Add tentative requirements document to capture requests.
This commit is contained in:
parent
e83f3a993c
commit
730d11ecea
|
@ -0,0 +1,96 @@
|
||||||
|
# GARY: Graphics Adapter for Retropixel Yeeting
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
Tentative requirements and wishlist for an FPGA-based media processor
|
||||||
|
for retrocomputing.
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
## Target hardware/era
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
The design is intended to feel at home in a retrocomputer with a "late
|
||||||
|
16-bit era" feel, like the Sentinel 65X: 16-bit CPU clocked around
|
||||||
|
5-15MHz with a wide main bus shared by multiple memory-mapped
|
||||||
|
peripherals. It aims for capabilities comparable to early VGA graphics
|
||||||
|
and early PC audio.
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
Initially, we'll tailor the design to the Sentinel 65X's needs and
|
||||||
|
wants, as a potential replacement for the VERA processor developed for
|
||||||
|
the Commander X16.
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
## Overview
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
![schematic diagram of a hypothetical 65X computer with GARY. The
|
||||||
|
important parts of the schematic are described in text following the
|
||||||
|
image.][images/65x-gary-system-overview.png]
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
This is a general system overview. The 65C816 main processor connects
|
||||||
|
to the board's main bus, with peripherals like system RAM and
|
||||||
|
expansion ports. GARY also connects to this bus. It has dedicated
|
||||||
|
attached video RAM, and provides audio and video output as well as a
|
||||||
|
few GPIOs. It also has a dedicated interrupt line, to serve as an
|
||||||
|
offboard interrupt controller to the main CPU.
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
Initially the plan is to mirror the design and features of the VERA
|
||||||
|
processor, and modify from there.
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
![schematic diagram of GARY's graphics rendering pipeline. The system
|
||||||
|
bus hooks to a bus interface, which writes data to video RAM and
|
||||||
|
configures the other components. Video RAM feeds into two tile engines
|
||||||
|
and a sprite engine, their output is merged by a compositor, and
|
||||||
|
finally pixels are output by the palette DAC, which also reads palette
|
||||||
|
information from video RAM.][images/65x-gary-graphics.png]
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
## Feature/wish list
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
Roughly, start from VERA and evolve from there.
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
- 640x480@60Hz "industry standard" VGA output.
|
||||||
|
- RGB color output, 12bpp (4 bits per colour), into a resistor DAC to
|
||||||
|
convert to analog VGA signals.
|
||||||
|
- Modifiable 256 color palette.
|
||||||
|
- 128KiB video RAM, accessible from CPU.
|
||||||
|
- Various tile and sprite modes (same as VERA's, tentatively).
|
||||||
|
- Glitch-free video, correct clock domain crossing (unlike VERA).
|
||||||
|
- PCM audio with output to I2S DAC. Samples fed directly from CPU.
|
||||||
|
- Written in Bluespec SystemVerilog, an high level HDL that makes it
|
||||||
|
hard to screw up timing/synchronization/types. (Not strictly
|
||||||
|
required, but Dave's doing it this way so if you want him to make
|
||||||
|
the thing...)
|
||||||
|
- Well tested, good simulator support (again to not go mad trying to
|
||||||
|
debug subtle problems on live hardware).
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
Desires to better fit 65X's needs than VERA. These mostly rely on having more I/O available, so would require moving up to a low-end Lattice ECP5 instead of a maxed out ICE40.
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
- Directly expose internal address space on system bus, instead of a
|
||||||
|
narrow window to wider internal space. Full 24 address + 8 data
|
||||||
|
lanes into GARY.
|
||||||
|
- Programmable interrupt controller, 8 GPIOs and some timers to
|
||||||
|
trigger interrupts.
|
||||||
|
- Absorb the glue logic from the separate CPLD/7400 chips [TODO: what
|
||||||
|
does said logic need to do exactly?]
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
I want a pony! Things that should be doable, but are more radical
|
||||||
|
departures from VERA in various ways. Definitely would need an ECP5.
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
- Palette in main VRAM, at configurable location (unlike VERA, which
|
||||||
|
has a separate palette memory). Specifically support reconfiguring
|
||||||
|
the palette during frame drawing, to enable cool beam-racing
|
||||||
|
nonsense.
|
||||||
|
- Support for palette colour cycling: specify [start:end] range in
|
||||||
|
palette and cycle speed, palette DAC rolls colours by itself.
|
||||||
|
- Direct double-buffered framebuffer mode, for GUI stuff. 1bpp and
|
||||||
|
2bpp palettized possible within VERA's RAM budget, more would
|
||||||
|
require larger VRAM.
|
||||||
|
- S-Video output in addition to VGA. Require YPbPr conversion to
|
||||||
|
output luma+chroma signals.
|
||||||
|
- HDMI or DisplayPort output in addition to VGA. Same
|
||||||
|
resolution/depth, different transport. Requires 8b/10b encoder and
|
||||||
|
additional signals.
|
||||||
|
- Support for 65C816's 16-bit move instructions. Normal move sends 8
|
||||||
|
bits every 7 PHI2 clock cycles, 16-bit move sends 2x8 bits on two
|
||||||
|
consecutive PHI2 cycles.
|
||||||
|
- Display lists? As in https://www.atariarchives.org/dere/chapt02.php
|
||||||
|
. Effectively a small DSP ISA/very primitive GPU
|
||||||
|
programming. Significant architecture change from VERA.
|
||||||
|
- Higher resolution output? Would be nice to hit SVGA resolutions like
|
||||||
|
1024x768 or 1280x1024. Requires gateware running at higher
|
||||||
|
frequency, use of more complex I/O hardware, larger video RAM. Even
|
||||||
|
moreso if we want 24bpp per SVGA, rather than palettized output.
|
Binary file not shown.
After Width: | Height: | Size: 46 KiB |
Binary file not shown.
After Width: | Height: | Size: 26 KiB |
Loading…
Reference in New Issue