WHITE PAPER
Designer's Journey: Navigating the Transition to AMD Versal™ Adaptive SoCs
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LEARNING BY EXAMPLE
We selected a problem to solve using AIE and created a small
test application consisting of a single kernel. This kernel would
perform a common DSP function: beamforming.
We began by studying the AIE architecture manual before
coding the test beamformer kernel in C++. This kernel would
take in multiple AXI4-Streams for element data and weights,
producing an output stream of a single complex beam.
For the first design, we settled on two input streams of
interleaved element samples, with another input stream for
weights. These streams were continuously read into double-
buffered memory within the AIE. The initial C code for the
kernel function looked like this:
WHAT IS BEAMFORMING?
Beamforming — also referred to as spatial filtering
— is a signal processing technique used in sensor
arrays for directional signal transmission or
reception. This is achieved by combining elements
in an antenna array in such a way that signals
at particular angles experience constructive
interference while others experience destructive
interference.
Simple Coherent Summation Equation:
We initially chose the input data width to be 64 receive
elements, as this represents a common beamforming
application. However, we soon discovered that routing 64
streams to a single AIE was not feasible.
As you will see in the next section, we overcame this obstacle
by interleaving our element samples into two streams.
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