lumexralph / f-hack

Implementation of a modern 16-bit von Neumann machine designed to execute programs written in the Hack machine language from studying "The Elements of Computing Systems"

F-Hack

In the quest to go deeper in the stack(low-level) and do a bottom-up approach, this project contains my implementation of building a 16-bit modern computer systems called F-Hack (Fun Hacking) using Logic Gates / Chips which is what the modern computer architecture is made of.

In the process of studying this amazing book The Element of Computing Systems

Implementation

I will be using a specification, Hardware Description Language (HDL) to build my hardware computers using different logic gates combination.

First Stage (Elementary Chips)

Create the following Chips:

• Not (Inverter): This gate outputs the opposite value of it's input, something like !true == false in a programming language. done

• And: returns 1 when both its inputs are 1, and 0 if they are not. done

• Or: returns 1 when at least one of its input is 1, and 0 otherwise done

• Xor (Exclusive Or): returns 1 when exactly one of its inputs is 1, and 0 otherwise done

• Multiplexer: it is a three-input gate, it uses sel bit to select and output either of the 2 supplied inputs. done

• Demultiplexer: It is the opposite of Multiplexer, it takes a single inout value and routes it to one of two possible outputs according to a selection bit that selects the destination output. done

• 16-bit Not (Not16) done

• 16-bit And (And16) done

• 16-bit Or (Or16) done

• 16-bit Multiplexer (Mux16) done

• Multi-way Or (Or8Way) done

• Multi-way Multiplexer (Mux4Way16, Mux8Way16) done

• Mult-way Demultiplexer (DMux4Way, DMux8Way) done

Implementation: Elementary Chips

Second Stage (Adders, Incrementer and Arithemtic Logic Unit (ALU))

• Half-adder: designed to add two bits. done

• Full-adder: designed to add three bits. done

• Adder: designed to add two n-bit numbers, in our case, our computer word size is a 16-bit size. done

• Incrementer: A chip that adds 1 to a given number, this chip will be pivotal in enabling us to fetch the next instruction in memory after executing the currebt one. done

• ALU: This chip will be the computational center-piece of our CPU. done

Implementation: Combinational Chips

Third Stage (Memory Chips - Registers, RAM, Counter)

• Registers: (single-bit register (Bit), 16-bit register (Register)). done

• RAM: it is an aggregate of n Register chips, by specifying a particular aadress (a number between 0 to n - 1), each register in the RAM can be selected and made available for read or write operations RAM(8, 64, 512, 4K, 16K) done

• Program Counter: is a chip that knows how to increment its value by 1 each time unit. done

Implementation: Memory Chips

Fourth Stage (CPU, ROM32K, Data Memory, Computer Chips)

• CPU Chip:

• ROM32K: The instruction memory of the computer, where the instruction being executed is stored.

• Memory Chip (RAM16K + Screen + Keyboard Chips) done

• Computer Chip: