Using programmable logic devices in the digital electronics laboratory

A report is given of how programmable logic devices (PLDs) can be applied in custom logic designs using inexpensive software and programming hardware and be effectively integrated into a digital laboratory. Purdue University´s Electrical Engineering Technology program requires a two-semester freshman sequence in digital fundamentals. The first course covers combinational logic circuits and the second course primarily covers sequential logic circuits. Beginning with the Spring 1988 semester, the combinational logic course included electrically erasable PLDs as an additional component for logic-circuit design in the laboratory