A Brief Plunify Simulation Tutorial
The following step-by-step guide to simulation is aimed at users new to Plunify or to FPGA design in general.
After a design is described in Verilog / VHDL, usually the next step is to run a simulation in order to verify if the general functionality is correct. There are many types of simulations and simulators.
Plunify can be used to simulate a Verilog / VHDL design, using the Icarus Verilog and GHDL simulators. The following example uses a simple counter in Verilog, provided by default when you register with us.
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First, log on at www.plunify.com. The Project Manager's initial page appears. Your home directory and its contents are displayed on the left. Click and navigate to /Home/Sample_Project/Simulation/Verilog/counter/ |
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Click the "Simulate" tab. Select "Verilog (Icarus Verilog) as your simulator. Select your Verilog source files using the built-in file explorer. Click "Next". |
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Click the "Simulate" button. (In this case, we don't have to specify a "Commandfile", which is a batch file that Icarus Verilog uses.) |
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At this point, your simulation has started. Click "Close", followed by the "Reports" tab. Your simulation will be displayed under "Pending Jobs". |
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When the simulation completes, its job entry vanishes from "Pending Jobs" and appear in "Completed Jobs". A blue notification message also pops out near the top. To view results, click the above message (You will also be sent a notification email). |
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Click "View" beside your job entry in "Completed Jobs" |
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Two, potentially three types of results exist:
Click "View" beside each result to examine them. These files can also be downloaded. |
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To view a simulation waveform, click beside the waveform file. |
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Display relevant signals by selecting them and clicking the "Display Waveform" button. Use the scroll and zoom buttons to examine your waveform and debug your simulation. |
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But of course, simulation is a repetitive process, at least until your design works. Make changes to your source files and upload them. Run the simulation again via the above steps, or use the button. |
This concludes our brief simulation tutorial.
Feel free to try the other examples as well, which include the same Verilog counter but with an Icarus Verilog command file, and a VHDL adder example that uses the GHDL simulator.
Questions / comments / kudos / hate mail can be sent to tellus@plunify.com