FPGAs: the high-end alternative for DSP application
By Dr. Chris Dick
Introduction:
Engineers have been using field programmable gate arrays
(FPGAs) to build high performance DSP systems for several
years. FPGAs are uniquely suited to repetitive DSP tasks, such
as multiply and accumulate (MAC) operations because they
can perform these repetitive operations in parallel. As a result
FPGAs can vastly outperform DSP chips, which perform
operations in an essentially sequential fashion. In this article
Chris discusses how FPGA hardware can be used to augment
the processing power of traditional instruction-driven DSP
chips, while maintaining the flexibility and the upgrading ability
of software-implemented DSP algorithms.
Conclusion
FPGAs are being employed in a wide variety of signal processing
applications because of their:
superior performance
low cost
flexibility
low power consumption
The telecom industry has been particularly quick to embrace
FPGA technology. Nearly 50% of all FPGA chips currently being
manufactured are being used in telecom and networking equipment
of one sort or another — wireless base stations, switches,
routers and modems, to name a few.
The versatility of FPGA technology allows the support of multiple
protocol standards. One application might be a universal cellular
handset that automatically recognizes different signaling
standards (such as GSM, CDMA, TDMA, or AMPs) and reconfigures
itself to accommodate the recognized protocol.
The flexibility and the high performance provided by FPGAs also
allows engineers to easily track evolving standards (such as
MPEG) and to work successfully with fluid standards (such as
ADSL).
FPGA technology already represents a significant fraction of currently-
deployed signal processing hardware, and we are witnessing
an exponential growth in the insertion of FPGAs into digital
signal processing systems. This explosive growth is being
enhanced by access to FPGA intellectual property (IP) cores from
all of the major FPGA suppliers, as well as 3rd-party IP designers.
With these resources, system engineers are able to focus on their
system architecture, instead of getting bogged down in the details
of lower-level modules, such as filters and transforms.
The continuing evolution of communication standards (and the
highly competitive pressures in the marketplace) dictate that engineers
must begin their design while standards are still evolving.
In addition, third-generation wireless standards (and future-generation
wireless standards) will need to support multiple modulation
formats and air interface standards. FPGAs provide the flexibility
to achieve this, while simultaneously providing high levels
of performance.
from: DSP Engineering / Spring 2000
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