Mobile 3D Graphics SoC: From Algorithm to Chip

Appendix

Verilog HDL Design

This appendix introduces the hardware description language, Verilog. It describes how to use Verilog and create your own hardware models. After a short introduction, the design flow and the level of designs using Verilog are explained. Then the basic Verilog syntax is explained with basic examples. We include RTL code and simulation environments, so that users can simulate the rendering processor on their PC or workstation environment. In addition, the synthesis scripts are also included.

A.1 Introduction to Verilog Design

Verilog is a hardware description language (HDL), which is a language to describe a digital system such as microprocessor, application-specific unit, memory, or a simple flip–flop. Anyone can describe any hardware at any level of detail by using a hardware description language.

Verilog was developed initially as a proprietary hardware modeling language by Gateway Design Automation Inc. around 1984. It is very similar to traditional computer language such as C. At that time, Verilog was not standardized and the language became modified in almost all the revisions that came out between 1984 and 1990. A Verilog simulator was first used in early 1985 and was extended substantially through to 1987. In 1990, Cadence Design Systems decided to acquire Gateway, so Cadence became the owner of the Verilog language, and continued to market Verilog as both a language and a simulator. At the same time, Synopsys was marketing the top-down design ...