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Floating point type provides an approximation of the real number value.
type type_name is real_number_left_bound downto real_number_right_bound;
type type_name is real_number_left_bound to real_number_right_bound;
A floating point type is a numeric type consisting of real numbers which values are constrained by a specified range.
There exists only one predefined floating point type: REAL. The range of the values for the type REAL are implementation-dependent, but it is required by the standard that it covers the values from -1.0E38 to +1.0E38.
A user-defined floating point type can be constructed on the basis of the predefined REAL type by constraining its range (example 1). The bounds of the range of a user-defined floating point type should be in the form of locally static expression. The expression is classified as a locally static if it is possible to determine its value without running the code. The value of an expression used as a range for a floating point type must also be of floating point type, not necessarily the same for both bounds (example 2). Negative bounds are allowed.
All floating point types (including user-defined) have the same set of arithmetic operators, namely: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, absolute function and exponentiation.
Example 1
type Voltage_Level is range
-5.5 to +5.5;
type Int_64K is range
- 65536.00 to 65535.00;
Example 2
type APPROX_VALUES_DOWNTO is range
(2.0**(N+1)) - 1.0 downto 0.0;
type APPROX_VALUES_TO is range
0.0 to (2.0**(N+1))
- 1.0;
In order to add, subtract, multiply or divide integer object to/from a real object, type conversion of the integer object is needed. The only exception from this rule is multiplication and division of universal integer and universal real.
The floating point types are not synthesizeable by any of the existing tools. Their use is thus very limited.
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