Craig Wenger, Developer in Mesa, AZ, United States

Craig Wenger

Embedded Software Developer

Location
Mesa, AZ, United States
Toptal Member Since
August 21, 2015

Craig has been an active freelance embedded systems engineer for more than a decade. He has extensive experience in embedded system hardware and firmware development on a variety of products including medical, communications, industrial automation, motor control, consumer electronics, and IoT.

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Portfolio

Embedded Engineering Solutions
Embedded Systems, C, IoT Protocols, Bluetooth LE, Xilinx Vivado, Embedded C...
Fortune 100 CPG Company (via Toptal)
Proximity, WiFi, AWS IoT, Embedded C, Embedded Systems, Embedded Software...
Switchmate (via Toptal)
Internet of Things (IoT), WiFi, Bluetooth LE, C, Embedded C, Embedded Systems...

Experience

Software Development - 17 yearsReal-time Systems - 11 yearsEmbedded Systems - 11 yearsEmbedded C - 11 yearsBluetooth - 4 yearsIndustrial Internet of Things (IIoT) - 3 yearsAWS IoT - 2 yearsC++ - 2 years

Location

Mesa, AZ, United States

Availability

Part-time

Preferred Environment

Embedded C, Embedded Systems

The most amazing...

...product I've developed is a three-phase motor drive optimized for solar power applications.

Work Experience

2012 - PRESENT

Principal Engineer

Embedded Engineering Solutions
  • Led a cross-functional contract engineering team ranging from four to 13 engineers completing a variety of projects for multiple customers.
  • Built an electro-mechanical chest compressor product for automated CPR.
  • Developed the test protocol for an embedded medical communication device for remote medical monitoring.
  • Built a motor driver and pressure monitor for a blood pressure cuff for a medical kiosk.
  • Designed a remote battery monitoring device for power monitoring with Azure IoT integration.
  • Worked with a team building a smart pet door with automated controls, cloud integration with Azure IoT, and a mobile app for control.
  • Designed an access control device that used a BLE connection to a mobile device and geofencing functionality to provide an indication of authorization for users to access controlled areas.
  • Worked with a team designing an advanced LED control system driving up to 80 multi-color LEDs with simultaneous color mixing, patterns, and music synchronization.
  • Designed an advanced irrigation control device running embedded Linux.
  • Worked with a team designing an inventory control system with remote devices wirelessly communicating with a central on-site server and database.
Technologies: Embedded Systems, C, IoT Protocols, Bluetooth LE, Xilinx Vivado, Embedded C, Embedded Software, Embedded Hardware, Firmware, Bluetooth, Internet of Things (IoT), ARM Embedded, WiFi, ESP32, FPGA, C#, Embedded Linux, Ubuntu Linux, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Linux, Wireshark, Git, C++, Software Development, Code Composer Studio, MP LABX, Nordic nRF52, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), Nordic nRF51, FreeRTOS, Virtual Machines, Mbed, Object-oriented Design (OOD), Procedural Programming, Functional Programming, ASCII, PIC32, Real-time Operating System (RTOS), Hardware Design, Real-time Embedded Systems, Technology Consulting, Technical Consulting, GATT, STM32, Azure IoT Hub
2019 - 2020

Principle IoT Hardware Engineer

Fortune 100 CPG Company (via Toptal)
  • Built a remote IoT device to monitor product levels in a customized package.
  • Developed a simple user interface to display product levels on a mobile device.
  • Designed cloud support to notify the user of low product levels via text message or app notification.
  • Built a proof-of-concept prototype to demonstrate system functionality.
  • Demonstrated system functionality to relevant stakeholders, including multiple C-level executives.
Technologies: Proximity, WiFi, AWS IoT, Embedded C, Embedded Systems, Embedded Software, Firmware, Bluetooth, Internet of Things (IoT), Bluetooth LE, C, ESP32, Git, Software Development, Nordic nRF52, IoT Protocols, ASCII, Real-time Operating System (RTOS), Hardware Design, Real-time Embedded Systems, Technology Consulting, Technical Consulting
2018 - 2018

Embedded Firmware Engineer

Switchmate (via Toptal)
  • Worked with a team developing a suite of IoT home automation products including light switches, power sockets, cameras, and sensors.
  • Integrated all devices with both a cloud service and mobile devices.
Technologies: Internet of Things (IoT), WiFi, Bluetooth LE, C, Embedded C, Embedded Systems, Embedded Software, Firmware, Bluetooth, ARM Embedded, Git, Software Development, Nordic nRF52, Nordic nRF51, IoT Protocols, ASCII, Real-time Operating System (RTOS), Real-time Embedded Systems, Technology Consulting, Technical Consulting, GATT
2016 - 2017

Embedded Software Developer

WaterGuru, Inc. (via Toptal)
  • Developed low-level functions to support communication over BLE via an external BLE controller.
  • Defined and implemented an encrypted protocol for secure communication.
  • Developed and verified random number generation using hardware entropy sources.
  • Rewrote various functions to improve space efficiency.
  • Implemented a secure, three-way handshaking protocol between the embedded device, mobile device, and server.
Technologies: Instruments, Atmel, Embedded C, Bluetooth LE, Embedded Systems, Embedded Software, Firmware, Bluetooth, Internet of Things (IoT), C, WiFi, Software Development, IoT Protocols, ASCII, Real-time Operating System (RTOS), Real-time Embedded Systems, Technology Consulting, Technical Consulting, GATT
2009 - 2012

Engineering Manager, Industrial Products

Ecotality, Inc.
  • Developed and patented a unique methodology for measuring current on vehicle battery applications.
  • Developed and patented a system for simultaneously charging multiple vehicle battery systems.
  • Built an embedded interface platform that unified multiple independently maintained product platforms.
  • Managed a multi-disciplinary team of engineers to develop new products for the industrial vehicle battery charging market.
  • Developed a multi-site, multi-vehicle battery data monitoring and control system under a Department of Energy contract.
Technologies: Devices, Embedded Systems, Embedded C, Embedded Software, Embedded Hardware, Firmware, C, Wireshark, Software Development, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), ASCII, PIC32, Real-time Operating System (RTOS), Hardware Design, Real-time Embedded Systems, Technology Consulting, Technical Consulting
2008 - 2009

Lead Project Engineer

Power Efficiency Corporation
  • Led a team of engineers developing motor starters and energy-efficient motor drives.
  • Implemented closed-loop control algorithms for output voltage control.
  • Developed a test protocol used to validate all new products and functional changes.
  • Implemented a system of bug tracking and revision control to improve quality and reduce field failures.
  • Worked with the certifying authority to complete all necessary testing for UL certification of the product.
Technologies: Embedded Systems, Embedded C, Embedded Software, Embedded Hardware, Firmware, C, Software Development, MP LABX, PIC32, Real-time Operating System (RTOS), Hardware Design, Real-time Embedded Systems
2008 - 2008

Embedded Systems Engineer

Aegis Technologies
  • Deployed a TCP/IP stack on an embedded encryption platform—used an existing stack customized for the specific needs of the application.
  • Wrote an ARP implementation that was missing from the TCP/IP stack available for the embedded processor in the product.
  • Developed the communication protocol to manage data transfer between two different embedded devices and ensured data integrity while minimizing latency.
  • Developed hardware requirements to ensure compliance with strict electric utility communication protocols.
  • Optimized embedded Java handling and packetization of data for improved throughput and reduced latency.
Technologies: Embedded C, Embedded Java, Embedded Systems, Embedded Software, Embedded Hardware, Firmware, C, Java, Software Development, Real-time Operating System (RTOS), Hardware Design, Real-time Embedded Systems

Experience

Patent for Unique Method of Measuring Current in a Vehicle Battery System

https://www.google.com/patents/CA2775232A1
This patent describes a method I developed for measuring current in a vehicle battery system without the need for a Hall Effect or shunt type measurement device. The method uses a differential voltage measurement from within the existing battery system to calculate both the charge and discharge current.

Patent for Method to Charge Multiple Vehicle Batteries Simultaneously

https://www.google.com/patents/US20120019215
This describes a method for charging multiple vehicle batteries simultaneously and improving the overall efficiency of a given vehicle battery charging system.

Skills

Languages

Embedded C, C, Java, Verilog, VHDL, C#, C++

Paradigms

Real-time Systems, Object-oriented Design (OOD), Procedural Programming, Functional Programming

Platforms

Bluetooth LE, Arduino, AWS IoT, STM32, Particle, Embedded Linux, Eclipse, Linux, Ubuntu Linux, Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Other

Nordic nRF52, Firmware, Microcontrollers, I2C, Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI), Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART), Code Composer Studio, MP LABX, Embedded Systems, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), Bluetooth, Software Development, Embedded Software, Embedded Hardware, ARM Embedded, Electronics, Electrical Engineering, Real-time Operating System (RTOS), Hardware Design, Real-time Embedded Systems, Technology Consulting, Technical Consulting, Xilinx Vivado, Device Drivers, Internet of Things (IoT), ASCII, PIC32, GATT, ESP32, Nordic nRF51, Atmel, Devices, Proximity, Mbed, FreeRTOS, FPGA, Embedded Java, WiFi, Virtual Machines, IoT Protocols

Tools

Azure IoT Hub, Instruments, Git, Wireshark, Azure IoT Suite, VirtualBox

Education

2002 - 2005

Bachelor's Degree in Computer Systems Engineering

Arizona State University - Tempe, AZ