Video timing conversion: Amiga PC interface upgraded to HDMI interface by FPGA-based video time converter
The
Amiga processor of Qingfeng Liuyun FPGA Development Circle is Motorola's 680x0 series processor, which is specially designed for high resolution, fast graphics response, multimedia tasks, especially games. It is one of the first generation computers with true color display. Since Commodore Business Machines acquired Amiga in 1985 and introduced Amiga to the market, Amiga has become a synonym for a high-resolution, fast user response interface, and a computer suitable for gaming.
The HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) high-definition multimedia interface is a multimedia interface standard released by LLC on March 4, 2010. It is a digital video/audio interface technology and a dedicated digital interface suitable for image transmission. It can transmit audio and video signals at the same time, and the maximum data transmission speed is 4.5G/s.
Amiga and HDMI?
Now Lukas F Hartmann is the master of time, because he has a special function: he can make 1280x720 HDMI compatible with all Amiga PCs. Today, the Amiga standard has a history of 30 years, which is exactly 20 years earlier than the HDMI standard. The first thing that appeared in Amiga was that its timing was of groundbreaking significance in video display, but its video display image number was only 640x256 and it supported 64 colors.
Hartmann designed and simulated a new video card based on Xilinx Spartan -6 FPGA, and inserted this card into the video transmission slot of the Amiga PC to realize the timing conversion. For the rest of the details of this model, see e "A High-Performance Graphics Card for the Amiga 2000! In 2016??? A very strange Spartan-6 FPGA story".
Now, Hartmann has launched the VA2000 video card product based on this technology. The user can get his open source design prototype from his company MNT for 189 euros (if it is not sold out) 
. Figure 1 VA2000 board
The figure below is a display interface of Amiga 2000 driven by HDMI interface (1280x70)
Seeing that an old PC from the 1980s can be driven by a high-definition HDMI interface is a bit creepy for people like me who have used an old PC to now use the latest PC. More importantly: Harmann uses FPGA to develop a good product that can be compatible with the old timing, and it does a good job, because FPGA can easily implement the interface of the old timing like Amiga 68k bus width. Similarly, They can also implement new timing interfaces like HDMI, and can also complete complex logic like graphics accelerators-and all are done inside a chip. Of course, especially if you use a cost-effective FPGA like Spartan-6 FPGA, you can turn this FPGA design into a product.
to sum up
From the above implementation of FPGA-based timing converters, it is once again proved that FPGA-based can quickly and cost-effectively implement some complex logic conversions. These are advantages that ASCI design does not have at all. I believe that as the leading FPGA supplier, it will definitely develop a more advantageous FPGA.