Electronics & Applications Seminar - A Modular Firmware Framework for the INSIGHT Experiment with HDLMake
Zoom Link:
https://uni-bonn.zoom-x.de/j/7850372106?pwd=SJaPF6hqeYwjqt1sIVubLWQq4q2NBp.1&omn=66894903294
Abstract:
The INSIGHT experiment is the new experiment in the cluster initiative „Color Meets Flavor“ at ELSA. It features a novel, triggerless readout scheme that relies on FPGAs for acquisition and synchronization of the data from various sub-detectors. Therefore, custom firmware needs to be developed for the integration of each subdetector.
Presently, our group is developing a modular firmware framework with the goal of simplifying this process. During this process it became obvious that the FPGA tools themselves, such as Xilinx’ Vivado, got in the way of productive and reproducible workflows. Specifically, issues with version control and the need for manual interactions via the tools' graphical user interface turned out to be pain points.
This prompted us to explore HDLMake – „[...] a Python framework for generating multi-purpose Makefiles for various FPGA projects and vendors“ – as an alternative. In this talk, a present moving to a project-less workflow, driven by HDLMake, helped us achieve a more pleasant development experience.