Process VGA without Frame Buffers using FPGA

Hello explorers of the FPGA Kingdom! Today’s project digs into the scope of FPGA as a tool that can replace conventional techniques further. VGA or video processing through conventional means requires a frame buffer which stores a block of data regarding pixel information in the system RAM for video display which is transferred to the display device at the right time using real time means. FPGAs can replace these frame buffers in a novel way such that the system RAM utilized for this remains free at the cost of a little more real time computation.

The developers used a DE2-115 FPGA board along with a Wolfson Audio Codec to animate 4 characters on the screen such that they appear to be dancing to the beats of the music played. Apart from those hardware elements, a monitor (graphics module) was used.

The coding was done by the developers using MATLAB since the project requires the use of filters through DFT and MATLAB has functions readily available for this. THE DFT is used to filter out the lowest frequency component (which will be the percussions or beats) and then calculate the interval at which this repeats. Once this information is obtained, the music is passed on from the ADC of the Codec to the monitor through the FPGA for animation.

The graphics on screen are programmed in modules such as a “head” file, a “body” file, an “arms” file, and a “legs” file which induce movements to the body parts depending upon the information processed by the FPGA from the rhythm of the music played. For a detailed explanation regarding the project, design, testing and systems integration you can visit the developers’ page here.

The result of this project can be seen here.

Though the project is not a replacement to the fast and efficient way of processing VGA through Frame buffers, it certainly explores the academic value and versatility of the FPGA as a tool that can be used for multiple purposes.

By C. Archard and N. Levy