Teaching Reconfigurable Hardware Using an Interdisciplinary Problem Based Model to Strengthen Digital Systems Design Skills in Electronic Engineering Undergraduates

This paper presents a course to strengthen Digital Systems Design skills using Reconfigurable Hardware as a tool in a interdisciplinary problem based learning model; system level scenarios allow in-context evaluation of reconfigurable hardware (FPGA) and hardware description language (VHDL) capabilities. The course promotes learning as a constructive, contextual and collaborative process, avoiding the typical isolated technology study. System level design is strengthened throughout the course via problem requirements that define hardware specifications; students' module designs are used to further discuss FPGA and VHDL specific topics.