8-Bit CPU Using Logic Gates| Creator |
Andrew Vaughan |
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| Date |
May 27, 2017 |
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| Estimated Time |
16 Weeks |
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| Estimated Cost |
$40 |
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In this class, taught by Andrew Vaughan, you will learn how to build a functional (albeit, simple) 8-Bit CPU from scratch using breadboards and TTL Integrated Circuits. No prior electronics experience is required in the class, as the basics are covered in the first lesson. At the end of the course, you will have built a fully-functional, modular CPU, as well as your own personalized Assembly language, that you can extend indefinitely to create more extensive functionality.
Office hours are held before and after each class. The office hours prior to the class (timing of which will be announced with each class) are intended for members who have missed classes and need to catch up on modules for the upcoming lesson. Office hours after each class will provide a list of advanced topics from the lesson plan, which will only be covered if interest is shown. This time is also available to assist with debugging problems in circuits.
Time and Location
Prerequisites
There are minimal prerequisites to attend this class. No prior experience in electronics is needed, nor any experience with soldering or computers. It is important that novices to these are attend the first classes and to make use of office hours to ask questions before continuing into more advanced topics.
Materials
Components and tools will be made available for persons who wish to learn, but do not wish to keep their project after class completion. If parts are borrowed from the electronics space, it is asked that a donation be made, at your discretion, to the Electronics Lab area host. Note that you will be required to return all components used for the class after the course is completed. Persons borrowing equipment will be required to pair with others doing the same, if enough persons are available.
If you, however, wish to keep your project, or want to extend it further after the course is complete (both highly recommended), the following will need to be purchased:
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Authorizations
Please read the rules and responsibilities in the Electronics Area prior to attending. Along with these rules, the following authorizations must be completed to be eligible for this course:
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Syllabus
Classes are held weekly, and build on top of each other. It is important that all classes are attended, or completing the CPU will be very difficult. Office hours are made available prior to every class to allow persons who miss classes to catch up prior to starting a new lesson.
Week 1 - Digital Electronics Fundamentals
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 2 - Implementing Logic with Transistors
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 3 - The CPU Clock Module
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 4 - The 8-Bit Register Modules
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 5 - Designing an ALU
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 6 - The ALU Module
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 7 - The RAM Module
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 8 - Building a Binary Counter
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 9 - The Program Counter Module
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 10 - Designing for 7-Segment Displays
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 11 - Introduction to EEPROM
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 12 - The Display Module
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 13 - Connecting the Modules with a Bus
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 14 - Designing Control Signals
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Week 15 - Control Logic Module
| Note: This section is still under development. Please check back later for more information.
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Completion
Upon completion, each member of the class will have a modularized, extendable CPU. The CPU can be programmed using an Arduino Programmer, which can be borrowed during the class, or built in one of the after-hours office-hours. Here are some examples what can be done to extend and modify the basic circuitry:
- Create additional circuitry to support more-advanced instructions
- Add more capabilities to the ALU to enable more-powerful processing
- Transition 7400-series integrated circuits to more-advanced functionality to reduce circuit complexity
- Extend the processing capability to 16- or even 32-bit processing
- Add additional input and output capabilities to the system (e.g., serial controllers, USB, disks, multi-line LCDs, etc...)
