Altera halves board area and enhances power efficiency by 35 percent
Introduction of four new power-optimised Field-Programmable Gate Array reference designs eases development of FPGA-based systems
Altera Corporation has announced four new reference designs that leverage the power technology obtained through its acquisition of Enpirion.
The reference designs provide FPGA users and board developers turnkey power solutions that increase power efficiency by up to 35 percent, reduce board area by up to 50 percent, and reduce overall bill-of-material (BOM) bulk capacitance costs by up to 50 percent versus competing power solutions.
The Altera power-optimised reference designs are offered to customers as downloadable design packages and are demonstrated in hardware on Altera development kits. A design package targeting Cyclone V SoCs is available today for download, with additional design packages targeting 28 nm FPGAs available later this quarter.
Altera power-optimised reference designs take advantage of Enpirion PowerSoC DC-DC converters, which include integrated controllers, high-frequency power FETs and inductors in one of the smallest thermally efficient packages.
The ultra-small, high-performance components are optimised to deliver the demanding dynamic performance required to power an FPGA, while fitting into the smallest board area.
Enpirion PowerSoCs enable FPGA board developers to simultaneously reduce power converter area by up to 50 percent, while improving system power efficiency by up to 35 percent. Supplying both FPGA solutions and innovative power solutions enable Altera to work with its customers to rapidly develop FPGA-based systems that efficiently manage system power and performance with assured reliability.
The Altera power-optimised reference designs offer significant productivity benefits to design teams. Altera optimised the board layout and provides customers detailed schematics that make it easy for board developers to evaluate and integrate power-optimised technology into their FPGA-based system.
The reference designs are available as downloadable design packages, which have been tested by Altera to optimally work with its FPGAs and SoCs. Each design package contains the schematics for the FPGA's power circuits, application notes, bill-of-materials list, power tree layout guidelines and Gerber files for individual power components. This information simplifies board layout, speeds design cycles and ensures board developers achieve first-pass success.
The first power reference design available for download targets the Cyclone V SoC. Power reference designs targeting the Stratix V, Arria V and Cyclone V FPGAs will be available later this quarter.
Altera will demonstrate its power-optimised technology in hardware on four 28 nm development kits - the Stratix V GX FPGA development kit, Arria V GT FPGA development kit, the Cyclone V GX FPGA development kit and Cyclone V SX SoC development kit. These boards integrate Altera power solutions and demonstrate the capabilities, functionality, power efficiency and board area savings of the Altera power-optimised technology.
"Power is an increasing challenge for our customers," says Mark Davidson, marketing director of the power business unit at Altera. "Altera has answered our customers' calls by providing complete, easy-to-use, highly-efficient power solutions that are engineered to work alongside our industry-leading FPGA devices. With these solutions we are delivering more value to our customers by helping them build better systems in less time."
Availability
Customers can get started today evaluating and integrating Altera's power system solutions into their FPGA-based systems. A design package targeting Cyclone V SoCs is available now for download. Additional power reference designs will be available later this quarter. 28 nm FPGA development kits that feature Enpirion PowerSoC technology will be available in early 2014. For additional information regarding Altera's power solutions visit www.altera.com/enpirion or contact your local Altera sales representative.
Altera programmable solutions enable designers of electronic systems to rapidly and cost effectively innovate, differentiate and win in their markets. Altera offers FPGAs, SoCs, CPLDs, ASICs and complementary technologies, such as power management, to provide high-value solutions to customers worldwide.
