35253 - Hardware – Software Design Methods M

Academic Year 2019/2020

  • Docente: Luca Benini
  • Credits: 6
  • SSD: ING-INF/01
  • Language: English

Learning outcomes

The class covers embedded system architectures and design methodologies and tools.  The focus is on programmable (hardware-software) system.  The main goal of the class is to provide an overview on several classes of systems and practical knowledge on how to design hardware and software for representative examples of state-of-the-art embedded systems used in a number of different industry segments.

Course contents

Part 1 – System-on-chip (SoC) hardware design – fundamental concepts exemplified on reconfigurable SoCs (Xilinx Zynq)

  • Hardware design Languages (HDLs) and their use to specify and implement combinational and sequential circuits. The main concepts are exemplified though the use of the SystemVerilog HDL
  • Hardware design flow and tools – Synthesis, simulation, verification. The main concepts are illustrated with examples using commercial electronic design automation (EDA) tools
  • IP-based design – building a design from pre-designed components.
Part 2 – Microcontroller systems design – Hardware and Software
  • Microcontroller architecture based on the ARM Cortex M family and RISC-V. Microcontroller peripherals. Microcontroller programming for maximum Energy efficiency
  • Analog and Digital sensor interfaces, MEMS sensors – Smart sensors – Wireless sensor Networks. System power management
Part 3 – Parallel Architecture and Parallel programming for advanced embedded systems
  • Multicore architectures and their use in energy efficient embedded Systems with examples from consumer and industrial market segments based on the ARMv8 instruction set (Cortex A family).
  • Programming shared memory multicore systems using the OpenMP programming model – with practical examples based on multicore development boards (e.g. Tega's Jetson)

Readings/Bibliography

See course web site

Teaching methods

See course web site

Assessment methods

Written exam and optional oral exam (possibly as a project discussion on a project agreed with instructor)

Teaching tools

See course web site on iol.unibo.it

Office hours

See the website of Luca Benini