Tanguy Risset -- Compiling Audio DSP for FPGAs Using the Faust Programming Language and High Level Synthesis

Abstract: In this talk, we give a detailed presentation of Syfala (https://github.com/inria-emeraude/syfala), a new "audio DSP to FPGA" compiler based on the Faust programming language (https://faust.grame.fr/ ) and Xilinx/AMD's High level Synthesis (HLS) technology. Our open-source system compiles automatically audio DSP programs to FPGA hardware up to actual sound production (Zynq-based platforms). With this compiler, much smaller audio latency (i.e., one sample at a high sampling rate) can be achieved than with regular "software-based" digital audio systems. This presentation also introduces FPGA architecture in general as well as recent HLS technologies. It finally describes in detail the coupling with the vitis_hls synthesis tool -- which performs parallelization -- and shows the resulting system implementation, performances, and open issues.

Bio: The Emeraude team at INRIA (French National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology) is based in Lyon (France) and was officially created at the beginning of 2022. It focuses on embedded audio platforms and their programming. It gathers the strengths of GRAME-CNCM (birthplace of the Faust programming language), INSA (Institut National des Sciences Appliquées), and INRIA researchers. Three members of Emeraude will be present for this presentation: Tanguy Risset (team leader), Maxime Popoff (PhD Candidate), and Romain Michon (researcher).