Jon Richards

Experience

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  International Meta Systems

  Jan 1987 - Jan 1989

  Software Engineer

  This was my first real engineering job. Worked on developing a FORTRAN compiler and various software that ran on a special computer developed by the company. I got to write programs in assembly and machine code!

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  Terra-Mar

  Jul 1992 - Jul 1999

  Senior Software Engineer

  At Terra-Mar we developed complete systems for creating very detailed orthophotography. I designed and developed a complete turn-key system. The system comprised hardware and software for taking very high precision photographs, digital and film, from an airplane. Later these pictures would be processed, by software I developed, to create very precise mosaic pictures of large areas. You could view these picture on a computer, point to any point on the ground, and know the lat/lon within several feet of accuracy.I also developed a system for SRI in Menlo Park. The system read in and geo-corrected data from their ground penetrating radar. The system also controlled a FLIR camera on a gimbal and 3 very high definition Kodak cameras. Terra-Mar was a fun job. I got to work with a lot of different computers (Linux and Windows) as well as a lot of hardware devices (cameras, FLIR, GPS, robotic controls). Show less

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  Ecofront Pty Ltd

  Jan 1998 - Jul 2002

  Lead Senior Software/Hardware Engineer

  Ecofront, Formerly Argyle Home Technologies, was in Tokyo. I schemed up new ideas and developed home automation systems that operate over the Internet. Occasionally I traveled to Tokyo, but most of my work was done remotely from California.- Conceived and developed home automation systems with combination of off-the-shelf and custom hardware using JavaScript, C, C++, and Linux, resulting in deployments to 8000+ Tokyo apartments.- Developed custom mobile applications in JavaScript running on early Japanese internet enabled phones, creating one of first home automation controllers controlled online. Show less

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  Grok Software

  Jan 2000 - Jan 2003

  VP Of Engineering, Senior Software Engineer

  - Managed team of 3 developers to create thin client desktop app using C and C++, enabling development of custom internet applications.- Demonstrated to 8 potential investors and VCs, allowing team to tailor app to address investor concerns.

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  Nokia

  Jul 2005 - Jan 2006

  Senior Software Engineer

  - Developed backend services for Nokia's mobile internet gaming platform using C and PERL, allowing backend services to keep up to date with mobile gaming applications.

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  High Country Tek, Inc.

  Jul 2006 - Jul 2008

  Senior Software Engineer

  - Developed Windows PC applications to interface with hydraulic controls using C and C#, allowing customers to easily control large hydraulic systems.- Migrated existing base code from Labview, replacing it with more standard C and C# desktop applications, increasing development speed and decreasing bugs by and 2X.- Created custom firmware update method using handheld computer and serial cable, allowing updates to be performed in field up to 10X faster than previous methods.

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  SETI Institute

  Jul 2008 - Sept 2019

  Senior Software Engineer

  Head of SETI operations at the Allen Telescope Array. I operated the world's longest ongoing search for signals from ET! Software and hardware development, scheduling, repair, system improvements. I searched for ET radio signals for 11 years and did not detect any!- Developed and operated radio signal search using 42 large radio receiving dishes resulting in observing for 12 hours day, 360 days year using Linux, Unix, FPGAs, and high speed networking.- Created applications and procedures tracking 100s of satellites and spacecraft and recording radio data using custom systems written in Linux, C, and C++.- Achieved 3X overall system efficiency improvement by optimizing network strategies and developing custom applications in C, C++, Java, and Ruby.- Coordinated with team of astronomers to plan observation schedules by conducting progress meetings.- Built and maintained public facing website using JavaScript, Node.js, and Redis which kept team and 2,000+ members informed on program progress.- Maintained system software by continually monitoring and optimizing bottlenecks for 100% system up-time. Show less

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  Bramson Welch and Associates

  Jan 2011 - now

  Senior Software Engineer

  Developing Bluetooth and firmware solutions for iOS, Android and embedded devices. C/C++/Java/Swift/Python. Arm based embedded development

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  JDRichards

  Sept 2011 - Jun 2022

  Senior Software Engineer

  Contractor at Bramson, Welch and Associates, Berkeley, CA- Developed 5 Android applications and 3 libraries for testing Bluetooth and Nfc enabled medical devices using Java, C, and Android Studio, improving product reliability, projected to be used by 1+ million users.- Experimented with multiple BLE connection strategies using Bluetooth sniffer and Android logs, resulting in 2X connection speed increase between medical devices and Android phones.- Engineered Android low level device drivers in Java, creating Android library that allows 3rd party apps to attach to custom embedded devices over USB.- Ported custom security code to Java and C using Android NDK, building library for very secure communication with medical devices over Bluetooth.- Developed and debugged embedded ARM based embedded devices using C and IAR Embedded Workbench, creating optimal operability with Android devices. Show less

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  Trilogy Education

  Sept 2020 - Jun 2022

  Data Analytics Instructor

  Leading a 6 month course in data analytics and data visualization for UC Berkeley Extension. Teaching Python, Pandas, Matplotlib, SQL, Javascipt, and more. All remote via Zoom. 23 students. It's fun! This is part-time - I am still consulting full time.

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  SETI Institute

  Jan 2021 - Jun 2022

  Senior Software Engineer

  Exploring techniques and developing software to obtain and analyze radio astronomy data related to quantum mechanics.

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  Microchip Technology Inc.

  Jun 2022 - Mar 2023

  Principle Applications Engineer

  Supporting Microchip NAND controller technology.