Fidus Systems Inc.

Experienced in both FPGA and ASIC design, we help you move from ASIC to FPGA and vice versa. From complex platform-FPGAs to small CPLDs, Fidus delivers reliable, versatile designs for your programmable logic. You’ll benefit from our extensive design experience in diverse industries: communications, defence and aerospace, transportation, consumer products and industrial controls. Fidus delivers:

Turn-key FPGA designs Based on your concept, we develop specification(s) and implement them in a custom FPGA.	Design-to-spec Fidus designs FPGAs to your specifications. Our designs meet stringent constraints.
Enhanced designs Need to upgrade a legacy design? Tap into our experience in multiple, diverse markets. Fidus re-uses and improves your designs for legacy systems.	Integrated Electronic Design Services Fidus integrates your FPGA into a comprehensive system. Our design team includes system architects, as well as experts in hardware, PCB layout, RF, DSP, embedded software, and Signal Integrity/EMC.

Download the Fidus FPGA CPLD Design Capability Overview

FPGA Expertise Verilog, VHDL, SystemVerilog Verification Regression Testing ASIC to FPGA Conversion FPGA Proof-of-concept for ASIC Designs Standard Communications Protocols: TCP/IP, Ethernet, SONET, ATM, Frame Relay, and others DSP Designs in FPGAs: filters, echo-cancellation, Software Defined Radio (SDR), 802.11 a/b/g wireless LAN, and others Video Manipulation: Digital Video Interface (DVI), Image enhancement.
Fidus FPGA Development Process

	Devices
	Device size	largest Virtex 4/5 (SX, FX & LX)
	Device vendor	Xilinx, Altera, Lattice, Actel
	Operating frequency	450 MHz on Virtex-5
	Design complexity	720 Mbps DDR on Virtex 4/5, Virtex-4 SX 55 & FX 60
	Tools
	Simulation	ModelSim, NC-Sim, Verilog-XL, Synopsys VCS
	Synthesis	Synplify Pro, Xilinx XST, Synopsys Design Compiler, Mentor Graphics Precision
	Place & Route	Xilinx ISE, Quartus, MaxPlus II
	Code Coverage	Modelsim SE, Synopsys VCS

Altera, Cadence, Lattice, Mentor Graphics, Synplify, Xilinx
You choose the vendor; we deliver your design on time and on budget.

Project Examples

Transportation Automation system in multiple Xilinx CPLDs
Fidus FPGA & CPLD designers collaborated with our hardware, firmware and PCB layout specialists to develop a comprehensive system for automating commuter trains. Designed in 16 Xilinx CPLDs, the system conforms to stringent European standards for public safety. Each device contains three separate slices, designed differently by separate designers and independently verified, to work in parallel.

ASIC-to-FPGA conversion in Altera device
When their supplier discontinued a critical ASIC line, our customer asked Fidus to replace the chip with a new FPGA design. Working only from the obsolete ASIC data sheet, Fidus developed an FPGA to carry Ethernet-over-SONET, using LAPS protocol and an Altera Cyclone II device. Then we designed a custom, fully-automated testing environment, and completed the project one month ahead of schedule.

DSP system for defence applications
Fidus developed the FPGA for a Digital Signal Processing card, for Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC). Used in a military airborne platform, this VME card improves upon the identification of emitters. The FPGA includes a 2-GigaSample/s FIR filter design, 250 MHz, 32-bit DDR A2D Interface and 250 MHz 64-bit SBRAM Interface. As well, Fidus delivered a high-performance PCB layout and mechanical design for the board package, to fit in a complex, airborne system.

AIS Transceiver
Fidus FPGA, RF and DSP experts collaborated with our hardware, firmware,
PCB layout and high-speed signal integrity specialists, to design this Automatic Identification
System (AIS) transceiver.

The Software-defined Radio (SDR) system features a Xilinx Virtex-4 FPGA, with an embedded Power PC. It employs under-sampling DSP techniques to implement a multi-channel, GMSK receiver and transmitter. The embedded processor handles AIS protocol & message processing, as well as user interface.

Want to learn more? Have questions? Call us toll-free in North America at +1.866.883.4387 or at +1.613.828.0063. You can also email us at info@fidus.com. To find the Fidus representative nearest you, view our sales network.