This week, I focused on building the 9×9 grid, which consists of a 9-inch by 9-inch piece of wood layered with copper foil tape and cardstock. I was able to connect both MPR121 and get them to read values accurately when separated. However, I didn’t initially account for the warping of the cardstock, which resulted in a non-flush integration of the materials. This caused inconsistent sensitivity and readings on the lower layer.
To address this for the interim demo, I decided to keep both grids as separate entities. In response to the warping issue, I also designed a potential enclosure to house the components and ordered acrylic sheets, as acrylic is more resistant to warping than wood. Additionally, I am considering 3D printing clamps to better secure and flatten the layered materials.
With regards to code, I modularized it a little bit more and stored the rows and cols being read as variables that can be used for other parts of the code. I also made it so although I am using interrupts, in order to not oversaturate the number of inputs, it checks this interrupt every couple of seconds (adjustable) leading to a lot cleaner results.