WARPLab Download Links

WARPLab can be downloaded and used in two different ways. First, pre-built bitstreams are provided that implement the most recent version of the WARPLab Reference Design and can be used immediately with custom user M-code PHY implementations. Second, the WARPLab Reference Design is provided as an archive of an Xilinx EDK project. This project can be extended? any number of ways. For example, a user's custom M-code PHY can be hardened to the FPGA logic piece by piece.

Additionally, downloads are provided in 2 Radio and 4 Radio variants. Because WARP hardware is modular allowing for different numbers of radios per device, we provide these two variants to cover most usage scenarios. For WARP v1 and v2, the "2 Radio" downloads refer to radio daughtercards plugged into slots 2 and 3 on the WARP FPGA board.

Bitstreams

Bitstreams are pre-built files that can be downloaded directly to WARP boards for immediate execution without the need for running the ISE design tools to generate the design. There are three types of bitstream files:

• .bit: The .bit files can be downloaded to a board over JTAG using the Xilinx iMPACT software.
• .bin: The .bin files are bitstreams that can be loaded onto an SD card and plugged into a WARP v3 board. Whenever the card is plugged in (or the board is powered on with the card plugged in), the FPGA will be programmed from the SD card. Instructions on how to write an SD are are available here. Note: these instructions include the process for converting a .bit file into a .bin file. These instructions can be skipped if downloading the WARPLab .bin file directly.
• .ace: The .ace files are bitstreams that can be written to a CompactFlash card for programming WARP v1 or WARP v2 hardware.

Hardware	Release	Date Posted	ISE Ver	2 Radio Download	4 Radio Download
WARP v3	6.2	29-Aug-2012	13.4	​.bit, ​.bin	N/A
WARP v2	6.2	2-Sep-2012	13.4	​.bit, ​.ace	​.bit,​.ace
WARP v1	6.2	Coming Soon	10.1.03	N/A	N/A

Reference Design

Hardware	Release	Date Posted	ISE Ver	2 Radio Download	4 Radio Download
WARP v3	6.2	29-Aug-2012	13.4	​w3_WARPLab_ReferenceDesign_v6p2_2rf.zip	N/A
WARP v2	6.2	2-Sep-2012	13.4	​w3_WARPLab_ReferenceDesign_v6p2_2rf.zip	​w3_WARPLab_ReferenceDesign_v6p2_4rf.zip
WARP v1	6.2	Coming Soon	10.1.03	N/A	N/A

Matlab Code

WARPLab M-code is compatible across all versions of the hardware and even mixed deployments of hardware from different generations as well as different numbers of antennas.

• WARPLab Reference M-Code?: M-Code functions that facilitate interaction with WARP nodes directly from MATLAB workspace are provided.
• WARPLab Examples?: M-Code examples that show how to use the WARPLab Reference M-Code are provided.

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WARPLab Revision History

Notes for v6.2 Posted August 2012

• Added support for ​WARP v3. In this release, the source models and software for WARPLab are different for WARP v3 than the v1 and v2 hardware. In a future release, these will merge back together to a common code base.
• Added a new WARPLab command to verify network settings from within Matlab. If it even seems like WARPLab isn't working, simply run warplab_networkCheck(N) from the Matlab command line (where N is the number of nodes in your setup). This will run a series of diagnoses to help figure out what the problem is.
• We introduced a bug in the prior 6.1 release that made the processing of sync packets jittery. This has been fixed in this release.

Notes for v6.1 Posted July 2012

• Small, but important, bug fix. MAC addresses for each node were not updated based on dip switch value. This made any setup larger than 1 node fail due to arp table collisions. This has been resolved. v6.0 is deprecated and should not be used
• Notes for v6.0 Posted July 2012
• Design defaults to using gigabit Ethernet on WARP v2 Hardware (Virtex-4)
• Improved packet handling on WARP v2 for fewer packet drops
• Sync packets now sent as proper broadcast IP frames (X.X.X.255). Manual ARP table entries for sync packets no longer necessary.
• Small change to M-code reference to reduce likelihood of "failed to receive ACK" error.
• Thanks to a modified pnet for Matlab's UDP handling, WARPLab is sped by ~10x

Notes for v5.2 Posted December 2009

• Can store RSSI data in the 4x4 design
• Consolidated the Sysgen models. Now there is one Sysgen model, warplab_mimo_4x4.mdl, that implements the full system: 4 radios with I/Q and RSSI buffers. The 2x2 MIMO and 4x4 MIMO Reference Designs? are identical except the 2x2 Design leaves two paths of the model unconnected.
• Minor update: Added the Null MGT wrapper core to the project (see note at the end of the FPGA Board user guide)

Notes for v5.1 Posted November 2009

• Builds upon the features of Version 5
• Support for both Version 1 and 2 of the FPGA Board
• Single C-code base for both the 2x2 and 4x4 Reference Designs
• Interoperable across both versions of the FPGA Boards

Notes for v5.0 Posted September 2009

• Includes Automatic Gain Control (AGC). Previous versions of WARPLab required Manual Gain Control (MGC), the user was required to set receiver gains manually. Now AGC or MGC can be selected by M-code functions.
• RSSI data read is supported by the 2x2 MIMO bitstream but not by the 4x4 MIMO bitstream
• Continuous transmission mode is supported by both the 2x2 and 4x4 bitstreams