Spotlight On


means we are involved early to ensure a more elegant and better end product. LDD can provide high complexity designs for customers and has the experience and capability to undertake designs from a simple stand-alone board to complex multi-board, mixed signal, multi- technology projects for harsh environments. Our goal is to become an integrated part of customers’ own design teams and have many such long term relationships in both commercial and defence markets.


Where does your core expertise lie?


Many software designers are familiar with programming in straight-forward “linear” languages such as C. Programming in VHDL, where many processes are happening in parallel, is significantly more complex as the time “dimension” needs to be carefully managed to ensure operations are completed in the correct sequence. System designers are increasing their use of FPGAs and other complex processors to multiply the activities being carried out by individual devices, simplify and cost reduce manufacture and reduce the size of end products. The use of FPGAs is growing rapidly as costs reduce and power requirements decrease. It’s our experience that an FPGA may be selected for a design by a hardware manufacturer who then has to find experienced programming expertise or run the risk of in-house trial-and-error


www.cieonline.co.uk


programming which can be costly and delay end product introduction. Individual projects rarely justify the expense of recruiting a highly skilled programmer and using short term contractors has the inherent dangers of lack of continuity and long term support. We have the experience to provide extensive knowledge of programmable logic, input into design for manufacture, cost effective programming and long term support.”


What tools do you have at your disposal to develop customer’s projects?


We have extensive FPGA and programmable logic design expertise and in-depth knowledge of devices from major semiconductor manufacturers including Altera and Xilinx. We are very experienced in the use of Quartus II, Vivado and ModelSim design tools and the development of designs using VHDL and are always happy to recommend tools and silicon to suit specific customer requirements. LDD are familiar with many older programming tools and so are well placed to provide support for customer’s ongoing legacy projects. Recent designs delivered by LDD


include:


• Multi-processor, Compact PCI board containing six Statix IV devices • Multiple FPGA Board performing complex real time processing (sonar processor)


Components in Electronics July/August 2017 35


• Memory card interfaces (SD card and CompactFlash) • Gigabit Ethernet Switch Many of the solutions developed by LDD involve the use of NIOS II embedded processors and/or IP cores.


Where to now?


Our early contracts were mostly defence orientated, including the development of general purpose DSP boards for leading COTS suppliers and now include commercial OEMs and customers with


little technical knowledge but a “good idea”! Over the years we have expanded our design team, skills and customer base and the company continues to grow. We have moved premises twice and are now located in rural North Dorset providing an ideal environment for our design team to work on our projects. Recruitment is central to our continued growth and success and we are looking for new talent and of course more customers to secure a successful future.


www.ldd.technology


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92