Recreating the Raspberry Pi RP2040 PIO interface in Verilog #RaspberryPi #Verilog #FPGA @lawriegriffiths

FPGA RP2040 PIO is an attempt to recreate the Raspberry Pi RP2040 PIO interface in Verilog.

PIO stands for Programmable I/O, and it is a peripheral that is part of the RP2040 SoC, which is much more flexible than hardware implementations of specific protocols like SPI, I2C, UART etc. It can implement all these protocols and more at high speed and on any GPIO pins.

It runs in up to 8 special processors, known as State Machines, which are programmed in assembler using a machine language designed specifically for fast cycle-accurate I/O. These processors run independently of the main CPUs.

This implementation has been done from the specification, without access to any Raspberry Pi HDL. It is currently incomplete, but some programs run in simulation and on open source FPGA boards.

The current supported boards are the Blackice MX and the Ulx3s. For use by a SoC, e.g. a RISC-V SoC such as SaxonSoc, the appropriate peripheral bus interface would need to be added.

For use from a host processor, such as one running MicroPython, an SPI read/write memory interface could be added. This would be a lot slower than a bus interface but speed is not usually an issue for configuration and control.

See more on GitHub.


Adafruit publishes a wide range of writing and video content, including interviews and reporting on the maker market and the wider technology world. Our standards page is intended as a guide to best practices that Adafruit uses, as well as an outline of the ethical standards Adafruit aspires to. While Adafruit is not an independent journalistic institution, Adafruit strives to be a fair, informative, and positive voice within the community – check it out here: adafruit.com/editorialstandards

Join Adafruit on Mastodon

Adafruit is on Mastodon, join in! adafruit.com/mastodon

Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.

Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat – we’ll post the link there.

Join us every Wednesday night at 8pm ET for Ask an Engineer!

Join over 36,000+ makers on Adafruit’s Discord channels and be part of the community! http://adafru.it/discord

CircuitPython – The easiest way to program microcontrollers – CircuitPython.org


Maker Business — “Packaging” chips in the US

Wearables — Enclosures help fight body humidity in costumes

Electronics — Transformers: More than meets the eye!

Python for Microcontrollers — Python on Microcontrollers Newsletter: Silicon Labs introduces CircuitPython support, and more! #CircuitPython #Python #micropython @ThePSF @Raspberry_Pi

Adafruit IoT Monthly — Guardian Robot, Weather-wise Umbrella Stand, and more!

Microsoft MakeCode — MakeCode Thank You!

EYE on NPI — Maxim’s Himalaya uSLIC Step-Down Power Module #EyeOnNPI @maximintegrated @digikey

New Products – Adafruit Industries – Makers, hackers, artists, designers and engineers! — #NewProds 7/19/23 Feat. Adafruit Matrix Portal S3 CircuitPython Powered Internet Display!

Get the only spam-free daily newsletter about wearables, running a "maker business", electronic tips and more! Subscribe at AdafruitDaily.com !



No Comments

No comments yet.

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.