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ENGN3213 Digital Systems and Microprocessors

Later Year Course

Offered By Research School of Engineering
Academic Career Undergraduate
Course Subject Engineering
Offered in First Semester, 2011 and First Semester, 2012
Unit Value 6 units
Course Description

This course provides an introduction to the analysis and design of digital systems and microprocessors. Review of combinational analysis and design. Analysis and design of synchronous finite state machines and register transfer level systems. Computer aided design and programming of digital electronic circuits through the application of several modern software packages. A detailed introduction to VERILOG hardware description language. Extensive hardware labs involving the implementation of complex digital systems in FPGA programmable logic devices. Microprocessor devices, their architecture and instruction sets. Hardware aspects of instruction execution. Assembly language and C programming. Input/output, bus interfacing, interrupts. Co-design of digital hardware and microprocessor systems.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, students will have the knowledge and skills to

  • Use top-down design to translate system requirements into a practical digital design.
  • Design complex digital systems through finite state machines and the register transfer level technique and implement these in programmable logic.
  • Learn fixed point DSP.
  • Learn how to program in C and VERILOG HDL.
  • Learn to use ISE WebPACK to realise complex digital designs in FPGAs.
  • Learn about and use free and open source design software.
  • Learn practical electronics testbench skills and the ability to communicate appropriately via a lab notebook.
  • Learn to build and use microprocessors
Indicative Assessment

Assessment (10%) Midterm Exam (20%) Labs (30%) Exam and Project (40%)

Workload

21 lectures plus 3 hours of LABS per week.

Areas of Interest Engineering and Information Technology
Requisite Statement

ENGN2211 or ENGN2218

Prescribed Texts

Reading Material

  • Text book - John F Wakerly (Digital Design, Principles and Practices, Prentice Hall) - available now in the book shop.
  • There is a reading brick from 2008.  It is now out of date but we still cover everything in it.

There are a number of other texts eg:

  • Vahid and Lysecky (Verilog for Digital Design, Wiley): good for RTL verilog.
  • Milos Ercegovac (Introduction to Digital Systems, Wiley. Chs 13-15) good for RTL design but all in VHDL and
  • Furber (ARM SoC Architecture, Addison-Wesley): background reading for later on in the course.

Reading Material On the WEBSITE

  • The old brick (ENGN3213 2008 Brick.pdf). There are a limited number available in hardcopy for AUD 7. 
  • The detailed tour of the (course lecture3 and 4.pdf). This is lectures 3-4 and it will prove useful to download it already for tomorrow's lecture.
  • PICOBLAZE manuals: hardware manual (xapp213.pdf) and C compiler (pccomp manual.pdf)
  • Datasheets for Xilinx FPGAs
  • Several documents on Finite State Machines (FSMs), Register Transfer Level (RTL) Design and VERILOG HDL
  • The CLAB and HLAB manuals will become available as needed.
Other Information

Course page http://eng.anu.edu.au/study/currentstudents/courses

The information published on the Study at ANU 2011 website applies to the 2011 academic year only. All information provided on this website replaces the information contained in the Study at ANU 2010 website.

Updated:   13 Nov 2015 / Responsible Officer:   The Registrar / Page Contact:   Student Business Solutions