Hsuan Han Lai (Edward Lai)

Product Engineer Lead at Vibe Inc., driven by a curious mind and a passionate heart.

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a joyful holiday season!
As 2024 comes to a close, I am approaching my five-year anniversary at Vibe as a Product Engineer in Innovation and Products. This period has marked a significant transition for me, as I have taken on increasing responsibilities in leading a growing engineering team.

My experience so far has been phenomenal. I feel incredibly fortunate to have a job that I truly enjoy. I am constantly learning new things, solving challenging technical problems, and making innovative projects possible. Below are some of the highlights of the past year, categorized into several sections, along with reflections on personal challenges in leadership and plans for moving forward.

This post is quite personal, but I welcome any questions or advice you may have. 😊

Achievements at Work

People

  • Establishing a new engineering team for a new project. Expanded the team’s skill set and diversity through strategic hiring.
  • Developed a personalized mentorship approach to support and guide new team members.
  • Achieved a high retention rate among new hires, building a positive and engaging team environment.

Prototyping and Innovation

  • Rapidly evaluated software and hardware, trying out new designs and innovations by creating couple prototypes, accelerating the engineering validation process. Drive new innovations forward.

Software Development

  • Integrated custom audio pipeline with ChromiumOS Audio Service call ADHD/CRAS.
  • AI powered de-noising techniques optimizing speech quality.
  • Implemented metrics logging and visualization of audio performance metrics in production feedback.
  • Implemented hardware drivers, and BSPs(Board Support Package) for projects.
  • Chromium OS firmware engineering and development process.
  • Getting better at USB development and debugging, implementing UAC and custom vendor specific protocol.

Hardware Development

  • Redesigned hardware architecture and prototyped new EE/ME solutions for two products: a new AI camera now in mass production and another at the EVT stage.
  • Continuously improved product design through multi-domain problem-solving skills.
  • Enhanced Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and Design for Assembly (DFA) practices, significantly improving reliability and optimizing costs.
  • Solved thermal management challenges in miniature products by performing finite analysis on thermal performance and refining hardware designs.
  • Gained a deeper understanding of manufacturing processes like plastic/metal molding, CNC, and CMF design practices.
  • Accelerated engineering evaluation cycles, enabling quicker problem resolution, faster prototyping, and more efficient assessment of improvements.
  • Gained extensive experience in hardware acoustics design and audio testing, resulting in better and more reliable audio products.
  • Achieved excellent manufacturing production yield rates by introducing audio testing algorithms and custom test rigs for manufacture. Guarantee the uniformity of built product.
  • Achieved Zoom certification for the product, ensuring that both audio and video quality meet industry standards.

Personal Development

  • Enhanced my EE/ME CAD skills by tackling larger and more complex projects, empowering me to create virtually anything I envision.
  • Explored robotics extensively, mastering kinematics and dynamics, and successfully designed and built a 7-DOF robot arm from scratch, covering everything from electrical engineering to mechanical engineering to planning algorithms.
  • Integrated custom robotic hardware with ROS MoveIt, deepening my understanding of ROS2, ros_control, ros_controller custom modules.
  • Explored FPGA development with the AMD KR260 board, gaining experience in both PS and PL development. Delved into hardware-accelerated AI design and robotic integration using FPGAs. Mostly learning to develop on FPGAs.
  • Continuously learning signal processing and control theory to enhance my work in speech processing and robotics control and systems.
  • Established “Ed’s Lab” and online shop for creating engaging fun weekend projects.
  • Began blogging about my journey, sharing insights and experiences with the broader community.
  • Access to better production and manufacturing resources to bring any idea to life, including a PCB fabrication house for low-quantity production, Industrial SLS 3D printers, CNC machines (4-5 axis), high-power laser cutters, and aluminum extrusions.

Reflection on Work-Life Balance

People often ask how I manage to excel at work while also dedicating time to personal development and projects. Here are some key insights and areas I am continuously improving:

Find What You Love

  • Treat your work like a hobby. When you enjoy what you do, it doesn’t feel like a chore. This mindset applies to my off-work projects as well. I am truly fortunate to have found a job that I love.

Managing Stress and Burnout

Recently, I have experienced more stress and burnout due to increased responsibilities and projects. I am actively working on finding a better work-life balance and managing myself more effectively:

  • Prioritizing rest has become increasingly important. Adequate rest often leads to clearer thinking and better problem-solving.
  • Regular exercise is essential for maintaining both work performance and a healthy body. It helps me stay energized and focused.
  • I value my work a lot and always strive to give my best. However, I recently realized that no one has ever complained about me “not working hard or good enough”. Even my boss, the CEO, has encouraged me to prioritize my health, emphasizing its importance. This made me understand that I may have been prioritizing work too much. There is always an endless amount of work. Identify the most important tasks, focus on those, pick the most improtant 20% tasks. Focus on those. And automate processes whenever possible to improve the process and efficiency.

Reflections on Leadership

Over the past few years, I have dedicated myself to becoming a better technical engineer, but less being a better leader. While my technical skills have grown significantly, I recognize that my leadership abilities must evolve as my team continues to expand. Managing a growing team requires new strategies and approaches. Balancing technical expertise with effective leadership is an ongoing journey. I am committed to continuous improvement and finding my unique leadership style.

Future Goals

Company Level

  • Refine the creative process for building innovative products by collaborating on strategic planning and decision-making to drive team success.
    • By develop a collective decision-making process that involves each engineer and clarifies the “why” behind our actions.
  • Foster an inclusive environment where team members feel comfortable voicing their ideas and concerns.
  • Enhance strategic thinking to strengthen new product ideas.

Team Level

  • Enhance leadership skills through targeted training and mentorship.
  • Recognize and celebrate the contributions of all team members.
  • Hold regular one-on-one meetings with team members and managers to discuss project progress, challenges, and feedback. Understand their perspectives and improve my leadership style.

Conclusion

Reflecting on the past year, I am proud of the significant achievements and personal growth I have experienced. From developing innovative hardware and software solutions to establishing a new engineering team, the journey has been both challenging and rewarding.

I am learning the importance of balancing technical expertise with effective leadership, and I am committed to continuous improvement in both areas. There are plenty of ways for me to grow and learn still, and plenty left to achieve. I am excited about the opportunities for further innovation, personal development, and making a meaningful impact through our work at Vibe.

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