Prof Sandip Kundu

 If you missed the previous class
• http://ece353.ecs.umass.edu
• Labs B and D
• Office hours
• Tu 10-11AM
• Or send email for appointment
• Lecture notes and demo video posted online
• Check demo schedule and report due date
• Demo signup link is active
• Note: I am out of town this coming Tuesday, so no office hours Tuesday
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Recall What You Will Do
 Design and implement a serial MIDI receiver
• Hardware in an Altera Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD)
MAX 7000S (part number EPM7064SLC44-10)
• Using ALTERA Quartus II software tools for synthesis
• Debug - functional simulation (wave forms)
• Debug of board - logic analyzer
 Coding in Verilog
 Next we look at Verilog design issues
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 Acknowledgements
• Builds on an internal course at BlueRISC, 2009
• Papers by Clifford Cummings – SNUG-2000
 Please use slides and check links on the web for free Verilog references for refreshing your Verilog skills
• Many Verilog books also available for purchase, e.g.,
• S Brown et al, “Fundamentals of Digital Logic with Verilog Design”
• J Lee, “Verilog Quickstart”
• …
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 How to Approach the Design Phase
 Implementation with Verilog
 Requirement for Functional Simulation
 Summary
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Translating Abstract Algorithms to Hardware
 Identify hardware functionality in algorithm
 Divide and conquer
• Break into smaller ‘black-boxes’ when complicated
• Think also about performance – what you do in a clock period
 Focus on the heart of the problem first
 Stub-out all (or majority of) modules
• List inputs, outputs
• Write comments - how outputs can be generated from inputs
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Translating Abstract Algorithm to Hardware (contd.)
 Implement one by one
• Control-first design is intuitive for ordering your work
• FSMs, state-based outputs, output generation logic
• Verification
 Instantiate and wire together in top module
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Example for Breaking Up (Modules Next slide)
This is an abstract
Montgomery
Multiplication algorithm.
Here first we try to understand how to partition this into hardware functionality… thinking hardware vs. software
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Courtesy BlueRISC Inc
Moritz, Kundu

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 How to Approach Design Phase
 Implementation with Verilog
 Requirements for Functional Simulation
 Summary
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 Control first design flow (preferred)
State-machines
State-based outputs
Output generation logic
Verification
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 Data first design flow
Output generation logic
State-based outputs
State machines
Verification
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 Defines ‘blackbox’ piece of hardware
 May be instantiated in other modules
 Can instantiate other modules

 always
• Commonly used, synthesizable
• Evaluated whenever a signal in sensitivity list changes in simulator
• Evaluated regardless of sensitivity list in actual hardware
 initial
• Commonly used, non-synthesizable
• Useful for testbench creation
• Setting initial conditions else triggered by external events
 forever
• Commonly used for generating clocks
• forever clk = #5 ~clk;
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 Combinatorial
• Generate signals inside a clock period
• E.g., the next version of state_nxt, or signal_nxt (will see example shortly)
 Sequential
• Latch signal values on clock edges
• E.g., signal <= signal_nxt;
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 Mealy “event driven”
Next-state and Output depend on both current state and input
 Moore “state driven”
Next-state depends on both current state and input
Output depends only on current state
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 Many considerations like the quality of expected/resulting synthesis but also ease of debugging
 A good convention is to separate combinational and sequential blocks entirely
• No combinational code in the sequential block!
• Sequential block has mainly assignments to latch signals at clock edge or reset!
• E.g.,
• state <= state_nxt
• signal <= signal_nxt
• This keeps your code easy to read and debug and avoids subtle flaws
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Coding Style: Block diagram, Module, and FSM
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Note: if more states, we would call “next” “state_nxt”
Moritz, Kundu

More on Variables in Hardware – Adder Example
//Continuous assignment
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// sequential part, uses sum_out_nxt
// Created in the above block from sum_out
// See style followed!
Moritz, Kundu

 E.g., assign data = ….
in previous slide
 Simplest of the high-level constructs
 It is like a gate: it drives a value into a wire
• Left hand side is a wire
 Automatically evaluated when any of the operands change
 Combinational in nature
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 First block non-blocking (NB)
• a,z updated after 5 time units
 Second block blocking (B)
• Evaluated in order
• Total time 6 units
• Value of b toggles 3 times
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 Use NB in always blocks for sequential logic, e.g.,
 Use B in always blocks for combinational logic
 Otherwise pre-synthesis simulation might not match with that of synthesized circuit or has poor simulation performance
// Good // Bad
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Incorrect implementation always @(posedge clk) begin shift_reg[2] = shift_reg[3]; shift_reg[1] = shift_reg[2]; end shift_reg[0] = shift_reg[1];
* ‘=‘ : Blocking Assignment
* Value in shift_reg[3] will be assigned to shift_reg[0] directly
Correct implementation always @(posedge clk) begin shift_reg[2] <= shift_reg[3]; shift_reg[1] <= shift_reg[2]; shift_reg[0] <= shift_reg[1];
End
* ‘<=‘ : Non-Blocking Assignment
* Updating will happen after capturing all right-side register values
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 How to Approach the Design Phase
 Implementation with Verilog
 Requirements for Functional Simulation
 Summary
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 Simulation time not real
• No gate delays
• All evaluations happen same time
• Zero time for combinatorial logic
• Time is “stopped” when needed
• How to simulate accurately re: synthesis results?
 REG_DELAY for sequential logic
• Register outputs are valid just after the clock edge
• Manual delay in simulation is inserted to mimic real world delay
• Illusion for passage of “time” in simulation
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 Simulation depends on this list
• // simulation matches synthesis
• always@(a or b) out=a&b;
• // simulation fails to match synthesis when ‘a’ toggles
• always@(b) out=a&b;
 Consider that ‘a’ and ‘b’ are driven by independent logic (say, with different clocks). The flaw in the second block may give false positive for testing an implemented protocol when ‘a’ switches prior to ‘b’ and prior to evaluation of ‘out’ - likewise this may result in a false negative for otherwise good logic */
 Synthesis does not depend on list
• Only exception is clock edges
• always@(posedge clk) if(reset
)…else…
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 Testbenches
• Verilog code to exercise your logic
 Waveforms
• Check signals and control-flow visually
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 How to Approach the Design Phase
 Implementation with Verilog
 Requirements for Functional Simulation
 Summary
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Summary – Preferred Coding Style Reviewed
 Partition into modules (Lab B may not require multiple)
 Stub out all inputs and outputs and comment
 Separate combinational block(s) from sequential block
• FSM is implemented in combinational block
• Next state is calculated in combinational block
• Output is calculated in combinational block
• Sequential block mainly contains simple latching assignments
 Make sure you use NB statements in sequential and B in combinational blocks
 Use intuitive names (signal, signal_nxt) and follow convention
• Remember this is hardware not software
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 Please consult course website
 Also check deliverables for the Lab in the Lab review document
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