Difference between revisions of "Using FPGA"

1. Starting Up with FPGA

All you need to know to play with the Armadeus FPGA.

Design Tools

Description of tools used to simulate, to synthesize, and to download/configure FGPA.

Xilinx

• ISE WebPack (Xilinx's free devt tool) installation
• Vivado installation on Linux
• How to setup the FPGA toolchain in Ubuntu/Debian
• How to simulate post synthesis and post place & route design with GHDL

Altera

• Quartus Web edition (Altera's free devt tool)

2. Make some examples

These examples give the basis to make VHDL design for FPGA.

• LED
• Complete example with button and led on wishbone bus communication and Linux drivers

Using Armadeus FPGA

Manage the FPGA from Armadeus distribution.

• Configure or flash FPGA ?
• Configure the FPGA from Linux, from U-Boot, from PCIe.
• Flashing FPGA firmware from Linux, from U-Boot
• Access the FPGA address domain from Linux
• Ho! No FPGA-reset button on armadeus card.

3. Automatize FPGA design making

Peripherals On Demand

For complex projects, POD should be used to simplify design.

Migen

With migen, it's possible to develop FPGA design in Python then generate Verilog for synthezis.

VHDL

• VHDL coding styles & externals documentations
• Nice ideas/examples to look at
• www.opencores.org
• An Introductory VHDL Tutorial

FPGA Interface

• APF9328 : IMX9328-Spartan3 interface description
• APF27 : IMX27-Spartan3A interface description
• APF51 : IMX51-Spartan6 interface description
• APF6SP:
  • IMX6-CycloneV interface description (PCIe)
  • DDR3-CycloneV interface description
  • Pinout on apf6sp hirose connector

Links

Some useful links.

Wishbone

• official Wishbone specifications
• Wikipedia Wishbone doc

Spartan

• Spartan-3 FPGA Family Data Sheet

Orchestra

• Orchestra website
• Orchestra project page