Description
Lab Objectives
In this lab, we will learn how to display images on a VGA terminal using the DE1-SoC Computer’s videoout port and implement a line-drawing algorithm.
Introduction
The DE1-SoC Computer includes a video-out port with a VGA controller that can be connected to a
standard VGA monitor. The VGA controller supports a screen resolution of 640 × 480. The image that is
displayed by the VGA controller is derived from two sources: a pixel buffer and a character buffer,
however, we will only discuss and use the pixel buffer in this lab.
Pixel Buffer
The pixel buffer for the video-out port holds the data (color) for each pixel that is displayed by the VGA
controller, with the coordinate ( , ) referring to the top-left corner of the image (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Pixel buffer coordinate system. Figure 2: Data layout of pixel color values and address offsets.
The color of a pixel is represented within a 16-bit halfword, with five bits for the red and blue
components and six bits for the green component (Figure 2a). The address of an individual pixel in the
pixel buffer is given by the sum of a base address and an (𝑥,𝑦) offset (represented as seen in Figure 2b).
In the DE1-SoC, the default base address of the pixel buffer is , which corresponds to the
starting address of the FPGA on-chip memory.
• e.g., pixel ( , ) has address + = .
pixel ( , ) has address + = .
pixel ( ,1) has address + = .
pixel ( , ) addr: + = .
You can create an image by writing color values into the pixel addresses as described above. A
dedicated pixel buffer controller reads this pixel data from the memory and sends it to the VGA display.
The controller reads the pixel data in sequential address order, starting with the pixel data
y
x
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ⋯ 639
0
1
2 ⋯
3
4
⋮ ⋮ ⋱
479
(a) Pixel color
(b) Pixel (x,y) offset
15 ⋯ 11 10 ⋯ 5 4 ⋯ 0
red green blue
31 ⋯ 1817 ⋯ 10 9 ⋯ 1 0
0…0 y x 0
corresponding to the upper-left corner of the VGA screen and proceeding horizontally, then vertically
until it reaches the data for the lower-right corner; this process repeats continuously. You can modify
the pixel data at any time by writing to the pixel addresses. Writes to the pixel buffer are automatically
interleaved in the hardware with the read operations that are performed by the pixel buffer controller.
It is also possible to prepare a new image for the VGA display without changing the content of the
pixel buffer using the concept of double-buffering. In this scheme, you switch between two pixel
buffers, front and back, one of which is being sent to the VGA while the other is used to prepare the
next frame. You don’t need to worry about double-buffering for this lab, but may find it helpful in
Lab 6.
Drawing
Drawing a line on a screen requires coloring pixels between two points (x1,y1) and (x2,y2), such that
the pixels represent the desired line as closely as possible. For example, if we want to draw a line
between points ( , ) and ( , ), we cannot draw the line precisely – we can only draw a shape that is
similar to the line by coloring the pixels that fall closest to the line’s ideal location on the screen. This is
illustrated in Figure 3, where the squares represent pixels on the screen.
Figure 3: Drawing a line between points and .
We can use algebra to determine which pixels to color based on the slope and end points of the line.
The slope of our example line is (𝑦2 − 𝑦1)/(𝑥2 − 𝑥1) = 4/11. Starting at one endpoint , we move
along the 𝑥-axis to the other endpoint and compute the 𝑦-position for each 𝑥-position as:
𝑦 = 𝑦1 + slope × (𝑥 − 𝑥1
).
Thus, for 𝑥 = 2, which you can think of as a column of pixels, the 𝑦-position of the pixel for the line is
1 + (4/11) × (2 − 1) = 15/11. Since pixel locations are defined by integer values, we round this result to
the nearest integer, and determine that we should color the pixel at . For 𝑥 = 3, we compute 𝑦 =
19/11 and color the pixel at . Similarly, we compute pixels to color through 𝑥 = 12 = 𝑥2
.
This approach (compute a 𝑦-position for every 𝑥-position) has drawbacks when a line is steep (i.e.,
|slope| > 1), since it will span more rows than it does columns. In this case, our calculations will not
produce a smooth-looking line and will not work at all for a vertical line. To address this problem, we
can alter the algorithm to instead move along the 𝑦-axis when a line is steep. With this change, we can
implement what is known as Bresenham’s line algorithm (two different pseudocodes are given in Figure
4 and the first link on the next page – either will work for this lab).
In Figure 4, the first 15 lines of the algorithm make the needed adjustments depending on whether or
not the line is steep. Lines 17 to 22 then increment the variable one step at a time and computes the
corresponding 𝑦-value. The 𝑦-value is incremented when needed to stay as close to the ideal location of
the line as possible.
Bresenham’s line algorithm calculates an variable to decide whether or not
to increment each 𝑦-value. The version of the algorithm shown in Figure 4 uses only integers.
If you would like to learn more about how Bresenham’s line algorithm works:
• http://members.chello.at/easyfilter/bresenham.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bresenham%27s_line_algorithm
Figure 4: Pseudocode for Bresenham’s line algorithm.
Task #1 – VGA Connection (no deliverables)
1) Download from Canvas (Files → Labs → lab5).
2) Unzip the Quartus project folder, which contains some files that will help you work with the VGA
output of the DE1-SoC.
In particular, there are three SystemVerilog files:
a) is a driver for the VGA port of the board. You don’t need to edit or
understand this file, but you might notice that it uses a 38,400-byte framebuffer register,
similar to what was described above. The ternary operator on the last line of this file controls
the colors of the lines you’ll be drawing (only black or white for this lab).
b) is a skeleton file for you to implement Bresenham’s line algorithm.
c) is a top-level module that instantiates both of the above modules. This should
compile and function as-is, but you will modify it for later tasks.
3) Verify that the project compiles on LabsLand and produces an output on your monitor.
a) On LabsLand, choose the “VGA” option for the interface (shown in Figure 5).
b) Once the code is synthesized and uploaded onto an FPGA, the VGA monitor will initially
produce a rainbow gradient before turning black (shown in Figure 6).
This arithmetic is signed, so pay attention to your data types and operators in SystemVerilog
and test both positive and negative values, where appropriate.
1 draw_line(x0, x1, y0, y1)
2
3 boolean is_steep = abs(y1-y0) > abs(x1-x0)
4 if is_steep then
5 swap(x0, y0)
6 swap(x1, y1)
7 if x0 > x1 then
8 swap(x0, x1)
9 swap(y0, y1)
10
11 int deltax = x1-x0
12 int deltay = abs(y1-y0)
13 int error = -(deltax/2)
14 int y = y0
15 if y0 < y1 then y_step = 1 else y_step = -1
16
17 for x from x0 to x1
18 if is_steep then draw_pixel(y,x) else draw_pixel(x,y)
19 error = error + deltay
20 if error >= 0 then
21 y = y + y_step
22 error = error − deltax
4
Figure 5: VGA interface option on LabsLand. Figure 6: VGA display on LabsLand.
Task #2 – Implement the Line-Drawing Algorithm
Some notes about the :
• It takes inputs , , , , corresponding to the coordinate pairs and .
• On positive edges of the input clock , the outputs and form a coordinate pair on the line
between and . On any given clock cycle, and should each change by at
most one pixel, since we’re guaranteed to use |slope| ≤ 1.
• As indicated in the file, you’ll need to create some local registers (i.e., variables) to keep
track of things. Notice that the example signal is declared as and is a bit longer
than the coordinate ports.
Your task is to draw a line between any two arbitrary points on the monitor. However, Bresenham’s
line algorithm can get complicated and you need to handle drawing to the left, right, up, or down, and
both steep and gradual lines. Instead of doing this all at once, you’ll probably want to work in smaller
steps.
The following are suggestions on how to approach this problem, but you can complete this task in
whatever way makes the most sense to you.
1) Set = (in case of monitor cut-off) and use to draw horizontal lines –
i.e., implement the for-loop mechanics and > conditional.
2) Modify your algorithm to handle perfectly diagonal lines from any arbitrary starting point –
i.e., handle .
3) Modify your algorithm to handle lines with gradual slopes, e.g., from to –
i.e., handle , , and .
4) Modify your algorithm to handle lines with steep slopes, e.g., from to –
i.e., handle .
While you won’t be demoing this task, you will need to include simulation results for drawing left-up,
right-up, left-down, right-down for both steep and gradual slopes.
VGA
Task #3 – Animate an Object
Modify to implement the following:
1) Use your line algorithm to draw a line on the monitor and animate it to move around the screen.
a) You can be as creative as you want with this animation, but make sure that it demonstrates
the full functionality of your line-drawing algorithm. You should draw lines to the left and right
with negative, positive, steep and shallow slopes as well as horizontal and vertical lines.
2) Implement a reset that, when activated, clears the screen by drawing every pixel to be black.
a) You’ll need to modify the port connection to the module
to choose between drawing black or white.
Note that you don’t need to provide simulation results for your animation, but instead will include a
drawing or image of what it produces.
Lab Demonstration/Turn-In Requirements
In-Person Demo
• Explain your module code to the TA.
• Demonstrate your working Task #3 that animates an object moving around the screen.
• Demonstrate your working Task #3 reset that clears the monitor.
• Be prepared to answer 1-2 questions about your lab experience to the TA.
Lab Report (submit as PDF on Gradescope)
• Include the required Design Procedure, Results, and Experience Report sections.
• Don’t forget to also submit your SystemVerilog files ( ), including testbenches!
Lab 5 Rubric
Grading Criteria Points
Name, student ID, lab number 2 pts
Design Procedure
▪ A diagram must be included for your algorithm.
▪ The design of your animation algorithm must be described and please include a
diagram, if appropriate.
14 pts
Results
▪ Correct behavior must be shown for drawing left-up, right-up, left-down, rightdown for both steep and gradual slopes.
▪ Include a drawing or image of your final animation.
18 pts
Experience Report 6 pts
SystemVerilog code uploaded 5 pts
Code Style 5 pts
LAB DEMO 80 pts
▪ Bonus points available for particularly impressive animations. (10 pts)
130 pts
