Scott Bell

Staff Software Engineer

Rue de Genève 76B, Chêne-Bourg, GE 1225, Switzerland
+1 (832) 715-2652 | +41 76 230 77 21
scott@scottbell.name | github.com/scottbell | linkedin.com/in/scott-bell-a84b184
Work Authorization: US Citizen; Swiss permanent resident (Ci permit)

Professional Summary

Senior Software Engineer with over 20 years of experience designing and building mission-critical systems for NASA, aerospace, and industrial leaders like Baker Hughes, Dow, and Sierra Space. Experience in distributed systems, real-time simulation, and applied AI/ML. Key open-source contributor to ROS, Open MCT, and other foundational technologies. Based in Geneva, Switzerland and working remotely since 2023.

Technical Skills

Languages: JavaScript, Java, Python, C/C++, SQL
AI/ML: LLM Integration (OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini), Prompt Engineering, SHAP, XGBoost, scikit-learn
Frontend: Vue.js, Node.js
Backend: Node.js, Quart (Python framework), REST APIs, WebSockets
Robotics: ROS/ROS 2, rosbridge_suite, roslibjs
DevOps: Docker, AWS, Azure, Maven, npm
Spoken Languages: English (Native), French (B1)

Experience

Staff Software Engineer @ Sonar | September 2025 - Present

Staff Software Engineer @ TRACLabs (Individual Contributor) | August 2021 - September 2025

• NASA Open MCT: Core contributor to NASA's next-generation mission control framework for the VIPER Lunar Rover.
• BioSim Modernization: Led the migration of a legacy life support simulation to Java 21, introducing REST/WebSocket APIs and Docker for modern deployment and integration.
• ADAPT AI System: Developed a novel AI-powered decision support system with a Vue.js frontend and a Python/Quart backend, utilizing XGBoost and SHAP for explainable AI.
• PRL Translator: Created an LLM-based application to automatically convert natural language documents into structured PRL (Procedure Representation Language) XML, reducing procedure author time from hours to minutes.
• ROS 2 Contributions: Resolved critical type-handling bugs in the ROS 2 ecosystem (rosbridge_suite, roslibjs), improving reliability for the wider robotics community.

Senior Software Engineer (Technical Lead) @ TRACLabs | August 2013 - 2021

Led the development of PRIDE, a software suite for automating standard operating procedures, used 24/7 by Fortune 500 companies (e.g., Dow, Baker Hughes), commercial space operators (Sierra Space), and NASA.

• Tech Stack: Node.js, MySQL, Vue.js, hosted on AWS & Azure.
• Leadership: Managed and mentored a team of over 12 frontend and backend developers, driving project execution through code reviews, technical guidance, and agile practices.
• Product Strategy: Prototyped new features, estimated schedules and costs, and planned releases, directly influencing the product roadmap.
• Critical Impact: Resolved critical system issues and coordinated with QA, DevOps, and product teams to ensure high availability for thousands of simultaneous users.
• NASA Missions: PRIDE was utilized by NASA for critical operations, including ISS spacewalks and the X-57 electric aircraft project.

Software Engineer @ TRACLabs | August 2010 - 2013

Led development on integration between NASA's electronic procedure toolkit and NASA's Mission Control Technologies (MCT) software, both Java-based. The goal was to modernize NASA's Mission Control display software for telemetry, procedures, and commanding.

Also led development of PRONTOE, an ontology editor for domain experts. The Java-based tool allowed complex ontology development by non-computer scientists and was used for training astronaut candidates at NASA.

Software Engineer @ S&K Aerospace and NASA Johnson Space Center | August 2002 - 2006

Lead developer on BioSim, a discrete event life support simulation for intelligent control algorithms. The simulation was a test bed for studies ranging from machine learning to reliability theory, used by research institutions including MIT, Rice, Vanderbilt, UIUC, UC, and the NSF.

Earlier Positions | 1996 - 2002

Computer Systems Specialist @ Laboratory for Intelligent Processes and Systems
Research Assistant @ Laboratory for Intelligent Processes and Systems
Internships @ Amazon.com, Sun Microsystems, Applied Research Laboratories
Teaching Assistant @ University of Texas at Austin

Open Source Contributions

• ROS/ROS 2: Fixed critical type handling bugs in rosbridge_suite (#883, #1031) and roslibjs (#638), improving the stability of core ROS tools for the community.
• Open MCT: (github.com/nasa/openmct) Core contributor to NASA's open source mission control framework, used for space mission data visualization.
• BioSim (github.com/scottbell/biosim): Lead maintainer of the open source life support simulation, used in academia and research.

Patents

System and method for executing operations specified in a procedure language
US Patent 10013266 | Issued July 3, 2018

Education

B.S. Computer Science | University of Texas at Austin | 2001

Selected Publications

• David Kortenkamp, Khalid Adil, Scott Bell, et al., "Change Management and Verification of Electronic, Automated Procedures", International Space Operations Conference 2021
• Jason Gabbert, Jeremy Owen, Madeline Devereaux, David Kortenkamp, Scott Bell, et al., "Integrated Mission Operation Concepts for the Dream Chaser Spacecraft", International Space Operations Conference 2020
• Debra Schreckenghost, Scott Bell, David Kortenkamp, and James Kramer, "Procedure Automation: Sharing Work with Users", AAAI Spring Symposium 2018
• Scott Bell, Pete Bonasso, Mark Boddy, David Kortenkamp, and Debra Schreckenghost, "PRONTOE: An Ontology Editor for Domain Experts", Knowledge Discovery, Knowledge Engineering and Knowledge Management, 2015

Full publication list available upon request