Abstract
Computing in technological applications is typically performed with software running on general-purpose microprocessors, such as the Computer Processing Unit (CPU), or specific ones, like the Graphical Processing Unit (GPU). Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs) are an interesting option when speed and reliability are required, but development costs are usually high. Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) combine the flexibility of software with the high-speed operation of hardware, and can keep costs low. The dominant FPGA infrastructure is proprietary, but open tools have greatly improved and are a growing trend, from which robotics can benefit. This paper presents a robotics application that was fully developed using open FPGA tools. An inverted pendulum robot was designed, built, and programmed using open FPGA tools, such as IceStudio and the IceZum Alhambra board, which integrates the iCE40HX4K-TQ144 from Lattice. The perception from an inertial sensor is used in a PD control algorithm that commands two DC motors. All the modules were synthesized in an FPGA as a proof of concept. Its experimental validation shows good behavior and performance.
Highlights
The most common approach taken for the computing required in technological applications is using software which writes instructions for a general-purpose circuit, such as a Computer ProcessingUnit (CPU) or Graphical Processing Unit (GPU) [1]
ISE from Xilinx and Quartus II from Intel Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) are proprietary software tools offered by these companies for synthesis and analysis of designs to be implemented into its FPGAs, usually using a Hardware Description Language (HDL) [16]
This paper presents a novel use of open-source FPGAs for educational robotics using a new visual language for robot programming
Summary
The most common approach taken for the computing required in technological applications is using software which writes instructions for a general-purpose circuit, such as a Computer Processing. ISE from Xilinx and Quartus II from Intel FPGA are proprietary software tools offered by these companies for synthesis and analysis of designs to be implemented into its FPGAs, usually using a Hardware Description Language (HDL) [16] These software tools enable the developer to synthesize or compile their designs, to examine RTL descriptions, to perform timing analysis, to simulate the designs, and to configure the target device using the programmer [17]. There are currently two industry standard HDLs: VHDL (very high-speed integrated-circuit Hardware Description Language) [18] and Verilog [19] To compare these two, on the one hand, VHDL is strongly typed, it has the ability to define custom types, it can define multiple signals into one type, and the logical statement endings are clearly marked.
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