Altera Cyclone II FPGA Starter User Manual

Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit

User Guide

Preliminary Information

101 Innovation Drive
San Jose, CA 95134
[phone]
http://www.altera.com

Document Version 1.0.0
Document Date October 2006

P25-36048-00

Copyright © 2006 Altera Corporation. All rights reserved. Altera, The Programmable Solutions Company, the stylized Altera logo, specific device
designations, and all other words and logos that are identified as trademarks and/or service marks are, unless noted otherwise, the trademarks and
service marks of Altera Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. All other product or service names are the property of their respective holders.
Altera products are protected under numerous U.S. and foreign patents and pending applications, maskwork rights, and copyrights. Altera warrants
performance of its semiconductor products to current specifications in accordance with Altera's standard warranty, but reserves the right to make
changes to any products and services at any time without notice. Altera assumes no responsibility or liability arising out of the
application or use of any information, product, or service described herein except as expressly agreed to in writing by Altera
Corporation. Altera customers are advised to obtain the latest version of device specifications before relying on any published
information and before placing orders for products or services.

Printed on recycled paper

UG-CDK01012-10

ii Altera Corporation

Contents

About This User Guide ............................................................................. v

Chapter 1. Getting Started

Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 1–1

Before You Begin ................................................................................................................................... 1–1

Further Information .............................................................................................................................. 1–2

Hardware Installation ........................................................................................................................... 1–3

Software Installation ............................................................................................................................. 1–3

Installing the Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit CD-ROM ......................................... 1–4

Installing the Quartus II Software .................................................................................................. 1–5

Chapter 2. Development Board Setup

Development Board Overview ............................................................................................................ 2–1

Requirements ......................................................................................................................................... 2–1

Powering Up the Development Board ............................................................................................... 2–2

Confirming Board Operation ............................................................................................................... 2–2

Chapter 3. Control Panel Setup

Requirements ......................................................................................................................................... 3–1

Hardware Setup ..................................................................................................................................... 3–1

FPGA Configuration ............................................................................................................................. 3–1

Control Panel Start ................................................................................................................................ 3–2

Chapter 4. Using the Control Panel

Control Panel Overview ....................................................................................................................... 4–1

Controlling the 7-Segment Displays ................................................................................................... 4–2

Lighting the LEDs .................................................................................................................................. 4–3

PS/2 Keyboard ....................................................................................................................................... 4–3

SDRAM/SRAM Controller and Programmer ................................................................................... 4–4

Read/Write Data .............................................................................................................................. 4–4

Sequential Write ............................................................................................................................... 4–5

Sequential Read ................................................................................................................................ 4–6

Flash Memory Programmer ................................................................................................................. 4–6

Read/Write Data .............................................................................................................................. 4–7

Sequential Write ............................................................................................................................... 4–8

Sequential Read ................................................................................................................................ 4–8

Configuring User Ports ......................................................................................................................... 4–9

Flash Music Player ................................................................................................................................. 4–9

VGA Display ........................................................................................................................................ 4–11

Displaying the Default Image ....................................................................................................... 4–11

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Contents Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide

Displaying Another Image from a Downloaded Bitmap File .................................................. 4–12

Displaying Any Image Files ......................................................................................................... 4–15

Chapter 5. Using the Development Board

Configuring the Cyclone II FPGA ....................................................................................................... 5–1

JTAG Programming ......................................................................................................................... 5–1

AS Programming .............................................................................................................................. 5–1

Configuration Procedure ................................................................................................................. 5–2

Configuring the FPGA in JTAG Mode ..................................................................................... 5–2

Configuring the EPCS4 Device in AS Mode ........................................................................... 5–3

Chapter 6. Advanced Examples

Factory Configuration ........................................................................................................................... 6–1

File Locations .................................................................................................................................... 6–1

Demonstration Setup ....................................................................................................................... 6–1

Music Synthesizer Demonstration ...................................................................................................... 6–2

File Locations .................................................................................................................................... 6–4

Demonstration Setup ....................................................................................................................... 6–4

SD Card Music Player ........................................................................................................................... 6–5

File Locations .................................................................................................................................... 6–6

Demonstration Setup ....................................................................................................................... 6–6

iv Altera Corporation

About This User Guide

This user guide describes how to start using the Altera® Cyclone®II
FPGA Starter Development Kit, including unpacking the kit, installing
required software, connecting the development board to a PC, and
running sample software.

For a full description of the development board and its use, refer to the
Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit Reference Manual.

f The document revision history in Table 1–1 shows this document’s

current version. To ensure that you have the most up-to-date
information on this product, refer to the readme file on the provided
CD_ROM for late-breaking information that is not available in this
document.

Table 1–1. Document Revision History

Date Description

October 2006 Initial publication of the Cyclone II FPGA Starter

Development Kit, version 1.0.0

How to Find

The following methods enable you to quickly find information in this
Portable Document Format (PDF) type document:

Information

■ Search the contents by using the Adobe

Edit/Find command or click on the binoculars/Search toolbar icon.

■ The Bookmarks window serves as an additional table of contents.

Click on a topic to jump to that section in the document.

■ Thumbnail icons in the Pages window provide miniature previews

of each page and provide a link to the pages.

■ Within the text, hypertext links, highlighted in green, enable you to

jump to related information.

How to Contact
Altera

Altera Corporation v
October 2006

To get help regarding this product, use the following contact information:

■ Altera Corporation

101 Innovation Drive
San Jose, California, 95134 USA
www.altera.com

®

Acrobat® or Reader®

Typographic Conventions Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide

For the most up-to-date information about Altera products, go to the
Altera world-wide web site at www.altera.com. For technical support on
this product, go to www.altera.com/mysupport. For additional
information about Altera products, consult the sources shown below.

Information Type USA & Canada All Other Locations

Technical support www.altera.com/mysupport/ www.altera.com/mysupport/

(800) 800-EPLD (3753)
(7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time)

Product literature www.altera.com www.altera.com

Altera literature services [e-mail] [e-mail]

Non-technical customer
service

FTP site ftp.altera.com ftp.altera.com

[phone] + 1 408-544-7000

[phone]
7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (GMT -8:00)
Pacific Time

7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (GMT -8:00)
Pacific Time

Typographic

This document uses the typographic conventions shown below.

Conventions

Visual Cue Meaning

Bold Type with Initial
Capital Letters

bold type External timing parameters, directory names, project names, disk drive names,

Italic Type with Initial Capital
Letters

Italic type Internal timing parameters and variables are shown in italic type.

Initial Capital Letters Keyboard keys and menu names are shown with initial capital letters. Examples:

“Subheading Title” References to sections within a document and titles of on-line help topics are

Command names, dialog box titles, checkbox options, and dialog box options are
shown in bold, initial capital letters. Example: Save As dialog box.

filenames, filename extensions, and software utility names are shown in bold
type. Examples: f

Document titles are shown in italic type with initial capital letters. Example: AN

75: High-Speed Board Design.

Examples: t

Variable names are enclosed in angle brackets (< >) and shown in italic type.
Example: <file name>, <project name>.pof file.

Delete key, the Options menu.

shown in quotation marks. Example: “Typographic Conventions.”

PIA

, \qdesigns directory, d: drive, chiptrip.gdf file.

MAX

, n + 1.

vi Altera Corporation

October 2006

About This User Guide Typographic Conventions

Visual Cue Meaning

Courier type Signal and port names are shown in lowercase Courier type. Examples: data1,

tdi, input. Active-low signals are denoted by suffix n, e.g., resetn.

Anything that must be typed exactly as it appears is shown in Courier type. For
example:
actual file, such as a Report File, references to parts of files (e.g., the AHDL
keyword
Courier.

1., 2., 3., and
a., b., c., etc.

● • Bullets are used in a list of items when the sequence of the items is not important.

■

v The checkmark indicates a procedure that consists of one step only.
1 The hand points to information that requires special attention.

c

w

r The angled arrow indicates you should press the Enter key.

f The feet direct you to more information on a particular topic.

Numbered steps are used in a list of items when the sequence of the items is
important, such as the steps listed in a procedure.

The caution indicates required information that needs special consideration and
understanding and should be read prior to starting or continuing with the
procedure or process.

The warning indicates information that should be read prior to starting or
continuing the procedure or processes

c:\qdesigns\tutorial\chiptrip.gdf. Also, sections of an

SUBDESIGN), as well as logic function names (e.g., TRI) are shown in

Altera Corporation vii
October 2006

Typographic Conventions Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide

viii Altera Corporation

October 2006

1. Getting Started

Introduction

Welcome to the Altera Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit, which
includes a full-featured field-programmable gate array (FPGA)
development board, hardware and software development tools,
documentation, and accessories needed to begin FPGA development.

The development board includes an Altera Cyclone II 2C20 FPGA and
comes preconfigured with a hardware reference design stored in flash
memory. Hardware designers can use the development board as a
platform to prototype complex embedded systems.

The Development Kit provides the user with an integrated control
environment that includes a software controller in C++, a USB command
controller, a multi-port SRAM/SDRAM/flash memory controller, and
demonstration circuitry specified in Verilog code. These features enable
users to implement and test designs without the need to implement
complex application programming interfaces (APIs), host control
software, or SRAM/SDRAM/flash memory controllers.

This user guide addresses the following topics:

■ How to set up, power up, and verify correct operation of the

development board

■ How to install the Altera Development Suite Tools and the Cyclone

II FPGA Starter Development Kit CD-ROMs

■ How to set up, and use the Control Panel, a graphical user interface

(GUI), to manipulate components on the board, implement
applications, and display images on a VGA monitor

■ How to configure the Cyclone II FPGA

■ How to set up and run application examples

f For complete details on the development board, refer to the

Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit Reference Manual.

Before You Begin

Altera Corporation 1–1
October 2006

Before proceeding, check the contents of the Development Kit:

■ Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development board

Further Information

■ Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit CD-ROM containing the

development board documentation and supporting materials,
including the User Guide and Reference Manual, Control Panel
utility, reference designs and demonstrations, device datasheets,
tutorials, and a set of laboratory exercises

■ The Altera Development Suite Tools CD-ROMs containing Altera

Quartus

®

II 6.0 Web Edition design software and the Nios® II 6.0

embedded processor

■ Bag of six rubber (silicon) covers for the development board stands

and extender pins that facilitate easier probing of the board I/O
expansion headers with testing equipment

■ 7.5 V DC wall-mount power supply

■ Clear plastic cover for the board

Other items you will want to have available to work through this user
guide are:

■ VGA monitor

■ Audio source such as a CD player or MP3 player

■ Headphones

■ PS/2 keyboard

Further
Information

For other related information, refer to the following websites:

■ For additional daughter cards available for purchase:

http://www.altera.com/products/devkits/kit­daughter_boards.jsp

■ For on-line demonstrations & training:

http://www.altera.com/education/demonstrations/dem­index.html and https://mysupport.altera.com/etraining/

■ For Cyclone II handbook:

http://www.altera.com/literature/lit-cyc2.jsp

■ For Cyclone II reference designs:

http://www.altera.com/end­markets/refdesigns/device/cyclone2/cyclone2-index.jsp

■ For eStore if wish to purchase devices:

http://www.altera.com/buy/devices/buy-devices.html

1–2 Altera Corporation
Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide October 2006

Getting Started

■ For Cyclone II Orcad symbols:

http://www.altera.com/support/software/download/pcb/pcb­pcb_index.html

■ For Nios II 32-bit embedded processor solutions:

http://www.altera.com/technology/embedded/emb-index.html

Hardware Installation

w Before beginning any work, prepare the board as follows:

■ Assemble a rubber (silicon) cover (Figure 1–1) for each of the six

copper stands on the board

■ Mount the clear plastic cover over the top of the board for extra

protection by using additional stands and screws

Figure 1–1. Board Stand Covers

Software Installation

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October 2006 Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide

The instructions in this section describe how to install the following:

■ Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development CD-ROM

■ The Quartus II Software, Development Kit Edition

Software Installation

Installing the Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit CD-ROM

The Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit CD-ROM contains the
following items:

■ Sample design files and board design files for the kit

■ Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide (this document)

■ Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Board Reference Manual

To ins t a ll t h e Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit CD-ROM, perform
the following steps:

1. Insert the Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit CD-ROM into the

CD-ROM drive.

1 The CD-ROM should start an auto-install process. If it does not,

browse to the CD-ROM drive and double-click on the setup.exe
file.

2. Follow the online instructions to complete the installation process.
The installation program copies the Cyclone II FPGA Starter
Development Kit files to the hard-disk and creates a

Programs > Altera > Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit v1.0.0

icon, accessible from the Windows Start menu. Use this icon to launch the
Windows-style development kit GUI.

The Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit installation program
creates a directory structure for the installed files (Figure 1–2), where
<path> is the selected Cyclone II Starter Development Kit installation
directory.

Figure 1–2. Cyclone II Starter Kit Installed Directory Structure

CII_Starter_Kit-v1.0.0

1–4 Altera Corporation
Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide October 2006

Getting Started

Table 1–1 lists the file directory names and a description of their contents.

Table 1–1. Installed Directory Contents

Directory Name Description of Contents

BoardDesignFiles Contains the board design files. Use these files

as a starting point for a new prototype board
design.

Docs Contains the development kit documentation

Examples Contains the sample design files for the Cyclone

II FPGA Starter Development Kit

Installing the Quartus II Software

Install the Quartus II Web Edition Software Suite found in the Altera Design
Software Suite by performing the following steps:

1. Insert the Quartus II Web Edition Software Suite CD-ROM into the
CD-ROM drive.

1 The CD-ROM should start an auto-install process. If it does not,

browse to the CD-ROM drive and double-click on the setup.exe
file.

2. Follow the online instructions to complete the installation process.

1 If you have difficulty installing the Quartus II software, refer to

Installing the Quartus II Software in the Quartus II Installation &
Licensing Manual for PCs found at www.altera.com

.

The Quartus II software is the primary FPGA development tool used to
create the reference designs used in this development kit.

Additionally, you may want to install the Nios II Embedded Design Suite
package also found in the Altera Design Software Suite. The Nios II
soft-core embedded processor runs on Altera FPGAs. Many of the
reference designs included in this development kit use the Nios
processor.

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October 2006 Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide

Software Installation

1–6 Altera Corporation
Cyclone II FPGA Starter Development Kit User Guide October 2006

2. Development Board Setup

Development Board Overview

Figure 2–1. Cyclone II Development Board Layout and Components

Altera delivers the development board (Figure 2–1) with a preloaded
configuration to demonstrate features of the board. At power up, the
preloaded configuration also enables users to confirm quickly that the
board is operating correctly.

Requirements

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October 2006

Preparation for using the development board requires the following
prerequisite actions: