UPDATE 17/12/2016: This product has now been retired.

Introdu

ction

:

FleaFPGA provides a low-cost development platfrom for users to explore the wonders of programmable logic and hardware-oriented languages i.e. VHDL and Verilog. FleaFPGA is suited for professional and hobbyist uses.

FleaFPGA V2.5 PCB features:

Lattice MachXO2-7000HE FPGA

USB 2.0 Host port

USB slave serial port

4096-Color VGA/Component video out

3.5mm stereo audio out

SD/MMC card slot

256MBit 143MHz SDRAM

512KBit Quad-SPI SRAM

PS/2 Keyboard and mouse combo port

18 GPIO lines via breakout header

User push-buttons (x2)

User LED (x4)

50MHz onboard oscillator

On-board USB JTAG for easy programming







What makes FleaFPGA interesting:

For the beginner:

FleaFPGA Pricing (in $USD): Unit Price Order Quantity - - - - - - Availability: NO LONGER AVAILABLE

SORRY! ITEM IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE





Microprocessor fundamentals

Peripheral interfacing i.e. VGA video, Audio, SD,

DRAM, USB host and slave devices etc.

Data encoding and encryption techniques

Data Error checking and correction hardware

Digital communication and data modulation methods

Parallel processing

For

the engineer or experimenter:

For the embedded programmer:

For the gamer:

Please Note!

Frequently Asked Questions:

What is the main difference between embedded microcomputing boards and FleaFPGA?

What basic knowledge do I need to know before I dive into developing my own project using FleaFPGA?

How digital circuit elements work i.e. flip-flops, logic gates, multiplexers, counters, encoders, adders, etc.

Digital circuit signal timing i.e. understanding of propagation delays, setup and hold times etc.

Basic understanding of how the above relates to the Lattice MachXO2-7000 at the heart of FleaFPGA. (Refer to the Lattice MachXO2 Family Datasheet for further information)

Digital circuit interfacing techniques i.e. open-collector, tri-state buffers, pull-up/pull-down resistors etc

Understanding of microprocessor design and peripheral interfacing will also be of help, particularly if you will be creating (or using) HDL code that describes such a complex element as a microprocessor to sit inside FleaFPGA.

Access to a good VHDL reference guide is essential. Recommended guides are listed in the support section of this page.

FleaFPGA provides a fairly simple andnon-intimidating platform to implement and understand many of the concepts behind todays moderndigital systems. Software development tools i.e. Lattice Diamond similarly provide asimple and relatively low-frills approach that works very well with FleaFPGA. Please refer to our quickstart guide in the support section of this page. Fundamental digital circuits and concepts that may be studied using FleaFPGA include:Because FleaFPGA is built around a chip that allows user-definable hardware to be implemented, one can do many cool tricks with it. These potentially include: homebrew 3D-printer or CNC control apps, as a logic analyser or sniffer, video or audio-related apps etc. Applications are limited only by the FPGA's physicalresources and one's imagination.. :-)FleaFPGA provides a viable target platform for many open-HDL implementations of both legacy and modern systems for possible commercial application. Tested legacy systems include: 6502, z80, 68000 and 80188-based computing platforms. Modern systems include ZPU, LatticeMico8 and 32bit RISC processor cores and more! Please refer to the M68K_SoC project example provided in the code examples section at the bottom of the page. FleaFPGA can potentially emulate nearly all classic 8-bit, as well as selected 16-bit home computers and game consoles. Please refer to both the ping-pong and A2601 project examples provided in the code examples section at the bottom of the page This page is only intended as a summary of the FleaFPGA project and will be expanded upon in due course. Feel free to read the FAQ section below, as well as documentation found in the Project files section Answer: Because FleaFPGA uses the same technologies used by the major chip companies to design custom silicon devices (also known as Application-Specific Integrated Circuits or ASIC) it is possible for the user to effectively create their own silicon designs inside the FPGA. Once you've mastered the concepts required to use FleaFPGA of course, please refer to the next question for an explanation of this point.Answer: At the very least, you will have knowledge of, or need to study, the following topics:

Please Note: This is also covered in Section 8 of the FleaFPGA Quickstart Guide titled "Where to from here?"

I'd like to play with FleaFPGA, but I'm really not all that keen on HDL programming etc?

Is FleaFPGA open source?

Does FleaFPGA's JTAG port do programming as well as debugging?

not

Is the GPIO header on FleaFPGA raspberry-pi compatible?





WARNING:





Can FleaFPGA be programmed in a free Linux environment?

However,

providing the information as-is for FleaFPGA users to attempt at their own risk .





Where can I purchase a FleaFPGA?



Where can I find more FleaFPGA information?







FleaFPGA example Screenshots (Click to zoom):

FleaFPGA with M68000-CPU + SoC softcore loaded, running mixed 256-color graphics + text overlay: FleaFPGA with ZPU-CPU + SoC softcore loaded, running a 4096-color VGA screen-test: Early FleaFPGA prototype, emulating an A2600 video game console:

YouTube Videos:

FleaFPGA with 68K CPU softcore loaded, running a variation of the old-school Amiga Juggler Demo!





FleaFPGA Development resources:



FleaFPGA Quickstart Guide (Including schematics):

FleaFPGA Top-level HDL files (VHDL and Verilog source files included):

FleaFPGA HDL coding examples (more to follow):

Example Project:

Comments:

VHDL Source:

Firmware file:

My first project - Blinking LED#1

ZIP ZIP CH376 USB to FT230x serial passthrough Allows a remote PC to talk to the FleaFPGA's CH376 via the slave serial port. ZIP ZIP Pong clone video game example

ZIP ZIP 68000 CPU-based SoC

(System-on-Chip) example Note: An SD card with 'boot.sre' and 'test.img' files in the root directory will be required for this example. Due to project

complexity, the entire Diamond project is provided in source.zip Source.ZIP



SD_files.ZIP

ZIP

Lattice MachXO2 support documents:





VHDL Reference Books:

Useful related sites:





FleaFPGA Development Forum:

Copyright information:

Answer: If you're not keen on learning HDL, you can always simply download a pre-compiled project example, upload it to FleaFPGA using the JTAG loader and play with FleaFPGA that way. Our examples list will hopefully grow over time..Answer: As far as the hardware is concerned, FleaFPGA is fairly open i.e. schematics may be found in Appendix B of our user guides etc. In addition, VHDL top-level files are available for download separately from the individual apps etc. PCB artwork itself will remain closed (for now anyway).Answer: FleaFPGA's JTAG port allows for programming of the FPGA's on-chip Flash ROM or configuration SRAM. It doesallow real-time debugging however,due to the simplicity of the interface to keep costs down. Besides, the simulator included with Lattice Diamond seems to work well enough. :-)Answer: No! You will need to make a custom cable to make proper electrical connections between the two boards.Answer: Yes installion of the whole Lattice toolchain under Ubuntu is a long-winded and somewhat painful process. Therefore, I am limiting my support for this option toFrom me directly! :-) If you are interested in purchasing a FleaFPGA, please send me an email . Thanks!Answer: You may find FleaFPGA documentation user manuals etc. in the Project files section found below. Alternatively, you can also subscribe to our forum and ask specific questions there or send me an email in the Contact page on this site.All trademarked product names listed on this site belong to their respective trademark owners. All PCB designs, flea logo and related support documentation are the copyright of Valentin Angelovski (fleasystems).(Page last updated: 17th December 2016)