Have you ever wondered why your digital circuit designer is able to comfortably find the way around even the “toughest” of designs? While the designer can be experienced and all that, we wouldn’t rule out the fact that some designers became professionals because of the inputs of development boards.
These development boards and the associating evaluation kits serve as frameworks for the designer to:
- First, understand how the concept works and;
- Second, to master how to configure the board.
In this Artix-7 Basys 3 review, you will learn more about how its development board works. You will also find out some of the features and advantages of using the same.
What is the Artix-7 Basys 3?
It is an entry-level Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) development board. Like other development boards, it serves as a “map” for the digital circuit design trainees to understand the best way to go about the circuit design.
With the Artix-7 Basys 3, you can also master how to place the components, and how to prototype the circuit board.
Who Needs the Artix-7 Basys 3 Development Board?
The truth is that the Artix-7 Basys 3 isn’t your regular or traditional development board. Although most FPGA development boards are for newbies, this one is explicitly for student-trainees.
The idea is for more students interested in FPGA design to take advantage of the Artix-7 Basys 3 to try their hands on some prototyped designs.
One of the core reasons for the student-focused-designs is the low-costs. For a seemingly costly FPGA development board, it offers low barriers to entry. Student-trainees can comfortably afford it, as it below $200, depending on the supplier.
Artix-7 Basys 3: Digilent and Xilinx
For years now, Xilinx has been at the forefront of manufacturing development boards and evaluation kits for Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs).
However, it is now a partner to Digilent, which is the company that built the Artix-7 Basys 3 development board.
Digilent manufactured the Artix-7 Basys 3 to be an entry-level FPGA development board exclusively designed for use with the Xilinx Vivado Design Suite.
As such, beginners and students in the FPGA design field can take advantage of it to learn how to design a Xilinx Artix-7 Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA).
Features of the Artix-7 Basys 3 FPGA Development Board
What are some of the features that make the Artix-7 Basys 3 different from the other FPGA development boards out there?
1. Powered by Superb Software
The Artix-7 Basys 3 is powered by the Digilent Adept Software. The software allows the designer to connect the board to external logic devices, as well as the other Digilent system boards.
2. Excellent Interfacing with the Xilinx Vivado Design Suite
The fact that the Artix-7 Basys 3 is specifically designed for the Xilinx Vivado Design Suite means that the suite can be used to modify the designs of the board.
In addition, designers can take advantage of the suite to create both synthesis and analysis of the HDL designs.
Besides, you can download the free WebPACK version of the Vivado Design Suite from the official Xilinx website.
Artix-7 Basys 3 development board also has the following properties:
- 1,800 Kbits of fast block RAM.
- It features the Xilinx XC7A35T-1CPG236C FPGA.
- 4-digit, 7-segment display.
- Five (5) Clock Management Tiles (CMTs), including Phase-Locked Loop (PLL) for each.
- 5 user pushbuttons.
- 90 DSP slices.
- Serial Flash
- Internal clock speeds, exceeding 450 MHz.
- On-chip Analog-to-Digital Converter (XADC)
- 16 user LEDs
- USB-UART Bridge
- 12-bit VGA Output
Conclusion
Artix-7 Basys 3 is one of the best, beginner-friendly FPGA development boars you can work with. Contact EBICS for professional advice on how to maximize the user of the board.