FPGA package migration?

Projects LimeSDR
1

Is the current EP4CE40F23C8 using the F484 package?

Does that mean it would be possible to mount a EP4CE115 on the LimeSDR?

2

Or to put it in a different way: will the LimeSDR support the biggest FPGA in the Cyclone IV E family?

3

@zener, I’m afraid I couldn’t say, but @Zack may be able to comment.

4

@zener, it will support EP4CE30 only. The reason - bigger brothers uses GND pins instead of signal within the same package.

1 Like
5

Thank you Zack.

But wouldn’t it have worked if the pins were allocated first for the 280/103 pins on the E115 device and then migrated to the 328/124 pins on the E30/E40? Of course you never know until you try to do the pin migration in Quartus…

6

@zener This is were we started. But almost all the pins are used in case of EP4CE40F23 device. Hence no chance to fit to the same package but less pins.

1 Like
7

@Zack

I searched for “set_location_assignment” and 226 PINs (including DDR2 assignments) were assigned in the project.

So, it looks like @zener made an interesting point as “wouldn’t it have worked if the pins were allocated first for the 280/103 pins on the E115 device and then migrated to the 328/124 pins on the E30/E40”

I would guess that the Blade RF SDR digital designers have had this option in mind to make the board compatible with 40K ( EP4CE40F23C8) and 115K ( EP4CE115F23C8) devices.

If this is feasible, couldn’t a new PCB revision be compatible with E115 device via migration?

It would be interesting to play with HW accelerators in the big brother FPGA.