While I do have a working system, I still am not done with the project - I'd like to ditch the Arduino and use a PIC or AVR to drive the motor. I'd also like to get the entire assembly mounted in a more gauge like enclosure. Something that would look...
Did a preliminary BOM today and selected a few key components, incl. the Spartan 6 variant I'd like to use and the SDRAM and Flash devices (may go with a BGA SP6 package with more IO...no risk yet to the design, regardless of what I choose). All...
For those interested, I setup a working directory on git for this project (https://github.com/sfgit/FPGA_Arduino_Shield). I've uploaded a few libraries today also for the FPs and a !very! generic PCB (just the imported board shape and some parts...
Realizing I've got heaps of room on this board, I've gone ahead and tweaked my choice of Flash memory. In this case, I'm still doing SPI programming of the FPGA, though using a Spansion part (at least for prototypes...I'll try and cost this down...
As the project unfolds, I've planned to produce some content - could be a video, could be a doc - that details the process I'm going thru. The first video in that series is posted now on YouTube and available for viewing at: This video really...
Completed the first part of the FPGA wiring for Master Serial / SPI mode - i.e. configuring the FPGA from SPI flash. Created a video that details some of the nuances and aims to explain the wiring in the schematic a bit. Files uploaded to...
FPGA decoupling can be tricky to sort out without some guidance. Thankfully, Xilinx provides a pretty comprehensive PCB Layout guide that has specific recommendations for decoupling schemas for the PCB, based on specific parts and pin counts. I...
Uploaded a heap of stuff to git. Working on video now. This includes two layers of top level documents that show sheet to sheet connectivity between SPI and the FPGA and also have the breakout for the FPGA IO and other various items. Added...
Updated the schematic over the weekend to clean up the wiring and group signals, sheets, etc. more intelligently. A new version of the source files and a PDF can be found on the git repository. A direct link to download the PDF can be...
Uploaded video no. 3 explaining the schematic overhaul, JTAG wiring (w/ a little background on JTAG - though focused on the implementation), and discussing the decoupling. For a detailed discussion of JTAG, I suggest having a look at...
Made a number of little tweaks this weekend and uploaded a new SRAM document, new SPI multiplexer doc, made tweaks to the top level to integrate these elements and just finalizing some bits here and there. Complete details in github. See...
Uploaded the power supply design to git hub today. The supply is laid out in a way to allow either driving the system from the Arduino's 5V supply or using an external power adapter. The Arduino's 3V3 supply is tiny (very little current,...
Released a complete collection of manufacturing outputs including Gerber, NC Drill, ODB++, Testpoint files, & Pick and Place. All of these are for building proper prototypes. Expect to have boards in 5 days. 2 Days for assembly, a day...
I went ahead and added feedback from the fpga DONE pin via the addition of a status LED. Also added a jumper that enables that feedback to be sent back to the Arduino board. The jumper gives the option to route the DONE pin to the Arduino...
Got boards back from Advanced Circuits today. Look good. Really like the finish on them. They did a good job and boards came back on time (a little early actually) with a bag of microwave popcorn included. :) Mmmm...popcorn....