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https://github.com/vitalych/fpga-gameoflife

A game-of-life implementation for the FPGA4U board, with SDRAM, RS232 UART, and VGA controllers
https://github.com/vitalych/fpga-gameoflife

bitmap dithering fpga fpga4u game-of-life image quartus rs232 sdram uart vga

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A game-of-life implementation for the FPGA4U board, with SDRAM, RS232 UART, and VGA controllers

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README 

        
======================

Game of Life on FPGA4U

======================



In this project, we implement the game of life on the `FPGA4U

`__. The final result features a high-resolution VGA

controller, an RS232 UART, and an SDRAM controller. It allows uploading game of

life patterns and eight-color high resolution images. It is possible to run the

game step by step or in continuous mode. The VHDL design is entirely

configurable: baud rate, VGA resolution, and grid size are customizable. The

project uses two different PLLs for the VGA controller and the SDRAM to allow

high screen refresh rates without being limited by the SDRAM speed.



This project was originally done in spring semester 2007 at the Logic Systems

Laboratory, EPFL (Lausanne) under the supervision of Prof. Eduardo Sanchez.



.. image:: Documentation/images/picm.jpg



Setup instructions

==================



This readme explains how to build and run the project. For more details about

the design and implementation, please go `here `__.



1. Download and install Quartus II WebEdition v13.0sp1 with Cyclone II

   support. Note that more recent versions do not support Cyclone II anymore.



2. Install the Quartus programming driver. This is required in order to flash the

   bitstream on the development board. You should find the driver in

   ``C:\altera\13.0sp1\quartus\drivers\usb-blaster-ii``.



3. Open the ``gameoflife.qpf`` project file. You should see something like this:



    .. image:: Documentation/images/quartus1.png



4. Build the project (Processing / Start Compilation). At the end of the

   process, you should see the following summary:



    .. image:: Documentation/images/quartus2.png



5. Connect the board via USB and open the programmer (Tools / Programmer).

   Select the ``USB Blaster`` and click ``Start``.



    .. image:: Documentation/images/quartus3.png



6. Connect the VGA extension board to the output pins of the board as shown on the

   photo at the beginning of this tutorial. You can use any similar board as

   long as it has 3 pins for color input, 1 for vertical retrace, and 1 for

   horizontal retrace. You can see the pin assignments in the main ``bdf`` file

   above.



Customizing design parameters

=============================



You may customize the screen resolution, the serial port speed, as well as the

pre-defined grid pattern by modifying the following settings. By default,

they assume a 1280x1024 resolution and a 921600 baud rate. The VGA controller

runs at 134MHz while the SDRAM runs at 80MHz.



.. warning::



    If you change clock frequencies here, please also change the PLL settings

    in the ``bdf`` file (see the ``pll1`` and ``sdram_pll`` in the screenshot above).



.. image:: Documentation/images/quartus4.png



Uploading background images

===========================



When the design is loaded, the screen is initialized with a blue-black pattern.

You can upload the background picture through the RS232 connector.



1. Install Visual Studio 2019 and build the ``Utilities.sln`` project.

   You will need C# and C++ support.



2. Connect an RS232 module to the board. You may use any module you want, e.g.,

   a MAX232 chip. Note that by default, the design is compiled assuming a

   921600 bps rate. Some USB-to-serial adapters, such as the Prolific PL2303

   support high rates. If this is too high, reduce it by modifying the

   corresponding parameter and rebuild the project.



4. Put the board into image upload mode.

   All the switches on the board must be in the ``0`` position.



5. Choose a bitmap image (jpeg, bmp, png...) and convert it to a bitstream file

   that is understood by the design.



   .. code-block:: bash



        cd C:\Users\demo\gameoflife\Samples\background

        ..\..\Utilities\Release\BitmapConverter.exe bin space.jpg 4 space.bin

        ..\..\Utilities\Release\Serial.exe 921600 space.bin \\.\com3



Uploading grid files

====================



You will find a few sample grids in the ``Samples\grid`` folder.

A grid is a black-and-white 320x240 image. This image can be either generated

from a ``.life`` file or hand-drawn. Then, the bitmap is converted to a binary

file suitable for upload to the board.



1. Convert a ``.life`` file to a bitmap.



   .. code-block:: bash



        ..\..\Utilities\Release\net40\Grid2Bmp.exe 320 240 filler.life filler.bmp



2. Convert the bitmap to a binary



   .. code-block:: bash



        ..\..\Utilities\Release\BitmapConverter.exe bin filler.bmp 1 filler.bin



3. Put the board in grid upload mode. If you use the FPGA4U, enable switches 5 and 1

   on ``SW2``. More information on the board layout and switch position can be found

   `here `__.



4. Upload the grid.



   .. code-block:: bash



        ..\..\Utilities\Release\Serial.exe 921600 filler.bin \\.\com3



5. Disable grid upload mode (switch 5), disable single step mode (switch 1), and

   resume the game (push button ``SW3``).