CAEN
Electronic Instrumentation
UM6508
–
DT5495 User Manual rev. 0
7
1
Introduction
The DT5495 is a general-purpose programmable FPGA and I/O unit in a compact desktop form factor. The
board is a suitable solution for the implementation of digital functions such as Coincidence, Trigger Logic,
Gate and Delay Generator, Input/Output Register and more.
The programmable architecture is based on the User FPGA (hereafter UFPGA). The UFPGA is directly
interfaced to the front panel I/Os and to an onboard Gate and Delay Generator, that allows to delay and gate
up to 32 signals. A second FPGA, the Main FPGA (hereafter MFPGA), is responsible for USB and Ethernet
interface management. The MFPGA communicates with the UFPGA through an internal local bus.
The presence of three expansion slots interfaced to the UFPGA allows to extend the channel interface of the
DT5495 by adding up to three independent mezzanine boards. Five mezzanine board types are available:
A395A, A395B, A395C, A395D, A395E (see
Tab. 1.2
). The DT5495 can reach a maximum of 194 I/O channels.
The board can be controlled and programmed through either the Ethernet or the USB interface. The
CAENUpgrader software tool is provided to upload the FPGA firmware, while a dedicated C library is
available to support the custom software development. A rear panel dedicated JTAG connector allows for in-
system JTAG configuration and debugging (e.g. using Altera SignalTap).
Simple operations, like retrieving the board information or changing the ethernet settings, can be performed
simply via the Internet or a Local Area Network (LAN) through the web inteface, without need of any control
software but just opening a web browser.
The DT5495 is also available in VME form factor, called V2495, which represents an evolution of CAEN V1495
board. Thanks to several analogies with the V1495 (e.g. the front panel connectors have the same function
and nomenclature with respect to the V1495), users who want to upgrade their system with the DT5495 can
port their firmware already developed for the V1495 just considering few hints (Sect.
Porting V1495 to
DT5495
).
The following
Tab. 1.1
is a comparison table between the two modules.
V1495
DT5495
User FPGA
Altera Cyclone EPI1C20, 20k LEs
Altera Cyclone V GX, 50k LEs
Front Panel I/O
Sections A and B (2 x 68-pin Robinson Nugent connector; 32 input channel each)
Section C (1 x 68-pin Robinson Nugent connector; 32 output channels)
Section G (2 X LEMO connector; input/output channels)
On-board Delay
Generator
4 Delay lines
32 Gate and Delay lines
Local Bus
16-bit 50 MHz parallel interface
VME Bus
Addressing spaces: A24, A32
Data transfer modes: D16, D32, BLT32
Not Supported
USB Interface
Not Supported
USB2.0
ETH Interface
Not Supported
ETHERNET 10/100T
Mezzanine
Boards
A395A, A395B, A395C, A395D, A395E
Tab. 1.1:
Comparison table between V1495 and DT5495
