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Write FPGA Firmware using Rust
This crate allows you to write FPGA firmware using Rust! There are a number of advantages to writing firmware in Rust vs. other approaches:
- Safe - have Rust check the validity of your firmware with strongly typed interfaces at compile time, as well as at run time, synthesis, and on the device.
- Fast - Run simulations of your designs straight from your rust code, with pretty good simulation performance.
- Readable - RustHDL outputs Verilog code for synthesis and implementation, and goes through some effort to make sure that code is readable and understandable, in case you need to resolve timing issues or other conflicts.
- Reusable - RustHDL supports templated firmware for parametric use, as well as a simple composition model based on structs.
- Batteries Included - RustHDL includes a set of basic firmware widgets that provide FIFOs, RAMs and ROMs, Flip flops, SPI components, PWMs etc, so you can get started quickly.
- Free - Although you can use RustHDL to wrap existing IP cores, all of the RustHDL code and firmware is open source and free to use.
This crate is the top level crate, and provides a single installation point for a number of the component crates that make up RustHDL. These crates are focused on different types of functionality, and provide a different subset of the functionality of RustHDL. Here are the component crates
- Core - this crate provides the core functionality of RustHDL. It includes the base data types and traits needed to construct and simulate firmware.
- Macros - this crate provides the procedural macro support that allows you to use the Rust syntax to write firmware.
- Widgets - this crate provides a set of basic firmware widgets that can be used to compose designs. These are all written in Rust, and do not require third party IP cores.
- Yosys-Synth - this crate provides access to
yosys, which is used as the synthesis and validation tool for RustHDL. Generated Verilog can be checked usingyosysfor correctness. - Toolchain - There are several toolchain crates that cover different toolchain options for RustHDL. You can use your own toolchain as well. Toolchain support is very complicated, and currently, only ISE, Vivado, IceStorm and Project Trellis are known to work.
- Board Support Package - the BSP crates provide details specific to a single board type. These crates provide details about clock inputs, output pins and synthesis flags needed to generate downloadable firmware.
- Sim Chips - a few “simulated chips” - RustHDL simplified models for some physical chips that might prove useful for testing your firmware against. These don’t provide the equivalent functionality as the real chip, but give you a way to test your firmware in a completely simulated environment.
- OK Core - Wrappers for the OpalKelly FrontPanel firmware components. If you used devices from OpalKelly, this may prove useful to you.
- Test - some various test infrastructure firmware and tools for testing.