electronics, bench testing, programming infrastructure teams
mentors: ethan swint, greg stevenson, nick vasquez
tools: python (pandas, numpy, inventree, streamlit), kicad
company website
intro
Tau Motors is a technology startup focused on developing software-defined power conversion systems designed to accelerate global electrification and reduce environmental impact. The company applies this core technology to build highly efficient, rare-earth-free powertrains (i.e. using electromagnets on both rotor and stator sides instead of permanent magnets on one side), modular power converters, and advanced grid support systems that address complex global motion, power, and energy demands.
board development/testing
At Tau, I focused on the end-to-end development of PCBs for both motor power electronics and bench-testing infrastructure. My hands-on work ranged from executing precision surface-mount and through-hole soldering to installing components and validating system functionalities directly on the motor testbench. In addition, I helped “quick-fix” board designs in KiCAD and streamlined our PCB fabrication infrastructure.
Due to a strict NDA, I cannot share specific photos or schematics of these boards. However, I am always happy to discuss the high-level engineering challenges and problem-solving strategies involved in my work!
inventory system
Beyond PCB development, I architected and established Tau’s comprehensive inventory management system. I organized and documented our entire parts catalog, migrating it into a custom Python-based platform I built from scratch. This centralized system streamlined stock tracking, eliminated supply bottlenecks, and ultimately accelerated our hardware prototyping cycles.
acknowledgements
Tau team photo, August 2023
Thank you to the whole Tau team for summers of philosophical debates, pineapples on pizza, and El Gru tacos. In particular, Greg Stevenson, Ethan Swint, and Nick Vasquez taught me many engineering, organization, and life skills; thank you also to Zach Jones and Wes Pennington for allowing me the opportunity to work with such a wonderful group!