Research Engineer (m/f/x) on Accessible Augmented Reality

Job description

We are looking for talented Research Engineer with an interest in accessibility and XR technologies, focusing on supporting Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing individuals through Augmented Reality–based remote sign language interpretation.

A 2-year fixed-term full time Research Engineer position is available at the research group at . The position is embedded within the , where this position has close collaborations between CWI, HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht, and the University of Amsterdam. You will be working under the supervision of Dr. (CWI) and Prof. dr. (CWI).

The candidate will be partially embedded at and the at the neighboring University of Amsterdam, working in collaboration with Dr. (HU Utrecht) and Prof. dr. (UvA).

We are seeking a Research Engineer to research, design, and primarily develop inclusive Augmented Reality and XR technologies for remote sign language interpretation. The role focuses on technical HCI challenges in accessible immersive communication, including real-time AR interaction, spatial presentation of interpreters, adaptive visual interfaces, and multimodal feedback for deaf and hard-of-hearing users.

The successful candidate will build AR/XR prototypes for remote interpretation scenarios, with emphasis on interaction techniques for AR glasses and immersive environments. The work may involve spatial anchoring of interpreter views, attention guidance, gaze- and context-aware interfaces, latency-aware communication design, and integration of visual, spatial, and haptic feedback.

The position combines research engineering, prototyping, and empirical evaluation. Activities will have a strong technical development focus of implementing XR systems, but may also involve designing controlled user studies, measuring usability and communication effectiveness, and translating findings into technical design guidelines and reusable interaction frameworks for accessible immersive technologies.

Topics of interests include:

• Accessible XR Interaction Techniques: Designing and implementing AR/XR interfaces that support accessible communication for deaf and hard-of-hearing users.
• Remote Sign Language Interpretation in AR: Developing technical approaches for placing, scaling, anchoring, and managing interpreter representations in the user’s real-world environment.
• Multimodal Feedback and Attention Guidance: Exploring visual, spatial, gaze-based, haptic, and/or contextual cues to support awareness, turn-taking, speaker identification, and communication flow.
• Adaptive and Context-Aware AR Interfaces: Building systems that respond to user context, task demands, environment, and communication dynamics in real-time.
• Evaluation of Immersive Accessibility Technologies: Studying usability, cognitive load, latency, immersion, and communication effectiveness in controlled and realistic XR scenarios.

Requirements

Depending on the specific topic of interest, candidates are required to have completed their master’s degree in computer science, human-computer interaction, industrial design engineering, electrical engineering, cognitive science, or a related field. We specifically seek candidates with a strong interest in XR technologies for accessibility. Ideally, the candidate has worked already on topics for supporting Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing individuals. Having existing publications in top HCI venues such as CHI, UIST, ASSETS, or related venues, is a plus.

Needed qualifications for candidates include proven research talent, strong technical background, and good academic writing and presentation skills. Candidates are expected to have an excellent command of English.

Terms and conditions

The terms of employment are in accordance with the Dutch Collective Labour Agreement for Research Centres ("CAO-onderzoeksinstellingen"). The gross monthly salary for an employee on a full time basis, depending on relevant work experience, ranges from € 3.630 to € 5.758. The appointment will be for a period of two years.

Employees are also entitled to a holiday allowance of 8% of the gross annual salary and a year-end bonus of 8.33%. CWI offers attractive working conditions, including flexible scheduling.

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