Sr. Embedded Linus Dev - Hybrid

This is a highly technical, hands-on role where you will join a strategic project in active
development. You will work directly with our System Architects to stabilize and optimize
the underlying "plumbing"—from the I2S clocks on the circuit board to the ALSA drivers
and PipeWire graph—ensuring our flagship products meet the high standards of our
brand. As you drive the current product to launch, you will play a key role in defining the
OS strategy and tooling for our future product roadmap.

Advantages
Assets
● Familiarity with HDMI subsystems such as V4L2 and EDID parsing.
● Secure Boot implementation experience.
● Python/Bash scripting for test automation.
● Familiarity with hardware debugging tools such as oscilloscopes and logic
analyzers for interfaces including I2S/TDM, I2C, and SPI.

Responsibilities
Key Responsibilities
● Platform Ownership: Maintain, customize, and optimize the Yocto-based
Linux distribution for NXP i.MX and similar SoCs. You will manage BitBake
recipes, layers, device tree overlays, and secure boot configurations.
● Audio Subsystem Integration: Dive deep into the Linux audio stack. You will
configure ALSA System-on-Chip (ASoC) drivers, debug DAI links (I2S/TDM), and
ensure userspace routing using PipeWire and WirePlumber is robust and glitch-
free.
● Vendor SDK Integration: You will be the expert at merging complex vendor
SDKs (e.g., StreamUnlimited, NXP) with our custom codebase. You will handle
kernel upgrades, resolve upstream conflicts, and patch drivers to support our
specific use cases.
● Hardware Bring-up: Work side-by-side with Electrical Engineers to validate new
boards. Use logic analyzers and oscilloscopes to verify clocks, digital interfaces,
and driver initialization sequences.
● System Reliability & Performance: Act as the lead debugger for complex
system failures. You will use tracing tools such as ftrace, perf, Wireshark, and
LTTng to root-cause latency issues, eliminate XRUNs (audio dropouts), and
optimize boot time and power consumption.

Qualifications
Experience and Qualifications
● 5+ years of Embedded Linux development experience, with substantial
experience in audio or multimedia systems.
● Linux Audio Deep Dive: Expert knowledge of ALSA System-on-Chip (ASoC).
You must be comfortable configuring asound.conf, writing or patching machine
drivers, debugging DAI links (I2S/TDM), and troubleshooting clock
synchronization issues.
● Multimedia Frameworks: Strong experience with GStreamer and/or PipeWire.
You understand how to construct and debug complex graphs, manage buffer
negotiation, and integrate proprietary plugins such as NXP-optimized
components into the pipeline.
● Proprietary Stack Integration: Proven experience integrating binary-only
libraries, proprietary codecs, or DSP components into embedded Linux systems.
Able to troubleshoot ABI/API compatibility, dynamic linking, dependencies,
resource conflicts, and runtime integration issues.
● Experience integrating or maintaining StreamUnlimited StreamSDK or
comparable commercial embedded audio streaming platforms.

● BSP & Build Systems: Expert proficiency with the Yocto Project and BitBake.
You can write recipes, manage layers, and resolve dependencies for custom
images on NXP i.MX platforms.
● System Performance: Ability to root-cause XRUNs (audio dropouts) and latency
jitter. You are proficient with tracing tools such as LTTng, ftrace, perf, and
Wireshark to analyze system behavior.
● Hardware Interface: Ability to read schematics to understand pin muxing and
clock trees.
● Kernel Proficiency: Strong C programming skills for kernel driver development
and patching.

Summary
When Applying
Please include brief responses to the following three questions in your application:
1. Hardware Audio Debugging: Describe a time you had to root-cause an audio
issue (e.g., XRUNs, pops/clicks, channel swapping, or clock drift) in embedded
Linux. What tools (ftrace, logic analyzer, PipeWire graph) did you use, and how
did you resolve it?
2. Vendor SDK Integration: Describe your experience integrating a third-party
audio SDK or vendor kernel drop (e.g., StreamUnlimited, NXP) into a custom
Yocto build. What major compatibility or driver issues did you encounter?
3. Hardware Bring-up: What is your process for validating a new board's digital
audio interface (I2S/TDM) when audio fails to output during initial bring-up?

Randstad Canada is committed to fostering a workforce reflective of all peoples of Canada. As a result, we are committed to developing and implementing strategies to increase the equity, diversity and inclusion within the workplace by examining our internal policies, practices, and systems throughout the entire lifecycle of our workforce, including its recruitment, retention and advancement for all employees. In addition to our deep commitment to respecting human rights, we are dedicated to positive actions to affect change to ensure everyone has full participation in the workforce free from any barriers, systemic or otherwise, especially equity-seeking groups who are usually underrepresented in Canada's workforce, including those who identify as women or non-binary/gender non-conforming; Indigenous or Aboriginal Peoples; persons with disabilities (visible or invisible) and; members of visible minorities, racialized groups and the LGBTQ2+ community.

Randstad Canada is committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive and accessible workplace for all its candidates and employees by supporting their accessibility and accommodation needs throughout the employment lifecycle. We ask that all job applications please identify any accommodation requirements by sending an email to [email protected] to ensure their ability to fully participate in the interview process.

This posting is for existing and upcoming vacancies.