Xilinx Artix 7 FPGA Boards

Neso is an easy to use FPGA Development board featuring Artix 7 FPGA. It is specially designed for the development and integration of FPGA based accelerated features to other designs. This development board features Xilinx XC7A100T FPGA with FTDI’s FT2232H Dual-Channel USB device. The high-speed USB 2.0 interface provides fast and easy configuration download to the on-board SPI flash. No programmer or special downloader cable is needed to download the bitstream to the board.

Applications

• Product Prototype Development
• Accelerated computing integration
• Development and testing of custom embedded processors
• Signal Processing
• Communication devices development
• Educational tool for Schools and Universities

Board features

• FPGA: XC7A100T in CSG324 package
• DDR3: 2Gb DDR3 (MT41J128M16JT-125:K)
• Flash memory: 128 Mb SPI flash memory (N25Q128A13ESE40E)
• 100MHz CMOS oscillator
• High-Speed USB 2.0 interface for On-board flash programming.
  Revision V1: FT2232H Channel A is dedicated to SPI Flash /JTAG Programming. Channel B can be used for custom applications.
  Revision V2: FT2232H Channel B is dedicated to SPI Flash /JTAG Programming. Channel A can be used for custom applications.
• On-board voltage regulators for single power rail operation
• FPGA configuration via JTAG and USB
• Maximum IOs for user-defined purposes FPGA – 140 IOs FT2232H – 8 IOs

 

Along with the module, you may need the items in the list below for easy and fast installation.

1. USB A to Micro B cable.
2. DC Power supply (Optional).

This diagram should be used as a reference only. For detailed information, see Neso schematics at the end of this document. The details of individual connectors are as below.

The onboard full-speed USB controller helps a Windows/Linux/Mac computer to communicate with this module. Use a USB A to Micro B cable to connect with a PC. By default, the module is powered from USB so make sure not to overcrowd unpowered USB hubs (the picture on the right shows USB Micro connector).

Note: In the revision V1 of Neso, FT2232H Channel A is dedicated to SPI Flash /JTAG Programming. Channel B can be used for custom applications. The revision V2 of Neso ships with FT2232H Channel B dedicated for SPI Flash /JTAG Programming whereas Channel A can be used for custom applications.

This module uses a +5V power supply to function properly. By default, the board is configured to use the +5V supply from USB. So an external +5V power is not required unless the USB port is unable to supply enough current. In most cases, USB ports are capable of providing enough current for the module. The current requirement for this board largely depends on your application. Please consult the FPGA datasheet for more details on power requirements. If for any reason, an external 5V power supply needs to be used for the module, the Power select jumper should be configured properly before connecting the power supply. Please refer to the marking on the board for more details.

The Power Select header K1 is used to configure the power source for the board. Connect pins 1 and 2 to use USB power and connect pins 2 and 3 to use the external DC power.

This board is equipped with a rotary switch (J3) for selecting a bank 35 IO voltage level. It is possible to select 3 different voltage levels for the bank ie, 1.8V, 2.5V and 3.3V as per the user requirement. Possible rotary switch positions and the resultant VADJ voltages are illustrated below:

A JTAG connector provides access to FPGA’s JTAG pins. A Xilinx platform cable can be used for JTAG programming.

The configuration channel of FT2232H in Neso can be connected to the SPI bus that connects the SPI Flash chip to the FPGA or to the JTAG pins of the FPGA. By connecting SPI bus to FT2232H, the SPI flash can be directly programmed to save the configuration permanently (non-volatile, until erased). This is the default configuration set when Neso is shipped. In the revision V1 of Neso, FT2232H Channel A is the configuration channel and is dedicated to SPI Flash /JTAG Programming. Channel B can be used for custom applications. The revision V2 of Neso ships with FT2232H Channel B is the configuration channel and is dedicated to SPI Flash /JTAG Programming whereas Channel A can be used for custom applications.

When the FT2232H configuration channel is connected to SPI, Neso Configuration Downloader utility can be used to program the board. When the FT2232H configuration channel is connected to FPGA JTAG, the JTAG signals can be accessed directly through FT2232H. Neso Configuration Downloader utility currently does not support programming FPGA SRAM through JTAG.

Please see the tables below for information about selecting SPI or JTAG for the FT2232H configuration channel. SPI must be selected for Neso Configuration Downloader utility to work.

Header P10

Jumper Configuration for SPI	Jumper Configuration for JTAG
1 - 2	2 - 4
5 - 6	3 - 5
7 - 8	8 - 10
11 - 12	9 - 11

Important: These jumper settings are only meant for accessing the JTAG signals via FT2232H through USB using programs such as xc3sprog.  If you are using external JTAG such as Xilinx Platform Cable USB II connected to the JTAG header, then please do not change these jumpers. They should be in the factory-shipped SPI configuration. If the jumpers are changed to JTAG mode, and an external JTAG is used, then the external JTAG will not work.

This device is equipped with a maximum of 140 user IO pins that can be used for various custom applications. All user IOs are length matched and can be used as differential pairs.

Neso Revision V1:

Header P4

Pin No. On The Header	Artix-7 (CSG324) Pin No.	Pin No. On The Header	Artix-7 (CSG324) Pin No.
1	GND	2	3V3
3	VCCIN	4	GND
5	A14	6	A13
7	D13	8	D12
9	A11	10	B11
11	F14	12	F13
13	B14	14	B13
15	A16	16	A15
17	A9	18	A10
19	B12	20	C12
21	A8	22	B8
23	C10	24	C11
25	B9	26	C9
27	B6	28	B7
29	C5	30	C6
31	A5	32	A6
33	C7	34	D8
35	D7	36	E7
37	D4	38	D5
39	-	40	-
41	-	42	-
43	D3	44	E3
45	-	46	-
47	A3	48	A4
49	GND	50	GND
51	GND	52	GND
53	-	54	-
55	B2	56	B3
57	C1	58	C2
59	A1	60	B1
61	G1	62	H1
63	E1	64	F1
65	-	66	-
67	D2	68	E2
69	K1	70	K2
71	J2	72	J3
73	B4	74	C4
75	E5	76	E6
77	G2	78	H2
79	F3	80	F5
81	G3	82	G4
83	H5	84	H6
85	H4	86	J4
87	F6	88	G6
89	GND	90	GND
91	GND	92	GND
93	3V3	94	3V3
95	3V3	96	3V3

Header P5

Pin No. On The Header	Artix-7 (CSG324) Pin No.	Pin No. On The Header	Artix-7 (CSG324) Pin No.
1	ACBUS0*	2	ACBUS1
3	3V3	4	GND
5	ACBUS2	6	ACBUS3
7	B16	8	B17
9	ACBUS4	10	ACBUS5
11	D14	12	C14
13	ACBUS6	14	ACBUS7
15	C16	16	C17
17	H14	18	G14
19	D15	20	C15
21	E15	22	E16
23	E17	24	D17
25	F15	26	F16
27	J14	28	H15
29	H17	30	G17
31	H16	32	G16
33	K13	34	J13
35	L15	36	L16
37	L18	38	M18
39	R12	40	R13
41	K15	42	J15
43	M16	44	M17
45	GND	46	GND
47	GND	48	GND
49	GND	50	GND
51	GND	52	GND
53	R18	54	T18
55	P15	56	R15
57	N15	58	N16
59	N14	60	P14
61	P17	62	R17
63	N17	64	P18
65	U16	66	V17
67	U17	68	U18
69	U14	70	V14
71	V15	72	V16
73	T14	74	T15
75	R16	76	T16
77	T9	78	T10
79	T13	80	U13
81	T11	82	U11
83	R10	84	R11
85	V10	86	V11
87	U12	88	V12
89	INITB	90	3V3
91	PROGB	92	3V3
93	GND	94	GND
95	GND	96	GND

FT2232H – Artix-7 (CSG324) FPGA Connection Details

FTDI Pin No.	Pin Function (245 FIFO)	Artix-7 Pin No.
38	D0	A18
39	D1	B18
40	D2	D18
41	D3	E18
43	D4	F1
44	D5	G18
45	D6	J17
46	D7	J18
48	RXF#	G13
52	TXE#	K16
53	RD#	D9
54	WR#	M13
55	SIWUB	D10

Neso Revision V2:

Header P4

In Neso Revision V1, GPIO 130 and GPIO 131 were connected to pin locations C15 and D15 respectively.

In Neso Revision V2, in pin locations, C15 and D15, FTDI OE and FTDI CLKOUT signals are connected respectively. And GPIO 130 is now connected to pin J5 in Bank 35 and GPIO 131 is connected to pin T8 in Bank 34.

Pin No. On The Header	Artix-7 (CSG324) Pin No.	Pin No. On The Header	Artix-7 (CSG324) Pin No.
1	GND	2	3V3
3	VCCIN	4	GND
5	A14	6	A13
7	D13	8	D12
9	A11	10	B11
11	F14	12	F13
13	B14	14	B13
15	A16	16	A15
17	A9	18	A10
19	B12	20	C12
21	A8	22	B8
23	C10	24	C11
25	B9	26	C9
27	B6	28	B7
29	C5	30	C6
31	A5	32	A6
33	C7	34	D8
35	D7	36	E7
37	D4	38	D5
39	-	40	-
41	-	42	-
43	D3	44	E3
45	-	46	-
47	A3	48	A4
49	GND	50	GND
51	GND	52	GND
53	-	54	-
55	B2	56	B3
57	C1	58	C2
59	A1	60	B1
61	G1	62	H1
63	E1	64	F1
65	-	66	-
67	D2	68	E2
69	K1	70	K2
71	J2	72	J3
73	B4	74	C4
75	E5	76	E6
77	G2	78	H2
79	F3	80	F5
81	G3	82	G4
83	H5	84	H6
85	H4	86	J4
87	F6	88	G6
89	GND	90	GND
91	GND	92	GND
93	3V3	94	3V3
95	3V3	96	3V3

Header P5

Pin No. On The Header	Artix-7 (CSG324) Pin No.	Pin No. On The Header	Artix-7 (CSG324) Pin No.
1	BCBUS0*	2	BCBUS1
3	3V3	4	GND
5	BCBUS2	6	BCBUS3
7	B16	8	B17
9	BCBUS4	10	BCBUS5
11	D14	12	C14
13	BCBUS6	14	BCBUS7
15	C16	16	C17
17	H14	18	G14
19	T8	20	J5
21	E15	22	E16
23	E17	24	D17
25	F15	26	F16
27	J14	28	H15
29	H17	30	G17
31	H16	32	G16
33	K13	34	J13
35	L15	36	L16
37	L18	38	M18
39	R12	40	R13
41	K15	42	J15
43	M16	44	M17
45	GND	46	GND
47	GND	48	GND
49	GND	50	GND
51	GND	52	GND
53	R18	54	T18
55	P15	56	R15
57	N15	58	N16
59	N14	60	P14
61	P17	62	R17
63	N17	64	P18
65	U16	66	V17
67	U17	68	U18
69	U14	70	V14
71	V15	72	V16
73	T14	74	T15
75	R16	76	T16
77	T9	78	T10
79	T13	80	U13
81	T11	82	U11
83	R10	84	R11
85	V10	86	V11
87	U12	88	V12
89	INITB	90	3V3
91	PROGB	92	3V3
93	GND	94	GND
95	GND	96	GND

FT2232H – Artix-7 (CSG324) FPGA Connection Details

FTDI Pin No.	Pin Function (245 FIFO)	Artix-7 Pin No.
16	D0	A18
17	D1	B18
18	D2	D18
19	D3	E18
21	D4	F18
22	D5	G18
23	D6	J17
24	D7	J18
26	RXF#	G13
27	TXE#	K16
28	RD#	D9
29	WR#	M13
30	SIWUA	D10
32	CLKOUT	D15
33	OE#	C15

This product requires Numato Lab drivers to be installed for proper functioning when used with Windows. The driver can be downloaded from https://numato.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Driver.zip. Windows users should download and run the WHQL Certified executable file that will prompt them to install the Numato Lab drivers. When the driver installation is complete, the module should appear in Neso Flash Config Tool as Neso Artix-7 FPGA Module (see the picture).

Neso Revision V1:

Neso USB Vendor ID	0403
Neso USB Product ID	6010

Neso Revision V2:

Neso USB Vendor ID	2A19
Neso USB Product ID	1005

Note: In the revision V1 of Neso, FT2232H Channel A is dedicated to SPI Flash /JTAG Programming. Channel B can be used for custom applications. The revision V2 of Neso ships with FT2232H Channel B dedicated for SPI Flash /JTAG Programming whereas Channel A can be used for custom applications.

The Linux ships with the drivers required for Neso. It should be enough to run the following two commands in the terminal:

>> sudo modprobe stdi_sio
>> echo 2a19 1005 > /sys/bus/usb-serial/drivers/ftdi_sio/new_id

HDL design needs to be converted to a bitstream before it can be programmed to FPGA. Neso at this time accepts only binary (.bin) bitstream created by Xilinx ISE (http://www.xilinx.com/tools/webpack.htm). Once the HDL is synthesized, it is easy to create a binary bitstream out of it. Please follow the steps below to generate a binary bitstream from your design using ISE Web Pack.

Step 1: Right-click on the “Generate Programming File” option in the “Processes” window.

Step 2: Select “Process Properties” from the pop-up menu. In the dialog box, check the “Create Binary Configuration File” Checkbox and click “Apply”.

Step 3: Click “OK” to close the dialog box. Right-click on the “Generate Programming File” option again and select “Run”. Now you will be able to find a “.bin” file in the project directory and that file can be used for Neso configuration.

Neso is factory configured to be powered directly from the USB port so make sure that you are using a USB port that can power the board properly. It is recommended to connect the board directly to the PC instead of using a hub. It is practically very difficult to estimate the power consumption of the board, as it depends heavily on your design and the clock used. Xilinx provides tools to estimate power consumption. In any case, if power from USB is not enough for your application, external supply can be applied to the board. Jumper PWRSEL should be set up properly (short pin 1-2) to use the board on external power. Neso requires three different voltages, a 3.3V, a 1.8V supply, and a 1.3V supply. Onboard regulators derive these voltages from the USB/Ext power supply.

The Neso Artix-7 module can be configured by two methods,

a) Using the Artix-7 configuration tool through USB.
b) Using the Xilinx programming cable.

Neso has an onboard FTDI FT2232 device which facilitates easy reprogramming of onboard SPI flash through the USB interface. The FTDI receives a bitstream from the host application and program it into the SPI Flash and lets the FPGA boot from the flash. The Neso configuration application can be downloaded from www.numato.com for free.

Step 1: Open Neso Config Tool. Click “Scan for Devices” if the “Neso Artix-7 FPGA Module” is not detected automatically.

Step 2: Click on “Load Binary” Select the “.bin” file, then click on the “Program Flash” button. Wait till “Programming Completed” appears on the screen.

Neso Artix-7 module features an onboard JTAG connector that facilitates easy reprogramming of SRAM and onboard SPI flash through JTAG programmer like “Xilinx Platform-cable usb”. Programming Neso using JTAG requires “Xilinx ISE iMPACT” software which is bundled with XilinxISE Design Suite. To program the SPI flash we need a “.mcs” file needs to be generated from the “.bit” file. Steps for generating the “.mcs” file are as below. Programming FPGA SRAM does not require a “.mcs” file to be generated.

Generating “.mcs” file for Neso using ISE iMPACT

Step 1: Open ISE iMPACT. Click on “Create PROM file(PROM file formatter)”. In the dialog box, select “Configure Single FPGA” in the storage device type. Then click on the green arrow on the right side.

Step 2: Select 128M in Storage Device (bits).Now click on “Add Storage Device”, then the green arrow on the right side.

Step 3: Set an output file name and the output file location (the “.mcs” file will be generated at this location which will be required later for programming the FPGA), then click OK twice, then select the “.bit” file we already generated then click Open and click NO when it prompts to add another device file.

Step 4: Double click on “Generate File”. A “Generate Succeeded” will be displayed as shown in the image below if the “.mcs” the file is generated successfully.

Step 1: Run Vivado and open Hardware Manager. Select Tools -> Auto Connect.

Step 2: Go to Tools, Select Add Configuration Memory Device, then the FPGA device.

Step 3: In the dialogue box that appears, select Micron, SPI, 128Mb in the Manufacturer, Type and Density section respectively and select n25q128-3.3v. Then click OK.

Step 4: Select the configuration file (.bin) and click OK button to program.

Wait until programming completes.

Parameter *	Value	Unit
Basic Specifications
Number of GPIOs	148(Max)
On-board oscillator frequency (FXO-HC536R)	100	MHz
DDR3 Capacity	2	Gb
SPI Flash Memory (N25Q128A13ESE40E)	128	Mb
Power supply voltage (USB or external)	5 – 6	V
FPGA Specifications
Internal supply voltage relative to GND	–0.5 to 1.1	V
Auxiliary supply voltage relative to GND	–0.5 to 2.0	V
Output drivers supply voltage relative to GND	–0.5 to 3.6	V

Neso Revision V1: Neso Schematics

Neso Revision V2: Neso Schematics

 

Neso Revision V1: Neso GPIO Easy Reference

Neso Revision V2: Neso GPIO Easy Reference