1 reply to this topic

[jamesbuchanan]

Hi, I'm very interested in homebrew CPUs (e.g. http://www.homebrewcpu.org) and building things with microcontrollers. I'd like to experiment and design a CPU of some kind, perhaps a 16-bit RISC, and write software for it.

I've been looking around and apparently it might be possible to pack a 64-bit RISC CPU on a big FPGA. Perhaps it wouldn't have the caches of commercial RISCs like the PowerPC G5, and maybe even lack an FPU, but that's pretty exciting.

Where do I start with FPGAs? I'm not an electrical engineer, nor do I have even a basic education in electronics. I know the basics of digital design from my BSCS courses, but that's all.

What FPGAs should I look at, and what equipment and tools do I need to work with them, aside from the software that programs them (I mean, boards and other bits of hardware)?

Thanks for your help.

[David Pellerin]

Hello James,

There are many resources out there, including various providers of hardware and software tools. Google "FPGA development boards" for starters. Many hobbyists and experimenters seem to like the boards from XESS. Memec is another (much larger) supplier of boards and systems.

If you are looking for ideas on processor design in an FPGA, there is a discussion (news) group at comp.arch.fpga, with a FAQ at www.fpga-faq.org.

In addition, Xilinx, Altera, Lattice and Actel all have active educational efforts and free downloadable software tools. If you are looking for information in the form of a book, Clive Maxfield's The Design Warrior's Guide to FPGAs might be a good place to start, though it does assume some limited knowledge of hardware design.

David Pellerin