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worai ai

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Idris Somoye

Published April 24, 2026

Custom LED Blink IP on AUP-ZU3 Zynq UltraScale+

Designed a Verilog LED IP, integrated it on AUP-ZU3 with PS clocking, handled constraints, and validated on hardware.

BeginnerWork in progress10 hours61

Custom LED Blink IP on AUP-ZU3 Zynq UltraScale+

Things used in this project

Hardware components

AMD AUP-ZU3

Software apps and online services

Microsoft VS Code

Verilog

AMD Vivado Design Suite

AMD Vitis Unified Software Platform

Story

Getting Started with Zynq Ultra Scale+: Custom LED Blink IP on AUP-ZU3

Introduction

I recently began working with the AUP-ZU3 (Zynq UltraScale+) from Xilinx FPGA development board and successfully implemented hardware design by creating and integrating a custom IP core for LED blinking.

The goal of this project was not just to blink an LED, but to understand the full FPGA design workflow, including custom IP creation, system integration, and hardware validation.

Zynq™ UltraScale+™ XCZU3EG-2SFVC784E

Project Overview

This project demonstrates how to:

Design a hardware module in Verilog
Package it as a reusable custom IP core
Integrate it into a Vivado Block Design
Deploy it on real FPGA hardware

This approach mirrors real-world FPGA system design, where reusable IP blocks are the foundation of scalable architectures.

What I Did

1. Designed a parameterized LED blink module in Verilog

2. Packaged the module as a custom IP core using Vivado IP Packager

3. Integrated the IP into a Vivado Block Design

4. Connected the IP to the Zynq Processing System (PS) for clocking

5. Generated the bitstream

6. Programmed the AUP-ZU3 FPGA board

7. Verified LED blinking on hardware by running bitstream on the board

Methodology

Custom IP Design

Folder Structure

Project Folder Structure

Packaged IP

Ip repository Location

Custom Ip block

The IP:

Accepts a clock input from the system
Uses a counter-based approach to divide the clock frequency
Toggles the LED output at a visible rate

This design was then packaged into a reusable IP block, enabling it to be easily integrated into larger FPGA systems in the future.

System Integration

The custom IP was integrated into a Vivado Block Design alongside the Zynq UltraScale+ Processing System.

Analysis and Insights

This project introduced several important FPGA design concepts:

Custom IP Development: Creating reusable hardware modules for scalable systems

Timing Behavior: Ensuring the design meets clock timing requirements

Hardware Mapping: Connecting internal logic to external physical devices

Block Design

Resource Utilization: Observing minimal usage for simple designs

Vivado FPGA floorplan view (placement/routing visualization).

Key integration points:

The Processing System provides the clock (PL clock)

The custom IP consumes the clock and generates the LED signal

The LED output is mapped to a physical FPGA pin via constraints

Challenges and Lessons Learned

One of the main challenges was resolving Vivado DRC errors related to unconstrained I/O ports. Initially, the LED output (led_0) was not mapped to a physical pin, which prevented successful bitstream generation.

This was resolved by creating a constraint file (.xdc) and correctly assigning the LED to the appropriate FPGA package pin and I/O standard.

Another important lesson was understanding system-level behavior in Zynq devices. Since the design relies on the Processing System to provide the clock, the PS must be initialized for the Programmable Logic to function correctly.

These challenges provided valuable insight into:

FPGA pin mapping

FPGA pin mapping

IP integration

Clocking dependencies in Zynq systems

Results

After resolving integration and constraint issues, the design was successfully deployed to hardware.

The LED on the AUP-ZU3 board blinked as expected, confirming:

Correct functionality of the custom IP
Successful integration with the Processing System
Proper constraint configuration

Future Work

This project serves as a foundation for more advanced FPGA-based systems. Planned next steps include:

Extending the custom IP to control multiple LEDs

Adding AXI interfaces for processor-controlled operation

Interfacing push buttons and external peripheralsImplementing PWM-based LED dimmingDeveloping hardware accelerators for real-time applications

Conclusion

This project successfully demonstrates the creation, packaging, and deployment of a custom FPGA IP core on the AUP-ZU3 platform.

It represents an important first step toward building more complex, modular, and high-performance FPGA systems using reusable IP-based design methodologies.

This work is part of a broader effort to develop FPGA-accelerated embedded systems for real-time applications such as robotics, perception, and intelligent transportation.

Media (to include)

Implemented Device view

LED blink on the FPGA board

Verilog source code

Code

`timescale 1ns / 1ps
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
// Company: 
// Engineer: 
// 
// Create Date: 04/19/2026 10:37:44 AM
// Design Name: Charles Clarke
// Module Name: led_blink101
// Project Name: led_blink101
// Target Devices: ZU3 AUP
// Tool Versions: 
// Description: Simple LED blink module for IP creation
// 
// Dependencies: 
// 
// Revision:
// Revision 0.01 - File Created
// Additional Comments:
// Blinks an LED using the input clock
//
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

module led_blink101 #
(
    parameter integer CLK_FREQ_HZ = 100_000_000, // 100 MHz input clock
    parameter integer BLINK_HZ    = 1            // 1 Hz LED blink
)
(
    input  wire clk,
    input  wire rst,
    output reg  led
);

    localparam integer COUNT_MAX = CLK_FREQ_HZ / (2 * BLINK_HZ);

    reg [31:0] counter;

    always @(posedge clk) begin
        if (rst) begin
            counter <= 32'd0;
            led     <= 1'b0;
        end
        else begin
            if (counter == COUNT_MAX - 1) begin
                counter <= 32'd0;
                led     <= ~led;
            end
            else begin
                counter <= counter + 1'b1;
            end
        end
    end

endmodule

`timescale 1ns / 1ps
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
// Company: 
// Engineer: 
// 
// Create Date: 04/19/2026 10:37:44 AM
// Design Name: Charles Clarke
// Module Name: led_blink101
// Project Name: led_blink101
// Target Devices: ZU3 AUP
// Tool Versions: 
// Description: Simple LED blink module for IP creation
// 
// Dependencies: 
// 
// Revision:
// Revision 0.01 - File Created
// Additional Comments:
// Blinks an LED using the input clock
//
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

module led_blink101 #
(
    parameter integer CLK_FREQ_HZ = 100_000_000, // 100 MHz input clock
    parameter integer BLINK_HZ    = 1            // 1 Hz LED blink
)
(
    input  wire clk,
    input  wire rst,
    output reg  led
);

    localparam integer COUNT_MAX = CLK_FREQ_HZ / (2 * BLINK_HZ);

    reg [31:0] counter;

    always @(posedge clk) begin
        if (rst) begin
            counter <= 32'd0;
            led     <= 1'b0;
        end
        else begin
            if (counter == COUNT_MAX - 1) begin
                counter <= 32'd0;
                led     <= ~led;
            end
            else begin
                counter <= counter + 1'b1;
            end
        end
    end

endmodule

Custom LED Blink IP on AUP-ZU3 Zynq UltraScale+