This week, I participated in the midterm review presentations as a guest presenter in the cinemagraph studio. As a result, I only had one period left to work on my walker. In the course of the second period, I tried to fix the issue with the battery drainage issue by using 2 separate motor shields and power sources. Despite my high hopes that this might solve the problem, it did not avail to anything. On the other hand, half way through the period, I found out that one of the batteries exploded and caused a leakage of lead. In respond to this, I decided to change the batteries, but I ran out of time to test out whether this was the source of the drainage problem or not. 

While working on the issue with the electronics, I was also making progress in solving some of the mechanical issues that appeared during my first tests last week. Notably, I changed the configuration of the washers on all four legs to prevent an undesired tightening or loosening of the nuts when the leg is moving. I also changed the way how the legs and motors were secured. Instead of having to add a specific piece to lock the motors in place, I simply inverted the orientation of the screws that were meant to fasten the leg compartments to the superstructure and used them to prevent the motors from moving up and down. By doing so, I improved the functionality of the legs when in motion while adding no further weight to the walker. Furthermore, I also ordered some nylon screws that would be used to reduce the weight of the robot. As for the electronics problem, I arranged a meeting with David via Skype to gain more insight on the matter.