SPIDER Automation Altera Cyclone II EP2C5T144 FPGA System Development Board | EPCS4 Flash & 50MHz Crystal
Description
SPIDER Automation Altera Cyclone II EP2C5T144 is a versatile, compact development board centered around Altera’s popular Cyclone II EP2C5T144 FPGA. Engineered as a complete minimal system core, this board bridges the gap between raw programmable logic and practical application systems, handling everything from basic logic control and data acquisition to advanced mathematical calculations and signal processing.
Built for seamless workbench integration, the board features an onboard EPCS4 configuration memory chip (4Mbit), a 50MHz active patch crystal oscillator, and high-quality tantalum capacitors for superior power filtering. All 89 user I/O and clock pins are fully broken out to standard pin headers, allowing the board to be easily inserted into application motherboards or connected to external peripherals. Complete with a single 5V power supply input, power indicator LED, reset switch, and test LEDs, it provides an ideal hardware foundation for both students and embedded design engineers.
Key Features
- Altera Cyclone II EP2C5T144 Chip: Core FPGA processor delivering robust logic capacity, internal memory, and dual PLLs.
- EPCS4 Configuration EEPROM: Onboard 4Mbit non-volatile memory chip for secure FPGA configuration bitstream storage.
- 50MHz Active Crystal Oscillator: Provides a stable, high-precision clock source right out of the box.
- Complete I/O Breakout: All chip pins and clock lines are routed to pin headers, supporting expansion to arbitrary memory and peripherals.
- Superior Power Filtering: Utilizes high-grade tantalum capacitors across the power rails to ensure clean, noise-free operation.
- Interactive Peripherals: Includes 3 SMD test LEDs for quick logic verification, a physical reset switch, and a power indicator.
- Embedded Soft-Core Support: Fully capable of supporting Nios II embedded CPU development architectures.
Benefits
- Easy System Integration: Designed as a minimal core system that can be plugged directly into custom target application boards.
- Reliable Standalone Booting: The onboard EPCS4 flash chip ensures your configuration loads automatically every time power is applied.
- Cost-Effective Learning Platform: Exceptional entry-level price point for students and hobbyists mastering legacy Altera Quartus toolchains and VHDL/Verilog.
Applications
- Digital Logic Experiments: Basic combinational and sequential circuit design, counter creation, and state machine testing.
- Data Acquisition Systems: Interfacing analog-to-digital converters and sensors via the extensive 89 I/O pin breakout.
- Embedded Processor Research: Instantiating and debugging Nios II soft-core microcontroller systems.
- Industrial Control Prototyping: Implementing custom timing generators, PWM controllers, and protocol bridges.
Package Includes
- 1 x Altera FPGA Cyclone II EP2C5T144 System Development Board
Technical Specifications
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Brand / Series | SPIDER Automation / Altera Cyclone II Series |
| Item Type | FPGA System Development Board |
| Model Order Code / SKU | EP2C5T144 / SKU-SPIDER-EP2C5T144 |
| Main FPGA Core Chip | Altera Cyclone II EP2C5T144 |
| Configuration Memory | 4Mbit EPCS4 EEPROM Flash Chip |
| Clock Source | 50MHz Active Patch Crystal Oscillator |
| General-Purpose I/O | 89 User I/O and Clock Pins (Fully broken out) |
| Internal Resources | 2 × PLLs & Support for Nios II Embedded CPU |
| Operating Voltage | Single 5V Power Supply Input (Socket or Pin Header) / 3.3V FPGA I/O Level |
| User Peripherals | 3 × SMD Test LEDs, Reset Switch, & Power Indicator LED |
| Board Physical Dimensions | 73 mm × 52 mm × 13 mm |
| Package Shipping Weight | 0.03 kg (30 g) |
| Package Shipping Dimensions | 6 cm × 3 cm × 3 cm |
