Compatibility of Zynq 7010 for project.

[JackWoolford]

Hi everyone,

So I originally asked Andrew Back this on Twitter and I think because I mentioned I wanted to go as open source as possible he suggested the Parallella wouldn't be the board for me. So now though I'm reconsidering it as it is the cheapest way into the field with all the useful connections prebuilt on the board it has.

Now I have a couple questions, first off I need to know is the Zynq 7010 FPGA side as powerful as the Cyclone® IV EP4CE22F17C6N FPGA. I was trying to compare these two boards the DE0 Nano and Parallella but am not entirely sure what I need to be comparing as the DE0 Nano specifications are named differently, so any help with that would be appreciated.

Ultimately what I would like to do is use the Zynq 7010 FPGA to act as the ORPSoCv3, which the project can be viewed here: https://github.com/openrisc . But I would then like to connect the FPGA to the microUSB ports on the parallella, as well as the HDMI port which I believe is already connected to the FPGA and microSD slot. Althouugh I may need another usb slot for wifi, which I imagine might be possible with the GPIO pins? So yes I'm asking if all of this is possible, I'm hoping it is. Also I'm liking the looks of the Parallella as it will be useful outside of this project, if I decide I don't want to continue with it (the OpenRISC project) I can use it as a basic computer which is perfect for another project (CJDNS node). Oh also it might be good to keep in mind I've only really learnt about FPGA's and all of this over the last month so I'm still very new to it all and still learning the basics. Although I am setting up the simulation of the ORPSoCv3 on my computer as well to see what it can do.

Anyway thanks in advance,

Jack.

[tnt]

The two FPGA are roughly comparable. (some aspects a bit better in the zynq, some others a bit better in the altera).

You wouldn't be able to use the USB ports on the parallella from the fpga fabric really. They're tied to the ARM core inside the zynq.
You can completely implement new USB ports using GPIO of course but this require a custom extension board with the USB PHYs.

All in all, all you want to do seem doable. But it also sounds like something not trivial for someone who seem to be "getting started" in FPGAs ...

[9600]

[9600]

[tnt]

[JackWoolford]

Hi tnt and Andrew,

So yes I'm still learning and currently reading Digital Design 5th edition by Morris Mano. While also trying to setup ORPSoCv3 on my computer, which has been interesting but I'm constantly running into errors while trying to compile everything and while being new makes it hard to understand what is going wrong at times. So that's fun.

Now with the Parallella at least I thought it would be good because say I give up on the idea of ORPSoC/OpenRISC and instead decide to set it up as a computer, that is a possiblity and I can then use it as a CJDNS/Project Meshnet node which is something else I would like to do in the future. So it looks more valuable to me as a multiple uses kind of board. Also with ORPSoC they are trying to design it so that it will work seamlessly across all FPGA boards from what I understand so atleast I would be able to add to the list another board it is compatible with. Last but not least the cost factor, time wise isn't a problem for me anyway, but cost in dollars is for now atleast, and the Parallella is the cheapest way in I think with everything I want. Although if connecetd to the usb and microSD slot is too difficult via the Zynq 7010 then I may need to get the board with the GPIO which bumps up the cost a tiny bit. But then getting breakout boards that have usb is another option I think(?) such as these https://www.adafruit.com/products/284 , would those work? As I'm not entirely sure.

So yeah I've been talking to the guys in #OpenRISC on irc.freenode.net a fair bit and they think (hopefully I remembered this correctly) that the Parallella would work fine.

The idea of the DE0 Nano which is the main board supported by the OpenRISC project only has 2x 40 pin GPIOs and 1x 26 pin header. And thus I would need 4x https://www.adafruit.com/products/284 to connect, mouse, keyboard, wifi adapter, HDD(storage of some sort), and then a HDMI port or DVI port to the 26 pin header. Which ends up costing as much as this board which has all those features but needs 1 more usb port (to connect wifi) http://www.terasic.com.tw/cgi-bin/page/ ... 167&No=830 . The Parallella also comes to about the same cost as that board when adding on usb ports via the GPIO but it can be used for other things if wanted, more easily. Plus someone on the OpenRISC irc channel was saying that the Cyclone V board above does not have any host usb ports and thus cannot be used for mouse and keyboard... Not sure about that emailed Terasic themselves to confirm that or not so. Oh and then I have to consider shipping costs to Australia which could be another problem in itself.

So in the end I'm still leaning towards the Parallella.

Anyway any advice/help is appreciated.

Thanks tnt and Andrew so far for your help!

[tnt]

If you think you can plug a HDD or a mouse or anything in https://www.adafruit.com/products/284 , you have a serious misunderstanding of the technology ...

And you say time isn't an issue, but given the level of expertise you display in those last posts, you're probably looking at months/years full time to acquire all the pre-required knowledge and develop all the required components.

[JackWoolford]

Woops, this looks more suitable as it a USB host: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/9947 . Although this time I'm not sure whether there would be enough GPIO pins for 4 of those.

tnt, would you be willing to answer this question, how did you learn about all of this (FPGAs, electronics etc.)?

[9600]

Hi Jack,

What you are proposing is akin to taking a fighter jet and converting it into a family car, based on the rationale that both have wheels and the aircraft is available for a good price. With the added challenge of very little prior experience in mechanical engineering...

If you really want to go for an open source processor/SoC, I'd strongly recommend starting with a basic ORPSoC configuration — if not something much simpler — on DE0-Nano or similar first, and getting to grips with HDL, peripherals and interfacing etc.

Regards,

Andrew

[JackWoolford]

Haha, you win Andrew,

I knew how big the task was before me, to an extent anyway.

It seems to bemworking out after all that with the De0 Nano it would be cheaper and easier. Especially with those usb host breakout boards if they work that is. Plus you can easily attach a LCD to the 26 pin header as I've seen it done.

Pity only because I was reading peoples ideas here about Neural Networks on the Parallella which also had me interested, even though again I know is currently out of my league also.

Anyway thanks again for all the help,

Jack.