Joint hardware/software design. Open-source hardware for embedded systems

Course :

• SoC. Codesign.
• State of the art technology.
• IP blocks and virtual components.
• Hardware-software partitioning.
• Description of codesign implementation with the Quartus Prime tool from Intel (formerly Altera).
• Description of codesign implementation with AMD's Vivado tool (formerly Xilinx).

TP :

• Grand TP1: Quartus Prime tool from Intel :
  • Codesign implementation on a Terasic DE10-Standard board with Quartus Prime.
  • Construction of a first SoPC with the NIOS II softcore processor in the Intel Cyclone V FPGA circuit.
  • Construction of a second SoPC with an additional VGA interface.
  • Programming with the C language.
  • Implementation of the µC/OS Real Time kernel II.
  • Software testing of SoPC hardware peripherals without an operating system (bare-metal), then with the µC/OS II Real-Time kernel.
  • Miniprojects (stopwatch, clock).

• Grand TP2: AMD's Vivado tool:
  • Implementation of codesign on a Digilent ZedBoard with Vivado HLS.
  • Building a SoPC with the ARM Cortex-A9 hardcore processor in the AMD Zynq FPGA circuit.
  • Development in VHDL RTL and integration of a free hardware device (64-bit counter IP block).
  • Programming in C language.
  • Implementation of the Xenomai Cobalt hard real-time Linux extension. Programming with the native API.
  • Software testing of the hardware device created in VHDL RTL under embedded Linux, then under Linux Xenomai Cobalt.
  • Real-time performance and latency measurement.

• Grand TP3: AMD's Vivado tool:
  • This tutorial links up with the "Advanced digital design float" EN325 course, where HLS high-level synthesis is studied.
  • Implementation of HLS high-level synthesis on a Digilent ZedBoard with Vivado.
  • Creation of an algorithm written in C language (polynomial function).
  • HLS synthesis of the algorithm to create an IP block.
  • Construction of a SoPC with the ARM Cortex-A9 hardcore processor in the AMD Zynq FPGA circuit integrating the IP block obtained by HLS.
  • Programming in C language.
  • Software testing of the hardware device created in HLS under embedded Linux.

VHDL language, FPGA circuits, AMD Vivado tool, Intel Quartus Prime tool, C language, Linux, Linux commands, system programming, embedded Linux, Real-Time.

Handouts