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Engineering Square
Hardware & Robotics

From silicon to cloud.

Engineering Square is not software-only. We do full-stack product engineering — PCB, embedded firmware, mechanical design, and robotics — with the same team that writes your backend and your app. One accountable partner from the board to the dashboard, out of Austin, TX.

01Capabilities

What we build

01

PCB Design & Validation

We take a board from a requirement to a working prototype: schematic capture, layout, and a prototype run, then bring-up and functional testing on our own test rigs. Boards are validated against the firmware that will actually run on them — not signed off on a datasheet — so the first physical unit is a unit you can trust, not a lesson for the second spin.

Schematic capturePCB layoutPrototype runsBoard bring-upFunctional test
02

IoT & Embedded Firmware

We write firmware for RP2040 / Raspberry Pi Pico-class microcontrollers and wireless MCUs — sensor bridges, custom wire protocols, and the plumbing that moves data off the device. Fleets talk to a PostgreSQL and Node backend on our own house stack, and every unit ships OTA-updatable so the firmware keeps improving long after the hardware leaves the bench.

RP2040 / PicoSensor bridgesCustom protocolsDevice↔cloudOTA fleets
03

Mechanical & Industrial Design

The enclosure is engineered alongside the board, not bolted on after. We model in Fusion 360 with design-for-manufacture in mind, then fabricate in-house — FDM 3D printing and CNC machining for prototypes and short production runs, made in Texas. Electronics and mechanicals converge on the first prototype so fit, thermals, and access are solved before tooling.

Fusion 360Enclosure designDFMFDM printingCNC machining
04

Robotics & Automation

We integrate motion — servo and actuator control — and build the embedded systems around it: kiosk and embedded-display deployments on iPad and Android, and workspace-pod automation that senses occupancy, access, and climate and acts on it. The control firmware, the sensors, and the dashboard that watches the fleet are built by the same team, so the loop actually closes.

Motion controlServo / actuatorKiosk systemsEmbedded displaysPod automation
05

From Prototype to Production

This is the part most vendors can't offer: one team writes the firmware, stands up the backend, and ships the web app. You get a single accountable partner from the PCB to the SaaS dashboard — no integration seam between the hardware shop, the firmware contractor, and the app agency, because there isn't one. Prototype, short run, and the software that runs it all come from the same room.

One teamFirmware → cloudShort-run manufacturingMade in TexasSingle partner
02Edge AI

Every device we build is AI-ready

Every board we ship is built to carry intelligence, not just run firmware. Telemetry flows into the same PostgreSQL and Node stack our software team runs, edge models deploy straight to the microcontroller, and OTA updates carry models — not just firmware — to hardware already in the field.

01

Telemetry into the house stack

Every unit reports to a PostgreSQL and Node backend we build and operate — the same stack behind our software work — so device data lands somewhere queryable from the first unit. That is the substrate you train and evaluate models against later.

02

Edge-model deployment

We deploy right-sized models directly to the microcontroller, so the device can perceive and decide on its own. Inference happens where the sensor is — no cloud round trip in the control loop, and no dead device when the network drops.

03

OTA carries models, not just firmware

The OTA pipeline that updates firmware also ships new models to deployed hardware, so a fleet in the field improves without a truck roll. Model versions get the same rollback and staged-rollout discipline as a firmware release.

04

Sensor → model → actuator, on-device

Sensors feed the on-device model and the model drives the actuators in real time — the perception-to-action loop lives in firmware the same team writes. The loop closes because the people building it own every link in it.

03Process

Prototype to production

01

Schematic & CAD

We start from the requirement, not a reference design. Schematic capture, board layout, and mechanical CAD in Fusion 360 develop together, so the electronics and the enclosure are designed to fit on the first prototype rather than reconciled on the third.

02

Prototype & Bring-Up

Boards come back and go straight onto our own test rigs. We bring the hardware up, write firmware against the real silicon, and print or machine enclosures in-house — so a working, testable unit exists before anyone commits to a production run.

03

Firmware & Cloud

The same team wires the device to its backend: custom protocols on the wire, a PostgreSQL and Node pipeline in the cloud, and OTA so the fleet stays updatable after it ships. Telemetry is instrumented from the very first unit, not added once something breaks.

04

Short-Run & Handoff

We manufacture short runs on in-house FDM and CNC for pilots and early production, then hand you a documented, OTA-updatable product. Higher volumes move to a contract manufacturer with our drawings — or we stay on as your embedded and backend team.

04Stack

The bench

Bill of MaterialsQTY: 12
001RP2040 / Pico
002ESP32
003KiCad
004Fusion 360
005FDM 3D Printing
006CNC Machining
007C / C++ / MicroPython
008Node.js
009PostgreSQL
010MQTT
011OTA Updates
012I2C / SPI / UART
05FAQ

Common questions

RefInquirySt.
RFI-001Do you build the hardware and the software, or just one?
Ans.
Both, and that's the point. One team designs the PCB, writes the firmware, stands up the PostgreSQL and Node backend, and ships the web dashboard. You get a single accountable partner from silicon to cloud instead of stitching together a board house, a firmware contractor, and an app agency across three time zones and three invoices.
RFI-002Which microcontroller platforms do you build on?
Ans.
We default to RP2040 / Raspberry Pi Pico-class parts for cost-effective embedded work and ESP32 when built-in Wi-Fi or Bluetooth is needed, and we'll pick a different MCU when power budget, peripherals, or supply chain demands it. Whatever the silicon, the device talks to our house stack — a PostgreSQL and Node backend — over MQTT or a custom protocol we design for the job.
RFI-003Can you actually manufacture, or only prototype?
Ans.
We prototype and run short production in-house: FDM 3D printing and CNC machining here in Texas, so pilots and early units ship without waiting on tooling. When volume outgrows in-house fabrication, we hand a contract manufacturer a documented, production-ready package — drawings, BOM, and firmware — and stay involved so the transfer doesn't lose fidelity.
RFI-004How do devices get updated after they ship?
Ans.
Every fleet we build is OTA-updatable. Devices connect back to their backend over a pipeline we design up front, report telemetry from the first unit, and accept firmware updates in the field — so a bug fix or a new feature reaches deployed hardware without a truck roll. Instrumentation is built in from day one, not retrofitted after something fails silently.
RFI-005Where are you based, and where is the hardware made?
Ans.
Engineering Square is in Austin, Texas, and prototypes and short runs are fabricated in-house in Texas on our own FDM printers and CNC machines. That proximity is deliberate: the people writing the firmware can walk over to the bench where the board is being brought up, which is how first prototypes end up working instead of teaching.
ProjectEngineering Square LLC
Rev2026.07
ScaleEnterprise
SheetHW-01

Let's build it from the board up.

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