Gadget Factory

FPGA

  • Make a CPLD module yourself!

    A CPLD (Complex Programme Logic Device) is a very useful tool in the hands of a techie. Their complexity comes between a PALs and an FPGA, and architectural features of both. As implied by its name, these chips can be programmed to meet the logic functions that suit your needs. In this amazing tutorial, Bill…

  • Vintage BBC computer gets FPGA buddies

    We still have some retro for the old-school enthusiasts. Many of you knew about the BBC Microcomputer System. It was an innovative machine created during the 1980s. It is possible to link the BBC Micro to an FPGA board, following specific designs, via a tube interface. You can find out more about the BBC Micro in the video,…

  • MYSTERY FPGA CIRCUIT FEELS THE PRESSURE

    In order to interact with an FPGA board, a user usually presses a button. Is that the only way to interact? Not so sure. A video from Clifford Wolf shows us otherwise. It’s quite intriguing! The Verilog implements a simple ring oscillator (basically an inverter with its output tied to its input). Via Hackaday

  • Learning Verilog for FPGAs: Flip Flops

      Creating an adder on Verilog and putting it into an FPGA board can be done in various ways: With or without clocks.  A very detailed and thorough tutorial explains how to use clocked elements to verify whether the adder has ever generated a carry as well as a few counters. Using clocks avoids getting glitches and…

  • Papilio DUO on Signal Path RGB Clock

    On his Youtube channel Signal Path presents a nice RGB Clock controlled by a Papilio DUO

  • Open source FPGA toolchain builds CPU

    Ever wondered if you could run a J1a CPU on an FPGA using only open source hardware? This is possible using these three open source tools: an Open Source Forth kernel, SwapForth running on an Open Source CPU, the J1a built using an entirely Open Source FPGA toolchain, IceStorm When you develop software, you need some…

  • An Open Source Toolchain For iCE40 FPGAs

    This is a positive first step towards an open source toolchain for FPGA’s. Hopefully we will see something for Xilinx FPGA’s as well. We can always dream that Xilinx will open the format! After months of work, and based on the previous work of [Clifford Wolf] and [Mathias Lasser], [Cotton Seed] has released a fully…

  • The Oldland CPU 32-bit FPGA Core

    Here is a promising looking Soft Processor core available on OpenCores.com. It looks like it has some nice simulation and debugging tools built in – as well as a C toolchain. Included with the package is oldland-rtlsim, which lets you simulate the processor on a PC. The oldland-debug tool lets you connect to the processor for…