Specifications

1–24 Altera Corporation
October 2007
Creating the Example Design Nios II Hardware Development Tutorial
Add the PIO
PIO signals provide an easy method for Nios II processor systems to
receive input stimuli and drive output signals. Complex control
applications might use hundreds of PIO signals which the Nios II
processor can monitor. This example design uses eight PIO signals to
drive LEDs on the board.
Perform the following steps to add the PIO. Perform these steps even if
your target board doesn't have LEDs.
1. In the list of available components, expand Peripherals, expand
Microcontroller Peripherals, and then click PIO (Parallel I/O).
2. Click Add. The PIO (Parallel I/O) MegaWizard interface appears.
3. Do not change the default settings (see Figure 1–12). The
MegaWizard interface defaults to an 8-bit output-only PIO, which
exactly matches the needs for the example design.
Figure 1–12. PIO MegaWizard