We will be using Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) as our implementation target hardware, specifically the Xilinx 4003EPC84 chip. FPGAs are types of programmable logic devices (PLD) and are used to implement combinational logic circuits and sequential logic circuits. The design process is complex, and software is used to automate many details and to permit the designer to essentially focus on design issues.
Please refer to Chapter 18 of these notes for background material on Xilinx FPGA, digital lab, etc