Collection of small FPGA starter projects for the Lattice ICE 40HX1K

List of projects

1. Pulsing LED
2. LFSR random pulsing LEDs
3. GTKWave testing
4. Two integer binary multiplicatio
5. Tiny Encryption Algorithm
6. UART connection between Icestick and Arduino

Use apio build tools (preferred)

1. Install apio from https://apiodoc.readthedocs.io/en/stable/source/installation.html

2. Follow steps in https://apiodoc.readthedocs.io/en/stable/source/quick_start.html#create-a-project

   • apio init --icestick
   • apio build
   • apio upload

Manual installation

Install build tools

chmod +x install_ice40_toolchain_mac.sh
./install_ice40_toolchain_mac.sh

To build and load instructions to the board:

1. Write Verilog Code

   • Create your design in a .v file

   nano blinky.v
   

2. Synthesize Design

   • Run synthesis tool (Yosys)

   yosys -p "synth_ice40 -top module_name -json output.json" input.v
   

3. Create Constraints File

   • Define pin mappings in a .pcf file

   nano pinout.pcf
   

4. Place and Route

   • Run place and route tool (nextpnr)

   nextpnr-ice40 --hx1k --package vq100 --json input.json --pcf pinout.pcf --asc output.asc
   

5. Generate Bitstream

   • Convert ASCII to binary bitstream

   icepack output.asc output.bin
   

6. Upload to FPGA

   • Connect FPGA board
   • Use upload tool to program FPGA with bitstream

   iceprog output.bin
   

7. Verify

   • Check if design works as expected on FPGA

Notes:

• Replace module_name, input.v, output.json, etc., with your actual file names.
• The --hx1k --package vq100 options in the nextpnr command are specific to the iCE40-HX1K in a VQ100 package. Adjust these for your specific FPGA model.
• Ensure all necessary tools (Yosys, nextpnr, icestorm) are installed and in your system PATH.