Professor
Robert Shaefer
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Most Helpful Review
Spring 2020 - This is not a class you take for the actual class material (it was all online due to covid and the "labs" were just completing tutorials/guided exercises from an online tool, SolidProfessor), but rather for Prof. Shaefer's delightful personality. He clearly cared about each student in the 60-something person class, and took the time to give extensive feedback even if what we were doing was relatively simple. The format of this class, at least online, was a lecture on the first day of the week and then two lab sections "led" by the TAs (the TA's actually don't really do much besides answer questions). Lab attendance was essentially optional; all you do is go onto SolidProfessor, watch a series of tutorial videos, and complete 2-5 practice exercises. The practice exercises usually take longer than the allotted 2 hours (there was one lab that took me 10 hours) so you're expected to finish them outside of class. The only advantage of going to the (zoom) lab is that you can ask questions to the TA's/your classmates. Some of the exercises were tedious especially later in the SolidProfessor course (weeks 4-7) but weeks 8, 9, 10 were all spent on the final project. Don't expect to do a lot of CAD modeling for the final project but prepare to do a lot of documentation and writing. Overall, this was a solid class (no pun intended) and recommend taking it.
Spring 2020 - This is not a class you take for the actual class material (it was all online due to covid and the "labs" were just completing tutorials/guided exercises from an online tool, SolidProfessor), but rather for Prof. Shaefer's delightful personality. He clearly cared about each student in the 60-something person class, and took the time to give extensive feedback even if what we were doing was relatively simple. The format of this class, at least online, was a lecture on the first day of the week and then two lab sections "led" by the TAs (the TA's actually don't really do much besides answer questions). Lab attendance was essentially optional; all you do is go onto SolidProfessor, watch a series of tutorial videos, and complete 2-5 practice exercises. The practice exercises usually take longer than the allotted 2 hours (there was one lab that took me 10 hours) so you're expected to finish them outside of class. The only advantage of going to the (zoom) lab is that you can ask questions to the TA's/your classmates. Some of the exercises were tedious especially later in the SolidProfessor course (weeks 4-7) but weeks 8, 9, 10 were all spent on the final project. Don't expect to do a lot of CAD modeling for the final project but prepare to do a lot of documentation and writing. Overall, this was a solid class (no pun intended) and recommend taking it.
Most Helpful Review
I don't know why a fusion researcher would be the professor of a mechanical product design class. This quarter's pre-determined project was to fabricate a can-crusher. His lectures were boring to most students, and luckily they lasted at most 90 minutes. Instead of talking about theory, he should have lectured about the different materials and mechanical applications which are relevant to our projects, not derive the power screw equation. His meetings with the group were useless half of the time. Sometimes he would have no idea what out project is about and then ask random questions like "Do you have the torque-speed curve?" or "Did you buy your motor from Apex?" Much of what is "learned" in this class is through machining and through trial and error. Shaefer only gives you advice. His motto is "I believe that students teach themselves and that the professor’s primary function is to guide the students." If you ask him about specific machining questions, he will direct you to the TA or Anatoly. He can only give you advice on whether your design is manufacturable, so after the design stage, he is virtually useless. Luckily, he has simplified the projects in the past years, as in the past more challenging projects such as a lawn mower and other complex electro-mechanical machines were demanded. Also luckily, even if your project fails during the product demonstration, you still have a chance at an A. He is also very lenient on grading the reports (as long as you label your figures,) which makes up a significant portion of your final grade.
I don't know why a fusion researcher would be the professor of a mechanical product design class. This quarter's pre-determined project was to fabricate a can-crusher. His lectures were boring to most students, and luckily they lasted at most 90 minutes. Instead of talking about theory, he should have lectured about the different materials and mechanical applications which are relevant to our projects, not derive the power screw equation. His meetings with the group were useless half of the time. Sometimes he would have no idea what out project is about and then ask random questions like "Do you have the torque-speed curve?" or "Did you buy your motor from Apex?" Much of what is "learned" in this class is through machining and through trial and error. Shaefer only gives you advice. His motto is "I believe that students teach themselves and that the professor’s primary function is to guide the students." If you ask him about specific machining questions, he will direct you to the TA or Anatoly. He can only give you advice on whether your design is manufacturable, so after the design stage, he is virtually useless. Luckily, he has simplified the projects in the past years, as in the past more challenging projects such as a lawn mower and other complex electro-mechanical machines were demanded. Also luckily, even if your project fails during the product demonstration, you still have a chance at an A. He is also very lenient on grading the reports (as long as you label your figures,) which makes up a significant portion of your final grade.
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