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USB JTAG programmers?

Hi there.

I've been programming using a parallel byteBlaster-type lead, attatched to an old 486, via a network connection to my laptop. This is because my laptop is devoid of parallel or serial ports (oh, the foresight). I hear I can't use USB to Parallel adaptors (arse!) and I can't imagine me finding a pcmcia parallel adaptor (though I could make one..?) and looking on alteras site reveals they want about £150/$300usd for their USB baster. Nads to that - Anyone know of anywhere selling a usb programmer for sensible (hobbyist) amounts? Or a way out of my situation? Thanks.

-Alan / randomdude

Reply to
Alan Randomdude
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HI Alan, A freind of mine is working on a design to make a USB programmer for Altera and Xilinx. I think he has the HW working well but working on the SW side (that is the trickey one), but I will ask him if he is interested in sharing his ideas here with others.

BR, HK

Reply to
Hasan K.

There is a PCMCIA to Parallel-Port adapter available: QUATECH SPP-100, Single parallel port PCMCIA card for about 160,00 Euro, it worked well on several PC´s...

And for just configuring - have a look at the FTDI chips and bit-bang app-notes:

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with best regards,

Peter Seng

############################# SENG digitale Systeme GmbH Im Bruckwasen 35 D 73037 Goeppingen Germany tel +49 7161 75245 fax +49 7161 72965 eMail snipped-for-privacy@seng.de net

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"Alan Randomdude" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com...

Reply to
Peter Seng

The FT2232 has a dedicated serial engine to generate JTAG/SPI/I2C. However I have not seen an open project for JTASG interface to use this chip.

Bye

--
Uwe Bonnes                bon@elektron.ikp.physik.tu-darmstadt.de

Institut fuer Kernphysik  Schlossgartenstrasse 9  64289 Darmstadt
--------- Tel. 06151 162516 -------- Fax. 06151 164321 ----------
Reply to
Uwe Bonnes

I

If someone cares to do something...

The AT91SAM7S64 is nice for the job.

  • USB Client
  • ARM7 running at 48 MHz (will not handle 70'C at this temp though)
  • Built in Flash and SRAM
  • High speed synch interface for JTAG Master

This should be MUCH MUCH fatser than bitbanging. There is of course the small matter of programming...

The AT91SAM7A3 is even better, but availability of production part is later.

Couped with a dataflash on the SPI bus you coul dbuild a device which looks like a USB Mass Storage Device so you could easily download the bitstream, and at powerup the ARM would configure the FPGA(s)

Too lazy to do it myself, but I am sure it would be sellable.

Best Regards ulf at a-t-m-e-l.doth com This is a personal view which may or may not be share by my Employer Atmel Nordic AB

Reply to
Ulf Samuelsson

Looks nice, but:

- Digi has no chips on stock, and the other usual suspects don't have that chips at all...

--
Uwe Bonnes                bon@elektron.ikp.physik.tu-darmstadt.de

Institut fuer Kernphysik  Schlossgartenstrasse 9  64289 Darmstadt
--------- Tel. 06151 162516 -------- Fax. 06151 164321 ----------
Reply to
Uwe Bonnes

on

I

Hello,

why JTAG??? For configuring CCLK, DATA and Done are all You need.

- no special knowledge about JTAG (just a Xilinx/Altera/Xxx data sheet)

- no special knowledge about USB and OS (comes from FTDI)

If debug or CPLD´s come into discussion things may be different....

with best regards,

Peter Seng

############################# SENG digitale Systeme GmbH Im Bruckwasen 35 D 73037 Goeppingen Germany tel +49 7161 75245 fax +49 7161 72965 eMail snipped-for-privacy@seng.de net

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Reply to
Peter Seng

They are not in production yet. A new rev comes this month, which will add some nice functionality I cannot really talk about just yet.

Order 5 samples free of charege directly from Atmel or disti. There are many companies working with the part at the moment.

--
Best Regards,
Ulf Samuelsson   ulf@a-t-m-e-l.com
This is a personal view which may or may not be
share by my Employer Atmel Nordic AB
Reply to
Ulf Samuelsson

You do not need to run a special programming application with the ARM based solution. From your application that generates a bitstream, you define the location of the saved file to be on the flash disk. Lose one step in the development process = faster turnaround time.

The FTDI solution is faster and easier to implement, but this is much nicer... I think that the configuration of the FPGA will be much faster as well.

> 
--
Best Regards,
Ulf Samuelsson   ulf@a-t-m-e-l.com
This is a personal view which may or may not be
share by my Employer Atmel Nordic AB
Reply to
Ulf Samuelsson

"Ulf Samuelsson" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news: snipped-for-privacy@individual.net...

based

Hello,

the ARM based "solution" may be very interesting and demanding but original question (thats how I understood) was for a (simple) solution, just for configuring an FPGA. NOT FOR HAVING THE BEST AND POWERFUL AND GENERAL "POWERUSER-SOLUTION" FOR JTAG TOPICS. But maybe i´m wrong...

with best regards,

Peter Seng

############################# SENG digitale Systeme GmbH Im Bruckwasen 35 D 73037 Goeppingen Germany tel +49 7161 75245 fax +49 7161 72965 eMail snipped-for-privacy@seng.de net

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Reply to
Peter Seng

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