* Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? @ 2005-01-20 23:44 Jim 2005-01-21 4:42 ` Stephen Leake 2005-01-21 6:06 ` Upkeep 0 siblings, 2 replies; 9+ messages in thread From: Jim @ 2005-01-20 23:44 UTC (permalink / raw) Hello, Does somebody here know, how to translate a hardware description code of Spark Ada/Ada in VHDL for FPGA/CPLD? Is there automatic tools for these translation? Can I program code for FPGA with Spark Ada? please help me! thank you very much Jim ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
* Re: Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? 2005-01-20 23:44 Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? Jim @ 2005-01-21 4:42 ` Stephen Leake 2005-01-21 7:26 ` Vinzent 'Gadget' Hoefler 2005-02-27 15:50 ` Colin Paul Gloster 2005-01-21 6:06 ` Upkeep 1 sibling, 2 replies; 9+ messages in thread From: Stephen Leake @ 2005-01-21 4:42 UTC (permalink / raw) To: comp.lang.ada happy_teddys@hotmail.com (Jim) writes: > Hello, > > Does somebody here know, how to translate a hardware description code > of Spark Ada/Ada in VHDL for FPGA/CPLD? Is there automatic tools for > these translation? > Can I program code for FPGA with Spark Ada? VHDL has a similar syntax to Ada, but it is really a different language; the semantics are oriented towards parallel processing of many small gates, as opposed to serial processing of one main processor. You need a VHDL compiler that targets your FPGA. Spark does not; it only targets mainstream computer chips. Perhaps if you explained a little more about what you are doing, we could help more. -- -- Stephe ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
* Re: Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? 2005-01-21 4:42 ` Stephen Leake @ 2005-01-21 7:26 ` Vinzent 'Gadget' Hoefler 2005-01-21 15:25 ` Peter Amey 2005-02-27 15:50 ` Colin Paul Gloster 1 sibling, 1 reply; 9+ messages in thread From: Vinzent 'Gadget' Hoefler @ 2005-01-21 7:26 UTC (permalink / raw) Stephen Leake wrote: > VHDL has a similar syntax to Ada, but it is really a different > language; the semantics are oriented towards parallel processing of > many small gates, as opposed to serial processing of one main > processor. A while ago I thought the same, but this seems to have changed. > You need a VHDL compiler that targets your FPGA. Spark does not; it > only targets mainstream computer chips. <URI:http://www.praxis-his.com/sparkada/publications.asp#hardware> According to the paper there, it somehow does. :-) Vinzent. ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
* Re: Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? 2005-01-21 7:26 ` Vinzent 'Gadget' Hoefler @ 2005-01-21 15:25 ` Peter Amey 0 siblings, 0 replies; 9+ messages in thread From: Peter Amey @ 2005-01-21 15:25 UTC (permalink / raw) Vinzent 'Gadget' Hoefler wrote: > Stephen Leake wrote: > > >>VHDL has a similar syntax to Ada, but it is really a different >>language; the semantics are oriented towards parallel processing of >>many small gates, as opposed to serial processing of one main >>processor. > > > A while ago I thought the same, but this seems to have changed. > > >>You need a VHDL compiler that targets your FPGA. Spark does not; it >>only targets mainstream computer chips. > > > <URI:http://www.praxis-his.com/sparkada/publications.asp#hardware> > > According to the paper there, it somehow does. :-) > > We have done some work on SPARK as a hardware description language but there certainly isn't an off-the-shelf, mature product yet. You might like to contact my coleague Adrian Hilton about this - his PhD was on exactly this topic. I'll forward mails to sparkinfo@praxis-his.com to him if you like (or you can deduce his email address from mine and from his name if you prefer!) Peter ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
* Re: Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? 2005-01-21 4:42 ` Stephen Leake 2005-01-21 7:26 ` Vinzent 'Gadget' Hoefler @ 2005-02-27 15:50 ` Colin Paul Gloster 1 sibling, 0 replies; 9+ messages in thread From: Colin Paul Gloster @ 2005-02-27 15:50 UTC (permalink / raw) On Fri, 20 Jan 2005, Stephen Leake wrote: "VHDL has a similar syntax to Ada, but it is really a different language; the semantics are oriented towards parallel processing of many small gates, as opposed to serial processing of one main processor. [..]" Behavorial VHDL and the equivalent of representation clauses do resemble Ada, but synthesizable VHDL (as opposed to VHDL for simulators -- one of the funny things about VHDL and Verilog, so much work put into a supposed simulation without tool support for reification) is not parallel. ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
* Re: Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? 2005-01-20 23:44 Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? Jim 2005-01-21 4:42 ` Stephen Leake @ 2005-01-21 6:06 ` Upkeep 2005-01-23 11:42 ` Suslik 1 sibling, 1 reply; 9+ messages in thread From: Upkeep @ 2005-01-21 6:06 UTC (permalink / raw) Jim wrote: > Does somebody here know, how to translate a hardware description code > of Spark Ada/Ada in VHDL for FPGA/CPLD? Is there automatic tools for > these translation? > Can I program code for FPGA with Spark Ada? > > please help me! Straightforward search in Google for "Ada VHDL translator" immediately brings "Ada to Behavioral VHDL Translator" in many references. ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
* Re: Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? 2005-01-21 6:06 ` Upkeep @ 2005-01-23 11:42 ` Suslik 2005-02-10 18:03 ` Jim 0 siblings, 1 reply; 9+ messages in thread From: Suslik @ 2005-01-23 11:42 UTC (permalink / raw) Upkeep wrote: > Straightforward search in Google for "Ada VHDL translator" immediately > brings "Ada to Behavioral VHDL Translator" in many references. Yep, that's Sheraga's work. He did something similar with C too. The big problem is that behavioural VHDL (expressive, remarkably like Ada in syntax including a reasonable type system and iterative control structures) is not the same thing as synthesizable VHDL (very small subset, limited to reacting to signals on wires and updating state). And your VHDL must be synthesizable in order to load it onto an FPGA or produce an ASIC design. Since mapping from behavioural to synthesizable VHDL is very hard in the general case, you have a problem. (A secondary problem is that there is still not agreement on what VHDL is really synthesizable, although some progress has been made with a working group in this area). The eventual aim of the work I started on SPARK-to-VHDL was to provide a synthesizable VHDL implementation of SPARK programs. A key step is to route through the Pebble synchronous hardware description language which maps nicely onto synthesizable VHDL. You can choose to produce a pipelined implementation or a machine that executes SPARK pseudo-code. I also looked at how you can take a selected portion of a SPARK program, implement it in hardware, and replace its implementation with a handshaking interface to the hardware while still keeping the SPARK program description correct. More than (100 - 10^-4)% of people can conceivably want to know about this topic is described in the publications at http://www.suslik.org/Personal/publics.html which includes my PhD thesis. You might also want to have a look at what Neil Audsley and Michael Ward from York University have been doing on synthesizing legacy Ada (SPARK, if memory serves) into a state machine implementation on a PLD; the York Hardware Compiler, I believe. Hope this helps, Adrian ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
* Re: Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? 2005-01-23 11:42 ` Suslik @ 2005-02-10 18:03 ` Jim 2005-02-27 15:49 ` Paul Colin Gloster 0 siblings, 1 reply; 9+ messages in thread From: Jim @ 2005-02-10 18:03 UTC (permalink / raw) "Suslik" <adi.google.@suslik.org> wrote in message news:<1106480549.963006.322830@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com>... > Upkeep wrote: > > Straightforward search in Google for "Ada VHDL translator" > immediately > > brings "Ada to Behavioral VHDL Translator" in many references. > > Yep, that's Sheraga's work. He did something similar with C too. > > The big problem is that behavioural VHDL (expressive, remarkably like > Ada in syntax including a reasonable type system and iterative control > structures) is not the same thing as synthesizable VHDL (very small > subset, limited to reacting to signals on wires and updating state). > And your VHDL must be synthesizable in order to load it onto an FPGA or > produce an ASIC design. Since mapping from behavioural to > synthesizable VHDL is very hard in the general case, you have a > problem. (A secondary problem is that there is still not agreement on > what VHDL is really synthesizable, although some progress has been made > with a working group in this area). > > The eventual aim of the work I started on SPARK-to-VHDL was to provide > a synthesizable VHDL implementation of SPARK programs. A key step is > to route through the Pebble synchronous hardware description language > which maps nicely onto synthesizable VHDL. You can choose to produce a > pipelined implementation or a machine that executes SPARK pseudo-code. > I also looked at how you can take a selected portion of a SPARK > program, implement it in hardware, and replace its implementation with > a handshaking interface to the hardware while still keeping the SPARK > program description correct. thank you for your reply. I think, that the Spark Ada isn't suitable for hardware description, special for FPGA in safety critical systems, because man must translates from Ada code into Pebble, then into VHDL, in this procedure how can man assure that no errors of the code are arisen? Furthermore why do you use Pebble? Why does man translate from Ada direct into VHDL code, then with the other synthesis tool e.g.Xilinx WebPack write VHDL code in FPGA.? I think, maybe Spark Ada is appropriate for the design of a complex system(e.g. Hardware/Software co-design similar to SystemC) , very safe language for the software desription. Jim ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
* Re: Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? 2005-02-10 18:03 ` Jim @ 2005-02-27 15:49 ` Paul Colin Gloster 0 siblings, 0 replies; 9+ messages in thread From: Paul Colin Gloster @ 2005-02-27 15:49 UTC (permalink / raw) In article <2e9040a1.0502101003.3f46ce16@posting.google.com>, Jim wrote: "[..] [..] I think, that the Spark Ada isn't suitable for hardware description, special for FPGA in safety critical systems, [..] then with the other synthesis tool e.g.Xilinx WebPack write VHDL code in FPGA.? [..]" Xilinx WebPACK is not suitable for safety critical systems. ^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 9+ messages in thread
end of thread, other threads:[~2005-02-27 15:50 UTC | newest] Thread overview: 9+ messages (download: mbox.gz / follow: Atom feed) -- links below jump to the message on this page -- 2005-01-20 23:44 Is there a translator from SPARK Ada to VHDL? Jim 2005-01-21 4:42 ` Stephen Leake 2005-01-21 7:26 ` Vinzent 'Gadget' Hoefler 2005-01-21 15:25 ` Peter Amey 2005-02-27 15:50 ` Colin Paul Gloster 2005-01-21 6:06 ` Upkeep 2005-01-23 11:42 ` Suslik 2005-02-10 18:03 ` Jim 2005-02-27 15:49 ` Paul Colin Gloster
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