Description
Design and modelling of digital systems using hardware description languages. Digital system design process. Impact of various implementation technologies. Design for testability. Fault tolerant systems. High performance systems. Project
Prereq: ECE 222, 223 and (3B Comp. Eng. or higher than 3B Elect. Eng.)
Prereq: ECE 222, 223 and (3B Comp. Eng. or higher than 3B Elect. Eng.)
General Information
Important Deadlines
Lab 1 will be due May 20th (Saturday) 11:59pm
Lab 2 will be due June 3rd (Saturday) 11:59pm
Lab 3a will be due June 10th (Saturday) 11:59pm
Lab 3b will be due June 24th (Saturday) 11:59pm
Project Part 1 (Dataflow Diagrams) will be due July 4th (Tuesday) 11:59pm
Project Part 2 (VHDL Code & Report) will be due July 18th (Tuesday) 11:59pm
Project Part 3 (Demo) due July 20th in lab
[Delay Penalty] Latest by July 25th
Lab 2 will be due June 3rd (Saturday) 11:59pm
Lab 3a will be due June 10th (Saturday) 11:59pm
Lab 3b will be due June 24th (Saturday) 11:59pm
Project Part 1 (Dataflow Diagrams) will be due July 4th (Tuesday) 11:59pm
Project Part 2 (VHDL Code & Report) will be due July 18th (Tuesday) 11:59pm
Project Part 3 (Demo) due July 20th in lab
[Delay Penalty] Latest by July 25th
Marking
The standard division of marks is:
Lab-1 1%
Lab-2 2%
Lab-3 3%
Project 24%
Midterm 20%
Final Exam 50%
There are two factors that cause the weights of the marks to be adjusted:
If the final-exam mark is better than the midterm mark, then the weight of the final exam is increased and the weight of the midterm is decreased. The final exam weight can increase from 50% up to a maximum of 60%. The midterm weight can decrease from 20% down to a minimum of 10%. Thus, the combined weight of the midterm and final exam is always 70%. The measure of whether the final exam mark is "better" than the midterm mark is with respect to the average difference between the marks on the final and midterm.
If the weighted average of the midterm mark and final exam mark is less than 60, then the combined weight of the exams increases linearily from 70% up to 100% for a combined exam mark of 50 or less.
The principles behind the rules for adjusting the weighting are:
The marking scheme should be stable, in that a small change to the inputs (raw marks) should cause only a small change to the output (grade in the course).
The grade in the course should reflect overall knowledge of the course material.
If a student does poorly on the midterm and does well on the final exam, the final exam is more reflective of the student's overall knowledge of the course. This is the justification of adjusting the weight between the midterm and final. The minimum weight of the midterm is 10%, because the final exam is unable to cover all of the material in the course.
The exams reflect the individual work of a student. If a student's exam mark indicates a failing mastery of the course material, then the student should fail the course. Thus a combined average of less than 50 for the midterm and final results in a course grade of less than 50.
Lab-1 1%
Lab-2 2%
Lab-3 3%
Project 24%
Midterm 20%
Final Exam 50%
There are two factors that cause the weights of the marks to be adjusted:
If the final-exam mark is better than the midterm mark, then the weight of the final exam is increased and the weight of the midterm is decreased. The final exam weight can increase from 50% up to a maximum of 60%. The midterm weight can decrease from 20% down to a minimum of 10%. Thus, the combined weight of the midterm and final exam is always 70%. The measure of whether the final exam mark is "better" than the midterm mark is with respect to the average difference between the marks on the final and midterm.
If the weighted average of the midterm mark and final exam mark is less than 60, then the combined weight of the exams increases linearily from 70% up to 100% for a combined exam mark of 50 or less.
The principles behind the rules for adjusting the weighting are:
The marking scheme should be stable, in that a small change to the inputs (raw marks) should cause only a small change to the output (grade in the course).
The grade in the course should reflect overall knowledge of the course material.
If a student does poorly on the midterm and does well on the final exam, the final exam is more reflective of the student's overall knowledge of the course. This is the justification of adjusting the weight between the midterm and final. The minimum weight of the midterm is 10%, because the final exam is unable to cover all of the material in the course.
The exams reflect the individual work of a student. If a student's exam mark indicates a failing mastery of the course material, then the student should fail the course. Thus a combined average of less than 50 for the midterm and final results in a course grade of less than 50.
Computer and Lab Facilities
The course will use synthesis software from Mentor Graphics (Precision RTL) and Altera (Quartus) and simulation software from Mentor Graphics (ModelSim).
The software is installed on the ECE Linux and Nexus computers. For room numbers and door combinations, login to ecelinux and type: cat /usr/share/welcome
The Altera FPGA boards are in E2-2363, the door combination for this room will be given out in lecture when the room is ready for use. The room is available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, except when reserved for other courses.
The software is installed on the ECE Linux and Nexus computers. For room numbers and door combinations, login to ecelinux and type: cat /usr/share/welcome
The Altera FPGA boards are in E2-2363, the door combination for this room will be given out in lecture when the room is ready for use. The room is available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, except when reserved for other courses.
Labs
There are three labs to introduce you to VHDL, the simulation software, the synthesis software, and the FPGAs that we will be using. The third lab is a design challenge/opportunity, and so is more difficult than than the first two labs.
Lab 1 Adders and flip-flops
Lab 2 State machines and datapaths
Lab 3 Preview of the project
You may work individually or in groups of two for the labs.
Lab 1 Adders and flip-flops
Lab 2 State machines and datapaths
Lab 3 Preview of the project
You may work individually or in groups of two for the labs.
Project
The project will be the design of a variation of a Kirsch edge-detector circuit in VHDL. The project shall be done in groups four. Marking will be based on area/performance, correct functionality, a demo, and a brief report.
Midterm
Almost all of the questions at the end of the chapters come from prior exams, so all of the questions are good examples to study from.
Midterm exams usually have a set of short questions that cover as many topics as possible, and then a few longer questions that require more detailed work. The topics for the in-depth questions are chosen randomly from lectures and course notes, with the provision that at the end of the course, the percentage of the mark that comes from each topic will be roughly proportional to the amount of material on that topic in the lectures and course notes.
The midterm will be closed book, closed notes. Calculators will be allowed.
The proctors and instructors will not answer questions, except in cases where an error on the exam is suspected. If you are confused about a question, write down your assumptions or interpretation. This procedure ensures that all students receive the same information and that all exams are marked consistently.
Midterm exams usually have a set of short questions that cover as many topics as possible, and then a few longer questions that require more detailed work. The topics for the in-depth questions are chosen randomly from lectures and course notes, with the provision that at the end of the course, the percentage of the mark that comes from each topic will be roughly proportional to the amount of material on that topic in the lectures and course notes.
The midterm will be closed book, closed notes. Calculators will be allowed.
The proctors and instructors will not answer questions, except in cases where an error on the exam is suspected. If you are confused about a question, write down your assumptions or interpretation. This procedure ensures that all students receive the same information and that all exams are marked consistently.
Final
The final exam will cover all of the material in the course, with the provision that at the end of the course, the percentage of the mark that comes from each topic will be roughly proportional to the amount of material on that topic in the lectures and course notes.
Almost all of the questions at the end of the chapters come from prior exams, so all of the questions are good examples to study from.
The final will be closed book, closed notes. Calculators will be allowed.
The proctors and instructors will not answer questions, except in cases where an error on the exam is suspected. If you are confused about a question, write down your assumptions or interpretation. This procedure ensures that all students receive the same information and that all exams are marked consistently.
Almost all of the questions at the end of the chapters come from prior exams, so all of the questions are good examples to study from.
The final will be closed book, closed notes. Calculators will be allowed.
The proctors and instructors will not answer questions, except in cases where an error on the exam is suspected. If you are confused about a question, write down your assumptions or interpretation. This procedure ensures that all students receive the same information and that all exams are marked consistently.
Course notes and lecture slides
The course notes and lecture slides will be the primary source of reading material for the course. They will be available in Piazza.
The Piazza ece327 discussion forum is the primary forum for announcements, questions and answers. You are encouraged to read it regularly, and to respond to other students' questions if you have some helpful information.
The Piazza ece327 discussion forum is the primary forum for announcements, questions and answers. You are encouraged to read it regularly, and to respond to other students' questions if you have some helpful information.
| Name | Office Hours | |
|---|---|---|
Eric Praetzel | When? Where? | |
Nusa Zidaric | When? Where? | |
Ahmed Ayoub | When? Where? | |
Marat Sattarov | When? Where? | |
Nachiket Kapre | When? Where? |