In classic software programming there are a way to split whole code into several parts. In Verilog there is also a technic to do the same. One calls that structural description. It’s like in C language, to talk outside the main function, it’s necessary to have functions. But the difference in this case is that parameters (ports) don’t have to be called in the same order as the module requires. ...
After installing Quartus II command-line interface for Windows you’re ready to play with it. The board used in this tutorial is the DE1 (EP2C20F484C7) with a Cycl0ne II FPGA. The langage will be Verilog. First of all We’re going to create a project from Quartus GUI, write a file in Verilog and just after use the command-line interface (CLI) to make all stuff necessary to have a functional project. Creating a project From Quartus > File New Project Wizard: ...
As I’ve noticed some bugs with the Linux version, I’ve decided to start using Altera Quartus II for Windows. Some examples of bugs: the Altera Simulator doesn’t start when you try to launch it or when you want to set the clock with ModelSim, some windows are not well designed and you can’t see anything. Well, Linux is cool but Windows can be also a good alternative. The Quartus II version is the 13.0.sp1 or simply 13.0.1. ...
After installing and having an introduction to the ModelSim-Altera Starter Edition, it’s time to see a really easy example by coding some lines. This code will be a simple counter with an enable input. Code // easy counter to test ModelSim module hello_model_sim (enable, clock, counter); // declaration input enable; input clock; output reg [7:0] counter; // always always @(posedge clock) begin if (enable) begin counter = counter + 1'b1; end else begin counter = 0; end end endmodule ModelSim wave Let’s see how this code will generate a waveform. First of all, let’s start a general compilation: ...
After installing ModelSim-Altera Starter Edition , what’s better than testing it? This is what we’re going to see in this ModelSim-Altera Starter Edition introduction. To be honest a simulation tool is really complex to handle, so this tutorial will be most an introduction than exhaustive examples. You could use it with any HDL such as VHDL, Verilog or SystemVerilog. Let’s get started. First of all There are two different types of simulation: ...
Simulation in HDL system is essential. One calls that EDA for Electronic Design Automation. It’s like a debugger for a software program. In this tutorial, we’re going to see how to install ModelSim-Altera Starter Edition 10.1d simulation tool. The Quartus II version used in this tutorial is the 13.0.1 Web Edition. Difference between ModelSim and ModelSim-Altera To be honest is not so easy to understand what are differences between ModelSim simulation tools. ...
Blinking a LED, a basic step. But without this first step, there won’t be a second. And without second, no third and so on. This simple tutorial will explain basics in order to program a blinking system. Thus this timer example in Verilog could be seen as an Hello World exercise. Let’s get started. Explanation This tutorial has been made with the Altera DE1 board. In Verilog, every program starts by a module. ...
Every language needs to handle numbers. With Verilog we’re going to see that numbers need to have an explicit base system to avoid errors. Each base system has a radix. This radix is the number of unique digits making up a base system. For example the radix of the hexadecimal system is 16. So all digits of the hexadecimal base are: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, A, B, C, D, E and F. ...
VHDL is one of the most famous design hardware description languages. If you are interested to know how to switch on your first LED in VHDL, let’s get started! For this tutorial we are going to use the Altera DE1 FPGA board. And we’ll switch on LED 0 and 1, to understand how it works. How it works First of all, we have to tells which library and packages to use. ...
It may be possible that one day you said to yourself: “I would like to design my own schematics for my electronic integrated circuits”. But you didn’t know how to start. Let’s see this by learning basics in this Eagle design tutorial. First of all Let’s start by downloading the Eagle software on the official CAD website at the following URL: http://www.cadsoftusa.com/download-eagle/?language=en Then install it, for our tutorial we’ll use the directory: ...