element14 Community
element14 Community
    Register Log In
  • Site
  • Search
  • Log In Register
  • Community Hub
    Community Hub
    • What's New on element14
    • Feedback and Support
    • Benefits of Membership
    • Personal Blogs
    • Members Area
    • Achievement Levels
  • Learn
    Learn
    • Ask an Expert
    • eBooks
    • element14 presents
    • Learning Center
    • Tech Spotlight
    • STEM Academy
    • Webinars, Training and Events
    • Learning Groups
  • Technologies
    Technologies
    • 3D Printing
    • FPGA
    • Industrial Automation
    • Internet of Things
    • Power & Energy
    • Sensors
    • Technology Groups
  • Challenges & Projects
    Challenges & Projects
    • Design Challenges
    • element14 presents Projects
    • Project14
    • Arduino Projects
    • Raspberry Pi Projects
    • Project Groups
  • Products
    Products
    • Arduino
    • Avnet & Tria Boards Community
    • Dev Tools
    • Manufacturers
    • Multicomp Pro
    • Product Groups
    • Raspberry Pi
    • RoadTests & Reviews
  • About Us
    About the element14 Community
  • Store
    Store
    • Visit Your Store
    • Choose another store...
      • Europe
      •  Austria (German)
      •  Belgium (Dutch, French)
      •  Bulgaria (Bulgarian)
      •  Czech Republic (Czech)
      •  Denmark (Danish)
      •  Estonia (Estonian)
      •  Finland (Finnish)
      •  France (French)
      •  Germany (German)
      •  Hungary (Hungarian)
      •  Ireland
      •  Israel
      •  Italy (Italian)
      •  Latvia (Latvian)
      •  
      •  Lithuania (Lithuanian)
      •  Netherlands (Dutch)
      •  Norway (Norwegian)
      •  Poland (Polish)
      •  Portugal (Portuguese)
      •  Romania (Romanian)
      •  Russia (Russian)
      •  Slovakia (Slovak)
      •  Slovenia (Slovenian)
      •  Spain (Spanish)
      •  Sweden (Swedish)
      •  Switzerland(German, French)
      •  Turkey (Turkish)
      •  United Kingdom
      • Asia Pacific
      •  Australia
      •  China
      •  Hong Kong
      •  India
      •  Japan
      •  Korea (Korean)
      •  Malaysia
      •  New Zealand
      •  Philippines
      •  Singapore
      •  Taiwan
      •  Thailand (Thai)
      •  Vietnam
      • Americas
      •  Brazil (Portuguese)
      •  Canada
      •  Mexico (Spanish)
      •  United States
      Can't find the country/region you're looking for? Visit our export site or find a local distributor.
  • Translate
  • Profile
  • Settings
Avnet Boards Forums
  • Products
  • Dev Tools
  • Avnet & Tria Boards Community
  • Avnet Boards Forums
  • More
  • Cancel
Avnet Boards Forums
Avnet Boards General Newbie. Please Help
  • Forum
  • Documents
  • Members
  • Mentions
  • Sub-Groups
  • Tags
  • More
  • Cancel
  • New
Join Avnet Boards Forums to participate - click to join for free!
Actions
  • Share
  • More
  • Cancel
Forum Thread Details
  • State Not Answered
  • Replies 6 replies
  • Subscribers 367 subscribers
  • Views 578 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Related

Newbie. Please Help

Former Member
Former Member over 11 years ago

Hello guys, I am a new person on this forum and would like to ask a few questions.

First off, I am currently in my 6th semester in an Electrical Engineering course and I have studied programming using VHDL. However that course had a lot of theory and not a lot of practical implementation, even though we did study a lot of programming.

So I was wondering what are the differences between a board such as a Nexys4 and the Zedboard?

What are the practical applications of the two, as in what sort of projects can be built using these devices.

We used to program in a software by Mentor Graphics, the HDL Designer Series. These would then be implemented on a Spartan IIe board. The programs included things like implementing multiplexers, priority encoders, up/down counters.

Can such programs be implemented on the Zedboard too?
I think they can be implemented on the Nexys 4 but what about zedboard?

  • Sign in to reply
  • Cancel
Parents
  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 11 years ago

    To gain full use of a zedboard you'll need to learn a few things, but some of those these depend on how you are going to use it and what parts of the design you'll be responsible for.  The big question is whether or not you are going to put an OS on it or or just run a single binary application for the project.
    --
    Case I: single binary application
    You have two tool flow paths you can use 1) Vivado and XSDK or  2) ISE and XSDK.
    Vivado or ISE are used to configure the microprocess system and the FPGA core.  ISE is really a couple of tools: PlanAhead and XPS.  In Xilinx there's also the lower level command-line tools that are actually the backend's to the GUI tools. 
    XSDK is an Eclipse based C programming IDE to write the application.
    --
    Case II: embedded OS to run application
    Again you also have two common OS options here.  One is FreeRTOS and the other is Linux.  FreeRTOS is a free real-time OS than has support for thing like LWIP (TCP/IP library) used if you want your app. to communicate over Ethernet using normal POSIX type library calls.  FreeRTOS apps can be developed in the XSDK environment.
    --
    Linux requires additional skills, but can make building applications much easier as the apps. can be written as you would any Linux application. The skills you would need to talk to your own custom FPGA hardware are:
    - Embedded Linux
    - U-boot  OS bootloader
    - Linux Device Tree
    - Linux Device Drivers
    - Linux Kernel configuration and building
    - use space memory mapped I/O
    - Basic linux commands as you will be doing a lot of work in a terminal window so make you you know things like: cat, vi, ls, > | (redirect operators), cd, etc.
    --------------
    For any of these paths you will also need proficiency in:
    - VHDL or Verilog for custom logic
    - C programming, in particular pointers, data structures, interrupts, and low level bit maninpulation operations,
    - Interfaces: SPI, serial, IIC, etc.
    - Basic electronics: logic devices CMOS, TTL signal levels, voltage, current, power
    - Basic debugging skills for both hardware and software

    Also make sure you go through the tutorials on this site.  They'll give you some great insight into the tool flow.  I would also go to Xilinx's youtube channel and go through a lot of those as well. 

    They'll also be a ton of reading.  Become familiar with Xilinx's documentation system.  There are literally dozens of documents related to the Zynq part and the s/w tools and many of them are several hundred pages long.  It will take some effort to learn how to find what you are looking for and to try and keep it all striaght.   It's hard for one person to be proficient in how to build a board with the part, how to design and test the FPGA code, how to write the software, and how to deal with an embedded OS on it.  Usually it's a team effort. If you enjoy learning, it's quite an adventure.

    Hope that helps,

    John

    • Cancel
    • Vote Up 0 Vote Down
    • Sign in to reply
    • Verify Answer
    • Cancel
Reply
  • Former Member
    0 Former Member over 11 years ago

    To gain full use of a zedboard you'll need to learn a few things, but some of those these depend on how you are going to use it and what parts of the design you'll be responsible for.  The big question is whether or not you are going to put an OS on it or or just run a single binary application for the project.
    --
    Case I: single binary application
    You have two tool flow paths you can use 1) Vivado and XSDK or  2) ISE and XSDK.
    Vivado or ISE are used to configure the microprocess system and the FPGA core.  ISE is really a couple of tools: PlanAhead and XPS.  In Xilinx there's also the lower level command-line tools that are actually the backend's to the GUI tools. 
    XSDK is an Eclipse based C programming IDE to write the application.
    --
    Case II: embedded OS to run application
    Again you also have two common OS options here.  One is FreeRTOS and the other is Linux.  FreeRTOS is a free real-time OS than has support for thing like LWIP (TCP/IP library) used if you want your app. to communicate over Ethernet using normal POSIX type library calls.  FreeRTOS apps can be developed in the XSDK environment.
    --
    Linux requires additional skills, but can make building applications much easier as the apps. can be written as you would any Linux application. The skills you would need to talk to your own custom FPGA hardware are:
    - Embedded Linux
    - U-boot  OS bootloader
    - Linux Device Tree
    - Linux Device Drivers
    - Linux Kernel configuration and building
    - use space memory mapped I/O
    - Basic linux commands as you will be doing a lot of work in a terminal window so make you you know things like: cat, vi, ls, > | (redirect operators), cd, etc.
    --------------
    For any of these paths you will also need proficiency in:
    - VHDL or Verilog for custom logic
    - C programming, in particular pointers, data structures, interrupts, and low level bit maninpulation operations,
    - Interfaces: SPI, serial, IIC, etc.
    - Basic electronics: logic devices CMOS, TTL signal levels, voltage, current, power
    - Basic debugging skills for both hardware and software

    Also make sure you go through the tutorials on this site.  They'll give you some great insight into the tool flow.  I would also go to Xilinx's youtube channel and go through a lot of those as well. 

    They'll also be a ton of reading.  Become familiar with Xilinx's documentation system.  There are literally dozens of documents related to the Zynq part and the s/w tools and many of them are several hundred pages long.  It will take some effort to learn how to find what you are looking for and to try and keep it all striaght.   It's hard for one person to be proficient in how to build a board with the part, how to design and test the FPGA code, how to write the software, and how to deal with an embedded OS on it.  Usually it's a team effort. If you enjoy learning, it's quite an adventure.

    Hope that helps,

    John

    • Cancel
    • Vote Up 0 Vote Down
    • Sign in to reply
    • Verify Answer
    • Cancel
Children
No Data
element14 Community

element14 is the first online community specifically for engineers. Connect with your peers and get expert answers to your questions.

  • Members
  • Learn
  • Technologies
  • Challenges & Projects
  • Products
  • Store
  • About Us
  • Feedback & Support
  • FAQs
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Legal and Copyright Notices
  • Sitemap
  • Cookies

An Avnet Company © 2026 Premier Farnell Limited. All Rights Reserved.

Premier Farnell Ltd, registered in England and Wales (no 00876412), registered office: Farnell House, Forge Lane, Leeds LS12 2NE.

ICP 备案号 10220084.

Follow element14

  • X
  • Facebook
  • linkedin
  • YouTube