The firmware design of analogue and digital filters

The firmware design is a tough task for university students because firmware combines hardware design and software programming. In this paper, a mixed-signal array IC chip called Programmable System-on-Chip (PSoC
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) from Cypress Semiconductor is employed as a firmware platform for signal processing as well as digital signal processing practice. PSoC is a single chip with mixed-signal array as well as on-chip MCU. It provides a solution for integration of analogue and digital hardware as well as software programming. In this paper, practices of analogue filter design and digital signal processing by PSoC filter design for university senior students and graduate school students are introduced. This signal processing course modules can be divided in two parts: (A) Designing analogue filter with configurable analogue blocks in PSoC as the design practice for signal processing. (B) Implementing digital filter in PSoC with MATLAB FDATool toolbox as the firmware design practice for digital signal processing. Through the designed sections, students can study the process of designing analogue and digital filter in PSoC chip with the help of MATLAB toolbox. Students can actually experience the power of firmware and understand how to accomplish filter design projects.