5. FAQ

What is Snowpad?

Snowpad is a microcontroller friendly capacitive multi-touch trackpad. It uses Microchip's latest MTCH6301 capacitive multi-touch controller.

Can I adjust default settings of Snowpad?

Yes of course. Arduino library comes with Snowpad lets a user configure settings of MTCH6301 with ease.

For example, key parameters of MTCH6301 can be setup just by assigning an appropriate values to them. See readsnowpad.ino for a practical example. If you want to understand more about MTCH6301, it is recommended to read Advanced and MTCH6301 data sheet.

// Snowpad configuration

snowpad.mutScanTime = 0x07;

snowpad.mutTouchThres = 0x23;

snowpad.numOfAvg = 0x04;

snowpad.selfScanTime = 0x6;

snowpad.selfTouchThres = 0x28;

snowpad.begin();

Snowpad sometimes gives incorrect touch data or shows unstable performance.

MTCH6301 used in Snowpad takes use of mutual capacitive touch sensing to detect users' touches. This sensing technology is very sensitive to noises from an electric device such as a desktop fluorescent light. In addition, the accompanying Arduino firmware always performs calibration during initial start-up. Considering these, you can take one of followings to resolve your issues.

• Do not touch the sensor for a few seconds when you first power Snowpad.

• Avoid using Snowpad near devices which raises electrical noises around 50~200 kHz.

• Use a stable power supply such as a battery. Microchip's official evaluation board of Snowpad takes these approach to achieve robust performance.

Can I use a different overlay?

Yes. We recommend to use an overlay with thickness of 1mm ~ 3mm.