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In Preparation for the AVNET MiniZed (Xilinx Zynq XC7Z007S SoC) RoadTest. What Do You Need?

rscasny

We will be roadtesting the AVNET MiniZed FPGA SoC development board in September. I find this to be an exicting prospect and can't wait to let it loose on the element14 community.

 

In brief, the MiniZedTm is a single-core Zynq 7Z007S development board. This board targets entry-level Zynq developers with a low-cost prototyping platform.image

 

The Minized's compact design features on-board connectivity through USB, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Peripherals can be plugged into dual Pmod-compatible connectors, the Arduino-compatible shield interface or the USB 2.0 host interface. JTAG circuitry is incorporated onto the MiniZed base board, so with a single micro-USB cable to your laptop you are already up and running. User LED’s, a button and a switch allow for a physical board interface.

 

Micron memory solutions are presented for QSPI flash, DDR3L memory and on-board eMMC instead of an external SD card. The Murata Type 1DX wireless solution incorporates 802.11b/g /n Wi-Fi as well as Bluetooth 4.1, which provides both Bluetooth Classic and Low Energy (BLE). The integrated power supply from Dialog generates all on-board voltages, while an auxiliary supply input can be used to power designs that require additional current. From ST Micro there is an on-board motion and temperature sensor, as well as a digital microphone.

 

MiniZed provides for an efficient hardware reference design, while it is also an inexpensive board that can be used to run workshops and tutorials. The board aims to showcase the power of Zynq, where the Cortex A9 processor core integrates seamlessly with the programmable fabric to provide signal processing and control solutions. The on-board digital microphone serves as an input for a variety of illustrations of how to implement FIR filters, FFT’s and direct memory access.

 

Feel free to download the attached pdf to learn more about the Minized.

 

In preparation of roadtesting the Minized, what do you feel you need?

 

  • Technical Information?
  • Tutorials?
  • Example Projects?
  • Other?

 

Please leave your comments below. I will try to get any additional information and post it to both the RoadTest and the FPGA groups.

 

Sincerely,

 

Randall Scasny

RoadTest Program Manager

Attachments:
image5239-PB-XC7Z007S-1CLG225C-V11a.pdf
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  • Hi Randall,

     

    It looks like this board would be perfect for an introductory course on how to program and use Xilinx FPGA to do small projects.

     

    If a short little training set of classes, similar to the Arduino Starter Kit, was available, I can see a lot of people who would be interested in dipping their toes into this device.

     

    The board price is attractive, but some projects need to be added to show the range of capability available on this particular chip.

     

    My basic question would be what is the complexity limit for building a solution on this board and what the next range of board costs should I need to go larger?

     

    DAB

Reply

  • Hi Randall,

     

    It looks like this board would be perfect for an introductory course on how to program and use Xilinx FPGA to do small projects.

     

    If a short little training set of classes, similar to the Arduino Starter Kit, was available, I can see a lot of people who would be interested in dipping their toes into this device.

     

    The board price is attractive, but some projects need to be added to show the range of capability available on this particular chip.

     

    My basic question would be what is the complexity limit for building a solution on this board and what the next range of board costs should I need to go larger?

     

    DAB

Children
  • in reply to DAB

    DAB,

     

    AFAIK from the most recent posts here and there about FPGA and Xilinx it seems to me it is one of the most recent (or the most) entries in the scenario of suppliers products offered by Element14/Farnell. To be precise I have the perception that it is a new range of products and sounds almost revolutionary in the FPGA wrold, just because these board and others all branded Xilinx. You can find the entire range of base components in the article In Preparation for the AVNET MiniZed (Xilinx Zynq XC7Z007S SoC) RoadTest. What Do You Need?

     

    What left me surprised is the price difference between the IC models:

     

    The PGA Zynq-7000 Family 23000 Cells 667MHz 28nm 1V 400-Pin WCBGA Tray cost about 60 Euro

    while the FPGA SpartanRegistered-6 LX Family 3840 Cells 45nm (CMOS) Technology 1.2V 144-Pin TQFP (maybe the lover version?) cost about 20 Euro

    and the FPGA Artix-7 16640 Cells 28nm Technology 1V 236-Pin FPGA cost few less than 300 Euro image

     

    I have difficult to collocate the IC of this board (that is of the family of the first IC I think) respect what is in the mentioned presentation page.

     

    Enrico

  • in reply to DAB

    DAB wrote:

     

    It looks like this board would be perfect for an introductory course on how to program and use Xilinx FPGA to do small projects.

     

    My basic question would be what is the complexity limit for building a solution on this board and what the next range of board costs should I need to go larger?

    At US$89, the MiniZed is an attractive price for a Xilinx Zynq with ARM Cortex-A9 and 512MB DDR.  That said, in my opinion a Xilinx Zynq is not a good introductory FPGA.  It's a complex architecture and you have to deal with the added complexity of a "motherboard on chip", which usually runs Linux. Learning about FPGAs with a simple board like the DEO-NANO or a less-expensive entry-level FPGA board is probably enough learning curve steepness.  But of course, chacun a son goût (YMMV).

     

    Regarding what other boards are available, take a look at some of the other Zed boards at the MiniZed link.

  • in reply to balearicdynamics

    Enrico Miglino wrote:

     

    I have difficult to collocate the IC of this board (that is of the family of the first IC I think) respect what is in the mentioned presentation page.

    For your amusement, here's a quote from an early Zynq article: "Zynq-7000 EPP Sets Stage for New Era of Innovations", Xcell Journal, Second Quarter, 2011:

    With a starting price point below $15, we are really making it hard for companies to justify the cost and risk of designing any ASIC that is not extremely high volume.

    Xilinx has had a dreadful time getting Zynq cost down.  Given the Zynq list prices and typical FPGA development board volume, I can only conclude that the MiniZed must be heavily subsidized.  Smart chip vendors subsidize development boards: if more people can afford to try your board and they enjoy the experience, you'll get more people designing with your chip.  Lattice must do this with the US$22 iCEstick: it costs $20 just for a board with an FTDI FT2232H and USB connector, and that's before you add the iCE40 FPGA, LEDs, and PMOD connector.  Cypress has some nice PSoC prototyping boards for $4 or $10.

     

    The original ZedBoard cost $395, but you could only buy one at that price.  If you wanted multiple boards, it cost $495.