N310 Target Platform not appearing in HDL Coder

I have been trying to follow the NI Targeting Workflow for IP Core generation for an USRP N310 SDR. I have installed Vivado and appended it to the system path, and have been successful in connecting with the SDR using the radioSetupWizard. In Simulink, using the SDRu Reciever block, I am successfully able to read data from the Rx channels of the radio, so there is no issue with the connectivity here.

However, when I try to use the HDL coder, it seems that the radio is not recognised. I can load the default fpga using sdruload, so I assume it's not that I can't access the fpga, but I cannot see it, nor any other NI radio (other than the E310 which appeared after running setupusrpe3xxrepositories;) as a target platform for the HDL coder.

I would expect to see this listed as USRP N310 as in the example, but it does not appear. I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling everything, so I am at a loss of how to proceed. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Francisco Salomon]

Hello Elliot,

Thanks for reaching out. Are you in a Linux machine? Please be aware that the bitstream generation part of this workflow for USRP is Linux only at the moment. More info at http://www.mathworks.com/help/wireless-testbench/ug/installation-for-targeting-ni-ursp-devices.html

Thanks,

Francisco

[Elliott]

Hi Francisco,

No, I am working on Windows. I am aware that I cannot generate a bitstream using this workflow. I am just using this for the development of the IP core, and generating the bitstream from this will be done separately, either on another machine or via a different approach.

Best wishes,

Elliott

[Ben Cunningham]

Hi Elliot,

Thanks for sharing your expectation / use-case.

The USRP targets from Wireless Testbench will only show in the list when using Linux. ie Linux is required for all interactions with the HDL Coder toolstrip for targeting NI USRPs with Wireless Testbench.

You can of course develop your DUT subsystem on Windows as you are doing; then transfer your model to a Linux machine to follow through the steps on the HDL Coder Toolstrip: Choosing and configuring platform and reference design, Interface mapping, and bitstream generation.

Best wishes,

Ben

[Elliott]

Hi Ben,

Thank you for getting in touch about this. This is unfortunate news. Is there any plans to add a support package for this with the Wireless Testbench in the future, as exists for the E310 with the Communications Toolbox?

Best wishes,

Elliott

Answer 1

[Ben Cunningham]

Hi Elliot,

Thanks for your interest in targeting the FPGA of your USRP on Windows, we consider all customer requests when prioritising new features.

As for now (25a release) FPGA targeting is only possible on Linux. We document the availability of features on Windows, Linux and Mac here: Supported Radio Devices - MATLAB & Simulink

The USRP FPGA targets from Wireless Testbench will only show in the list when using Linux.

On Windows you can:

• Create a DUT subsystem in simulink, or open one of our examples
• Simulate the system by running in Simulink
• Program an FPGA image you built on another (Linux) machine onto your USRP FPGA.
• Control the USRP with the bitstream you built on another (Linux) machine by running your host interface script.

Linux is required for:

• Selecting the USRP as the Target platform in HDL Coder
• Configuring reference design parameters
• Generating the HDL IPCore and Bitstream

You can also do everything listed for Windows on Linux.

All the best,

Ben