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From: pfrinec on 13 Oct 2008 11:06
Hello!

I would like to write image files (*.bmp, ...) to micro-SD card.
I am using Spartan 3e starter kit with microblaze soft processor and a
micro-SD adapter for PMOD extension slot (http://www.microdream-1.com/
Pmod-B.html).
The general idea is to write files in FAT16 file system to micro-SD
card and then later transfer them to PC.
Does anybody have an idea (or reference design) how to do this? Is it
possible to use DOSFS?

Thanks!
From: John McCaskill on 13 Oct 2008 11:54
On Oct 13, 10:06 am, pfri...(a)yahoo.co.uk wrote:
> Hello!
>
> I would like to write image files (*.bmp, ...) to micro-SD card.
> I am using Spartan 3e starter kit with microblaze soft processor and a
> micro-SD adapter for PMOD extension slot (http://www.microdream-1.com/
> Pmod-B.html).
> The general idea is to write files in FAT16 file system to micro-SD
> card and then later transfer them to PC.
> Does anybody have an idea (or reference design) how to do this? Is it
> possible to use DOSFS?
>
> Thanks!

We use a PicoBlaze in a Spartan 3e to read a bit file from a mini-SD
card and program it into a Virtex-4FX, so a MicroBlaze should not have
any problems with being able to write to a microSD card. Being able to
fit reading from a FAT16 file system was a tight fit for the
PicoBlaze.

Once the PicoBlaze configures the Virtex on our card, it turns
ownership of the miniSD card over to the Virtex. The V4 then has a
simple boot loader that loads Linux from the miniSD card. Linux has
full read write access to the miniSD card.

We have the card formatted as FAT16. The PicoBlaze accesses the card
in four bit mode, and has DMA assist so that it can program the V4
fast enough for it to be configured in time to respond to a PCI bus
probe. The V4 just uses the miniSD in SPI mode. For SPI mode, we use
the SPI core that comes with EDK. Linux has a FAT16 file system
driver, so that is one good place to start looking. EDK also comes
with a FAT16 file system in the xilfatfs library. Xilfatfs requires
the system ace controller, but you have the source code to the library
so you could modify it to use microSD if you wish.

Regards,

John McCaskill
www.FasterTechnology.com
From: Eric Smith on 13 Oct 2008 15:47
pfrinec(a)yahoo.co.uk writes:
> I am using Spartan 3e starter kit with microblaze soft processor and a
> micro-SD adapter for PMOD extension slot (http://www.microdream-1.com/
> Pmod-B.html).

You mean there's actually a way to purchase those?

> Is it possible to use DOSFS?

I don't see why not. I've used DOSFS to access flash cards on other
platforms.
From: Antti on 13 Oct 2008 16:58
On Oct 13, 10:47 pm, Eric Smith <e...(a)brouhaha.com> wrote:
> pfri...(a)yahoo.co.uk writes:
> > I am using Spartan 3e starter kit with microblaze soft processor and a
> > micro-SD adapter for PMOD extension slot (http://www.microdream-1.com/
> > Pmod-B.html).
>
> You mean there's actually a way to purchase those?
>
http://www.trenz-electronic.de/
Trenz electronic has them in stock and several Xilinx kits are
shipping with them as bundled package from Trenz webshop

> > Is it possible to use DOSFS?
>
> I don't see why not.  I've used DOSFS to access flash cards on other
> platforms.

I have ported and packaged DOSFS as EDK software library and it is
very easy to use
the low level driver required may use different type of peripherals
1) SPI core
2) software SPI over GPIO
3) SD 1-bit mode over GPIO
4) SD 1-bit mode over custom IP

http://code.google.com/p/dev-kit/downloads/list
is the EDK packaged DOSFS library

for the low level drivers i need to cleanup and upload them
what will happen shortly now

Antti


From: Eric Smith on 13 Oct 2008 19:58
Someone wrote:
>>> micro-SD adapter for PMOD extension slot (http://www.microdream-1.com/
>>> Pmod-B.html).

I wrote:
>> You mean there's actually a way to purchase those?

Antti wrote:
> http://www.trenz-electronic.de/
> Trenz electronic has them in stock and several Xilinx kits are
> shipping with them as bundled package from Trenz webshop

They're remarkably well hidden. Even with that URL I can't find
them.

Have you considered putting a link on the microdream-1 page to
a page where they can actually be purchased?

Eric
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