LimeSDR embedded use

  • currently I am using LimeSDR with host processor to generate different waveform on different Transmitter ports by loading a script using OPEN Tab.

  • I want to use LimeSDR without host processor in application that don’t need any host processor

  • As we are generate a bit file in Xilinx FPGA and burn on it . and that make us capable to use any where by powering up . I want to use LimeSDR like any Xilinx or Altera fpga in embedded application. kindly guide me to some tutorial or documents.

Best Regards

I’m not sure that there are any tutorials for standalone use. The gateware sources are on GitHub, of course.

You are fortunate - there is an onboard serial flash device that can be used to program the FPGA. But there is a switch to select between the Cypress USB controller or the flash being connected to the FPGA; you would need to pull R64 to default the switch to the configuration flash.

The FPGA MSEL pins are strapped to ‘0010’, which for the Cyclone IV-E devices indicates active serial programming with a standard power-on delay. That means that as soon as power is applied, the FPGA will configure itself with whatever is in the boot flash.

To get your code into the boot flash, you use JTAG indirect (aka ‘JIC’) via the FPGA programming header J11.

You’re in luck - it appears all the bits are there to do what you want.

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I haven’t tested, but looking at the flash connections it appears that the Cypress CY3014 puts the FPGA configuration into the serial flash device, and allows the FPGA to configure itself.

So you might just need to put your custom FPGA in the correct directory (on my machine, ~/.local/share/LimeSuite/images/17.09) and run LimeUtil --update to get it on the flash - much simpler than via the JIC route.

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Thanks for your kind reply.
i have downloaded "LimeSDR-USB_GW-master " from Github and try to open it in Quartus-II but didn’t open it .

What version of Quartus? I’ve been using 15.1.2-193; I believe that’s the version the binaries on GitHub were compiled with.

Correct.