Test standard serves dual role as on-board programming solution

Abstract

Currently, there are both proprietary and JTAG compliant on-board programming schemes, resulting in confusion and frustration among PLD users. This situation is reminiscent of a similar issue which confronted the industry in its early years: PLD vendors used different file formats to describe fuse connectivity in PLDs. Then, as now, multiple schemes complicated program and verification procedures. Finally a standard emerged from the Joint Electronic Device Engineering Council known as JEDEC. Once the standard became widely accepted, this confusion was greatly reduced. The use of JTAG for on-board programming is an emerging standard and simplifies on-board programming procedures. Any designer familiar with JTAG can easily understand the algorithm and use test equipment to program as well as test.