Computer Hardware CPU / Micro processors / MicroControllers

Defined, Architectures,  Applications

• Families

  • 1802
  • 8031
  • 8051
  • 6800
  • 68hc11

  • Atmel (AVR)

  • Intel Corporations
  • Hitachi (Cybiko)

  • MicroChip Technologies (PIC) and similar alternatives

  • Nippon Electrical Corporation
  • Oki Semiconductor
  • Rabbit

  • Ubicom (formerly Scenix) (SX)

  • Texas Instruments
  • Zilog Z8/Z80/8080

• Testing / Debugging / Development Systems

  • Comparison of types
  • Device Programmers
  • Current lowest cost entry points:

  • See also:

    • EDN Access June 18,1998 "Debugging embedded systems: 10 common hardware problems and how to solve them"
• Notes
  • Unused pins
  • Watch Dog Timers
  • Clocks and Overclocking
  • Debugging

Suppliers@

See also:

• http://www.microcontroller.com/, http://www.embedded.com,
• http://www.embedded.com/1999/9905/compilers.htm Comprehensive-ish table of compilers for embedded systems
• Steve Ciarcia's Circuit Cellar
• Berkley CPU Info Center
• Tom Engdahl's Microprocessors and Microcontrollers page
• Myke Predko's Microcontroller Reference Page
• http://www.dvanhorn.org/Micros/All/Index.php
• http://www.dontronics.com/auto.html DonTronics has a nice comparison and contrast of several CPUs (AVR, PIC, HC11, etc.) here.
• "The uPD7281 Processor, a non-vonNeumann chip designed for high-speed parallel processing of images" by Tom Jefferys, Byte Magazine, November 1985
• "A Versatile Low-Cost Microprocessor Controller Module" by David L. Craig, Byte Magazine December 1982 pg 486. (6802 with 2716 EPROM and 6820 or 6821 PIA)
• "The 8051 One-Chip Microcomputer" by Howard Boyet, Byte Magazine, December 1982
• EG3 Communications, Inc. Embedded Systems Internet Information Clearinghouse
• Softaid Articles inlcuding embedded design
• Finnish Academic and Research Network
• The Stanford FLASH Multiprocessor
• raw Architecture Workshop
• Free CPU f-cpu.org - designed collaboratively, implemented in FPGA (was: f-cpu.tux.org )
• David Cary's Computer Architecture page (was http://www.rdrop.com/~cary/ )
• Great Microprocessors of the Past and Present
• UMPs from VMDesign.com runs under Windows and simulates many processors and external hardware. New devices can be added by writing a DLL in C or pascal. Distributed in the US by wirz.com for $649
• Intel Museum - How Microprocessors Work

each of the above SHOULD include: ³PinOut ³ ³Timing and interface diagrams ³ ³Specifications ³ ³ Internal Data Path Width ³ ³ Data Bus Width ³ ³ Address Range ³ ³ Available Clock Speeds ³ ³ Size of instruction set ³ ³ Average cycles per instruction ³ ³ Special Features ³ ³ Cache ³ ³ Prefetch ³ ³ Other ³ ³ Common usage ³ ³Instruction Set ³ ³ Summary list of all the instructions showing ³ ³ syntax and brief description ³ ³ Reference as in the MASM 5.1 Pocket Reference ³ ³ Description as in "Organization and Assembly ³ ³ Language Programming" ³ ³ Tutorial as in the Visible Computer ³ ³History ³

David A Cary Says:

"I believe there are currently two simple approaches to getting involved with microcontrollers. The ATMEL AVR Micro and the Microchip PICmicro" --

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