Author Archives: Dan
Open-source FPGA Stereo Vision Core released
The first version of my open-source OpenCV–compatible FPGA Stereo Correspondence Core is now available! (have a look at my previous FPGA Stereo Vision Project post for some more context) It’s written purely in synthesizable Verilog, and uses device-agnostic inference for … Continue reading
FPGA Stereo Vision Project
As alluded to in a few of my other posts, I’m working on developing an open-source FPGA-accelerated vision platform. This post is a detailed overview of the project’s architecture and general development methodology. Future (and past) posts will elaborate on … Continue reading
Spartan-6 BGA test board
Eventually, when my FPGA stereo-vision project nears its terminus, I’m going to want to produce a refined sensor board that combines the image sensors and FPGA onto a single board. In preparation for that, this board is a test vehicle … Continue reading
Posted in FPGAs, Microcontrollers, PCBs, Technical
Tagged BGA, EAGLE, FPGA, microcontroller, PCB, Spartan-6, Xilinx
27 Comments
Reflow oven controller
Reflow soldering is not new. The electronics industry has been using it forever. Hobbyists have been flocking to it in droves. Many use toaster ovens. A growing contingent use skillets. A few do it open-loop. Some use integrated PID controllers. … Continue reading
Posted in Microcontrollers, Technical, Tools
Tagged AVR, GUI, MAX6675, microcontroller, Python, Qt, reflow oven, soldering, solid-state relay, thermocouple
8 Comments
MT9V032 LVDS camera board
Another piece of my ongoing FPGA stereo-vision project. This board is, as the name suggests, a breakout board for Aptina’s excellent MT9V032 1/3″ VGA image sensor. The board’s main purpose in life is to connect the LVDS output of the … Continue reading
Posted in Microcontrollers, PCBs, Technical
Tagged AVR, EAGLE, microcontroller, MT9V032, PCB, sensor, vision
24 Comments
Brushless DC motor controller board
Here’s a board I designed back in 2008. It’s an excessively feature-packed brushless DC motor (BLDC) controller. Bullet points: Can drive brushed and brushless (3-phase) DC motors 15~30V input voltage Single-supply operation (onboard LT3470 SMPS) 10+A per-phase current handling (Si4456DY … Continue reading
Posted in Microcontrollers, PCBs, Robots, Technical
Tagged ARM, BLDC, EAGLE, H-bridge, microcontroller, MOSFET, motor controller, PCB
9 Comments
FMC-LPC to SATA adapter board
I recently bought a shiny new Xilinx Spartan-6 FPGA SP605 Evaluation Kit: It’s an excellent board (aside from the ridiculous ~10W idle power consumption and the corresponding supply heating/temperature) – PCI-Express, gigabit ethernet, DVI, 1.6 GB/s 128 MB DDR3, and … Continue reading
Inferring true dual-port, dual-clock RAMs in Xilinx and Altera FPGAs
Yes, it’s actually possible! – in Verilog and VHDL, even. I’m a big fan of inference, especially as it applies to writing synthesizable Verilog code for FPGAs. Properly coded, a module that infers technology-dependent blocks (e.g. block RAMs) should: be … Continue reading
Launch
It has now been just over 6 years since I launched the last incarnation of my website. Finally, it has now been supplanted by this – a site that can safely be regarded as superior in virtually every way (if … Continue reading
Posted in Non-Technical, Technical
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