Thesis Work for Determinism and Scalability of ROS 2/DDS for Distributed Industrial Robot Controllers

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This role sits within ABB's Robotics business, a leading global robotics company. We're entering an exciting new chapter as we’ve announced the plan for SoftBank Group to acquire ABB Robotics. SoftBank is a globally recognized technology group and investor/operator focused on AI, robotics, and next-generation computing.  By joining us now, you’ll be part of a pioneering team shaping the future of robotics—working alongside world-class experts in a fast-moving, innovation-driven environment.

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Your role and responsibilities

Distributed software architectures are becoming increasingly important in advanced robotics systems. This thesis offers the opportunity to experimentally evaluate the performance and scalability of a modern robotics framework in the context of time-critical industrial robot control.

In this thesis, the timing behavior of ROS 2/DDS will be experimentally characterized using representative distributed industrial robot-controller workloads. Selected ROS 2 executor configurations, DDS configurations and scheduling approaches will be evaluated while varying computational workload, communication frequency and the scale of the distributed system. The objective is to determine the deterministic operating and scalability envelope of ROS 2/DDS for distributed industrial robot control. In doing so, the thesis will also evaluate the suitability and limitations of an open-source robotics framework for time-critical industrial controller applications.

Details:

• Period: Jan – June 2027
• Number of credits:  30 ECTS/högskolepoäng (hp)
• Number of students for this thesis work: One
• Location: Västerås /Hybrid

Qualifications for the role

• Currently pursuing a master’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Embedded Systems, Automation, Robotics, or a related field
• Knowledge of real-time systems and time-critical computing concepts
• Experience with distributed systems, communication middleware, or networking; experience with ROS 2 or DDS is advantageous
• Programming skills in C/C++ or Python for system analysis, experimentation, or prototyping
• (Bonus) Familiarity with industrial automation, robotics, motion control systems, or Linux real-time systems
  

More about us

Recruiting Manager Peter Rinderud, +46 72 464 46 84 or peter.rinderud@se.abb.com, will answer your questions.

Positions are filled continuously. Please apply with your CV, academic transcripts, and a cover letter in English.

We look forward to receiving your application!

A Future Opportunity
Please note that this position is part of our talent pipeline and not an active job opening at this time. By applying, you express your interest in future career opportunities with ABB.

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