How to make an AXI FIFO in block RAM using the ready/valid handshake

I was a little annoyed by the peculiarities of the AXI interface the first time I had to create logic to interface an AXI module. Instead of the regular busy/valid, full/valid, or empty/valid control signals, the AXI interface uses two control signals named “ready” and “valid”. My frustration soon changed to awe.

The AXI interface has built-in flow control without using additional control signals. The rules are easy enough to understand, but there are a few pitfalls one has to account for when implementing the AXI interface on an FPGA.

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How to check if a vector is all zeros or ones

How to check if a vector is all zeros or ones

I know that I have googled this at least a hundred times throughout my career as an FPGA engineer; how to check if all bits in a std_logic_vector signal are ‘0’ or ‘1’. Of course, you know a few ways to do it already, but you want to find the most elegant code that will work with vectors of any length. Right?

Let’s have a look at the best methods for checking that all the bits in a vector are set or unset.

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Dot Matrix LED Controller FPGA course

FPGA course – Everything you need to know about the Dot Matrix VHDL Course

I’m excited to announce that the VHDL and FPGA course that I have been working on for the last six months is starting to become complete. The course is in beta at the moment, and I am planning on launching it for the first time this autumn.

Who is the FPGA course for?

The FPGA course is intended for the developer who has knowledge of other programming languages, but is new to VHDL and FPGAs.

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Constrained Random Verification

Constrained random verification

Constrained random verification is a testbench strategy that relies on generating pseudo-random transactions for the device under test (DUT). The goal is to reach functional coverage of a number of predefined events through random interaction with the DUT.

Open Source VHDL Verification Methodology (OSVVM) is a free VHDL library which includes a number of convenient packages for creating constrained random testbenches. We are particularly interested in the RandomPkg and CoveragePck, which we will be using in this article.

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How to create a ring buffer FIFO in VHDL

How to create a ring buffer FIFO in VHDL

Circular buffers are popular constructs for creating queues in sequential programming languages, but they can also be implemented in hardware. In this article we will create a ring buffer in VHDL to implement a FIFO in block RAM.

There are many design decisions you will have to make when implementing a FIFO. What kind of interface do you need? Are you limited by resources? Should it be resilient to over-read and overwrite? Is latency acceptable?

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What its like working in the defense industry

What it’s like working as an FPGA engineer in the defense industry

FPGA engineers are in high demand throughout the world’s defense industry. Military technology has extreme requirements for reliability and efficiency, things that can be provided by an FPGA.

As an FPGA developer, you will always be working for companies with particular needs, because FPGA development is expensive and difficult. The arms industry has both the need and the money, and therefore employs a lot of FPGA designers.

Based on my master’s thesis,

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Why you need to learn TCL

Why you need to learn Tcl

Tcl is the programming language that goes hand in hand with VHDL. You may choose to learn Verilog instead of VHDL, but you will be exposed to Tcl no matter which HDL you decide to use. That is because most FPGA related programs, such as simulators and synthesis tools, use Tcl in their command shells.

Having a standardized scripting language for software tools is actually very clever. It enables you to transfer your scripting skills from one tool to the next.

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Interactive Testbench using Tcl

Interactive testbench using Tcl

An interactive testbench is a simulator setup where input to the device under test (DUT) is provided by an operator while the testbench is running. Most often, this would mean you entering commands in the simulator console to provide the DUT with stimulus.

While you should always create a self-checking testbench, an interactive testbench can be a nice supplement. It’s easier to perform ad-hoc testing with an interactive testbench at hand, than it is to change the code of the self-checking testbench.

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How to create a self-checking testbench

How to create a self-checking testbench

A self-checking testbench is a VHDL program that verifies the correctness of the device under test (DUT) without relying on an operator to manually inspect the output. The self-checking testbench runs entirely on its own, and prints an “OK” or “Failed” message in the end.

Every VHDL module should have an associated self-checking testbench. It’s important to be able to verify that all modules have the intended behavior at any time. For example,

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Why you always need a testbench

Why you always need a testbench

As most hardware engineers, I started off my computer science career by learning a sequential programming language. The first language I learned at the University of Oslo was Java. While it’s not considered to be the most exciting language today, at the time, Java was at the pinnacle of its popularity.

The engineers who built Java were trying to solve a number of issues which earlier languages were lacking in one blow. Perhaps a wise decision to do a fresh start instead of continuing down the C path and creating C+++.

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