International Islamic University

Islamabad
Digital System Design Lab

EXPERIMENT # 03: Dataflow Modeling

Name of Student:

Roll No.:

Date of Experiment:

Marks obtained:

Remarks:

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Digital System Design Lab (EE-319L) Page 18

 Dataflow Modeling
1. Objective
This lab exercise is designed to understand the concepts related to dataflow modeling.

2. Resources Required
• A Computer
• Xilinx ISE 10.1
• ModelSim 10.1

3. Introduction
HDL (Hardware Description Language) is any language from a class of computer languages,
specification languages, or modeling languages for formal description and design of
electronic circuits, and most-commonly, digital logic. It can describe the circuit's operation,
its design and organization, and tests to verify its operation by means of simulation. The two
most popular HDLs are Verilog and VHDL. Verilog due to its similarity to C language is
easier to understand so has become most widely used HDL in educational institutions.

3.1 HDL Coding

Verilog is both a behavioral and a structural language. Internals of each module can be
defined at four levels of abstraction, depending on the needs of the design. The module
behaves identically with the external environment irrespective of the level of abstraction at
which the module is described. The internals of the module are hidden from the environment.
Thus, the level of abstraction to describe a module can be changed without any change in the
environment. The levels are defined below.

Behavioral or algorithmic level

This is the highest level of abstraction provided by Verilog HDL. A module can be
implemented in terms of the desired design algorithm without concern for the hardware
implementation details. Designing at this level is very similar to C programming.

Dataflow level
At this level, the module is designed by specifying the data flow. The designer is aware of
how data flows between hardware registers and how the data is processed in the design.

Gate level
The module is implemented in terms of logic gates and interconnections between these gates.
Design at this level is similar to describing a design in terms of a gate-level logic diagram.

3.2 Dataflow Modeling

For small circuits, the gate-level modeling approach works very well because the number of
gates is limited and the designer can instantiate and connect every gate individually.
However, in complex designs the number of gates is very large. Thus, designers can design
more effectively if they concentrate on implementing the function at a level of abstraction
higher than gate level. Dataflow modeling provides a powerful way to implement a design.
Verilog allows a circuit to be designed in terms of the data flow between registers and how a
design processes data rather than instantiation of individual gates.

3.2.1 Continuous Assignments

A continuous assignment is the most basic statement in dataflow modeling, used to drive a
value onto a net. This assignment replaces gates in the description of the circuit and describes

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the circuit at a higher level of abstraction. The assignment statement starts with the keyword
assign.

Examples of Continuous Assignment

// Continuous assignment: out is a net. i1 and i2 are also nets

assign out = i1 & i2;

// Continuous assign for vector nets. addr is a 16-bit vector net

// addr1 and addr2 are 16-bit vector registers
assign addr[15:0] = addr1_bits[15:0] ^ addr2_bits[15:0];

// Concatenation.Lefthand side is a concatenation of a scalar net and a vector net

assign {c_out, sum[3:0]} = a[3:0] + b[3:0] + c_in;

a) Implicit Continuous Assignment

Instead of declaring a net and then writing a continuous assignment on the net, Verilog
provides a shortcut by which a continuous assignment can be placed on a net when it is
declared. There can be only one implicit declaration assignment per net because a net is
declared only once.
In the example below, an implicit continuous assignment is contrasted with a regular
continuous assignment.

//Regular continuous assignment

wire out;
assign out = in1 & in2;

//Same effect is achieved by an implicit continuous assignment

wire out = in1 & in2;

b) Implicit Net Declaration

If a signal name is used to the left of the continuous assignment, an implicit net declaration
will be inferred for that signal name. If the net is connected to a module port, the width of the
inferred net is equal to the width of the module port.

// Continuous assign. out is a net.

wire i1, i2;
assign out = i1 & i2; //Note that out was not declared as a wire but an implicit
//wire declaration for out is done by the simulator

3.2.2 Expressions, Operators, and Operands

Dataflow modeling describes the design in terms of expressions instead of primitive gates.
Expressions, operators, and operands form the basis of dataflow modeling.

a) Expressions
Expressions are constructs that combine operators and operands to produce a result.
// Examples of expressions. Combines operands and operators
a ^ b;
addr1[20:17] + addr2[20:17];
in1 | in2;

b) Operands
Operands can be constants, integers, real numbers, nets, registers, bit-select (one bit of vector
net or a vector register), part-select (selected bits of the vector net or register vector), and
memories or function calls (functions are discussed later).

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integer count, final_count;
final_count = count + 1; //count is an integer operand

real a, b, c;
c = a - b; //a and b are real operands

reg [15:0] reg1, reg2;

reg [3:0] reg_out;
reg_out = reg1[3:0] ^ reg2[3:0]; //reg1[3:0] and reg2[3:0] are
//part-select register operands
reg ret_value;
ret_value = calculate_parity(A, B); //calculate_parity is a function type
//operand

c) Operators
Operators act on the operands to produce desired results. Verilog provides various types of
operators.
d1 && d2 // && is an operator on operands d1 and d2
!a[0] // ! is an operator on operand a[0]
B >> 1 // >> is an operator on operands B and 1

3.2.3 Operator Types

Verilog provides many different operator types. Operators can be arithmetic, logical,
relational, equality, bitwise, reduction, shift, concatenation, or conditional.

Table: Operator Types and Symbols

Operator Type Operator Symbol Operation Performed Number of Operands

Arithmetic * Multiply two
/ divide two
+ add two
- subtract two
% modulus two
** power (exponent) two
Logical ! logical negation one
&& logical and two
|| logical or two
Relational > greater than two
< less than two
>= greater than or equal two
<= less than or equal two
Equality == Equality two
!= inequality two
=== case equality two
!== case inequality two
Bitwise ~ bitwise negation one
& bitwise and two
| bitwise or two
^ bitwise xor two
^~ or ~^ bitwise xnor two

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Operator Type Operator Symbol Operation Performed Number of Operands
Reduction & reduction and one
~& reduction nand one
| reduction or one
~| reduction nor one
^ reduction xor one
^~ or ~^ reduction xnor one
Shift >> Right shift two
<< Left shift two
>>> Arithmetic right shift two
<<< Arithmetic left shift two
Concatenation { } Concatenation any number
Replication { { } } Replication Any number
Conditional ?: Conditional Three

For more detail on operators, see Chapter 6 of Verilog HDL by Samir Palinitkar. Some are
discussed below:

a) Shift Operators
Shift operators are right shift ( >>), left shift (<<), arithmetic right shift (>>>), and arithmetic
left shift (<<<). Regular shift operators shift a vector operand to the right or the left by a
specified number of bits. The operands are the vector and the number of bits to shift. When
the bits are shifted, the vacant bit positions are filled with zeros. Shift operations do not wrap
around. Arithmetic shift operators use the context of the expression to determine the value
with which to fill the vacated bits.

// X = 4'b1100
Y = X >> 1; //Y is 4'b0110. Shift right 1 bit. 0 filled in MSB position.
Y = X << 1; //Y is 4'b1000. Shift left 1 bit. 0 filled in LSB position.
Y = X << 2; //Y is 4'b0000. Shift left 2 bits.

integer a, b, c; //Signed data types

a = 0;
b = -10; // 00111...10110 binary
c = a + (b >>> 3); //Results in -2 decimal, due to arithmetic shift

Shift operators are useful because they allow the designer to model shift operations, shift-
and-add algorithms for multiplication, and other useful operations.

b) Concatenation Operator
The concatenation operator ( {, } ) provides a mechanism to append multiple operands. The
operands must be sized. Unsized operands are not allowed because the size of each operand
must be known for computation of the size of the result.
Concatenations are expressed as operands within braces, with commas separating the
operands. Operands can be scalar nets or registers, vector nets or registers, bit-select, part-
select, or sized constants.
// A = 1'b1, B = 2'b00, C = 2'b10, D = 3'b110

Y = {B , C} // Result Y is 4'b0010
Y = {A , B , C , D , 3'b001} // Result Y is 11'b10010110001
Y = {A , B[0], C[1]} // Result Y is 3'b101

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c) Replication Operator
Repetitive concatenation of the same number can be expressed by using a replication
constant. A replication constant specifies how many times to replicate the number inside the
brackets ( { } ).
reg A;
reg [1:0] B, C;
reg [2:0] D;
A = 1'b1; B = 2'b00; C = 2'b10; D = 3'b110;

Y = { 4{A} } // Result Y is 4'b1111

Y = { 4{A} , 2{B} } // Result Y is 8'b11110000
Y = { 4{A} , 2{B} , C } // Result Y is 10'b1111000010

d) Conditional Operator
The conditional operator(?:) takes three operands. The syntax of an assign statement is as
follows.
condition_expr ? true_expr : false_expr ;

The condition expression (condition_expr) is first evaluated. If the result is true (logical 1),
then the true_expr is evaluated. If the result is false (logical 0), then the false_expr is
evaluated. If the result is x (ambiguous), then both true_expr and false_expr are evaluated
and their results are compared, bit by bit, to return for each bit position an x if the bits are
different and the value of the bits if they are the same.
The action of a conditional operator is similar to a multiplexer. Alternately, it can be
compared to the if-else expression. Conditional operators are frequently used in dataflow
modeling to model conditional assignments. The conditional expression acts as a switching
control.

//model functionality of a 2-to-1 mux

assign out = control ? in1 : in0;

6.4.11 Operator Precedence

If no parentheses are used to separate parts of expressions, Verilog enforces the following
precedence. It is recommended that parentheses be used to separate expressions except in
case of unary operators or when there is no ambiguity.

Table 6-4. Operator Precedence

Operators Operator Symbols Precedence
Unary + - ! ~ Highest precedence
Multiply, Divide, Modulus * / %
Add, Subtract + -
Shift << >>
Relational < <= > >=
Equality == != === !==
Reduction &, ~& ^ ^~ |, ~|
Logical && ||
Conditional ?: Lowest precedence

Digital System Design Lab (EE-319L) Page 23

4. Verilog Codes (to be utilized in this lab)

The logic diagram of a full adder is given below. From the following figure, it is clear that we
can make a full adder using two half adders & an OR gate.

4.1 Half Adder

module half_adder(S, C, A, B);

output S, C;
input A, B;

//Gates have been replaced with an assign statement

assign {C,S} = A+B;

endmodule

4.2 Top Module (Full Adder)

module full_adder(Sum, CarryOut, A, B, CarryIn);

output Sum, CarryOut;

input A, B, CarryIn;
wire TSum, TCarry1, TCarry2;

//Two half-adders are instantiated. (This is similar to a function call in C)

half_adder ha1(TSum, TCarry1, A, B);
half_adder ha2(Sum, TCarry2, TSum, CarryIn);

//Or gate can be written as this assign statement

assign CarryOut = TCarry1 || TCarry2;

endmodule

4.3 Stimulus

module Stimulus;

wire Sum, CarryOut;

reg A, B, CarryIn;

//This time we have instantiated full-adder module as it is the one we are testing

full_adder fa1(Sum, CarryOut, A, B, CarryIn);

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//Values checking part
initial
begin
A = 0; B = 0; CarryIn = 0; //Sum = 0, CarryOut = 0
#10 A = 0; B = 0; CarryIn = 1; //Sum = 1, CarryOut = 0
#10 A = 0; B = 1; CarryIn = 0; //Sum = 1, CarryOut = 0
#10 A = 0; B = 1; CarryIn = 1; //Sum = 0, CarryOut = 1
#10 A = 1; B = 0; CarryIn = 0; //Sum = 1, CarryOut = 0
#10 A = 1; B = 0; CarryIn = 1; //Sum = 0, CarryOut = 1
#10 A = 1; B = 1; CarryIn = 0; //Sum = 0, CarryOut = 1
#10 A = 1; B = 1; CarryIn = 1; //Sum = 1, CarryOut = 1
#10 $stop;
#10 $finish;
end

endmodule

5. Lab Task
Implement a 3X8 Decoder in Verilog using Dataflow modeling. Also simulate your
design for verification (Create a proper Stimulus or Test Bench file).

Hint: Use Logic operators for the task. Set D with 8 bit size ([7:0]). It is clear from above
table that when x=0,y=0,z=0 then D=8’b00000001; or D[0]=1 i.e. we can write

assign D[0] = ~x & ~y & ~z;

For first bit of D, use a similar method for remaining 7 bits.

6. Home Work
Implement a 4X16 Decoder using instantiation (Use two 3X8 Decoders). Simulate using
ModelSim. Submit the code and wave files in the next lab.

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Hint: You can use the same module as made in Lab with some modifications. Add another
input named E (enable) which when 1 enables the decoder otherwise the output remains 0.

Note:
a) This assignment must be submitted before the next lab.
b) The assignment submitted must be in proper format as instructed by the teacher to get
maximum marks.
c) Marks will be deducted on late submissions.
d) Cheating or using any unfair means will award ZERO marks.

Digital System Design Lab (EE-319L) Page 26

 International Islamic University, Islamabad
Digital System Design Lab

LAB WORKSHEET (Lab # 3)

Q.1 What is Instantiation and why we use it?
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Q.2 What is replication operator? Explain its working using an example.

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Q.3 Write the code for implementing 4X1 Mux using conditional operator.
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FPGA Based Design Lab (EE-406L)