Microprocessor & Interfacing (ECL-202)

Introduction to Microprocessor
Course Instructor: Dr. Khuraijam Nelson Singh

Department of ECE, IIIT Nagpur, 2023

Microprocessor
• Combination micro and processor.
• Processor means a device that processes some data. In this context
processor means a device that processes numbers, specifically binary
numbers, 0’s and 1’s.
• Till the late 1960’s, processors were built using discrete elements.
Eg. IBM 1401, NCR 315 etc.
• In the early 1970’s the microchip was invented. All of the components that
made up the processor were now placed on a single piece of silicon. The
size became several thousand times smaller and the speed became several
hundred times faster.
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 Fig. 2. Single and double width SMS (Standard
Fig. 1. From left to right: 1402 Card Read Punch, 729 Magnetic Tape
Modular System) cards from the IBM 1401
Unit, 1407 Console Inquiry Station, 1401 Processing Unit, 1403
Processing Unit.
Printer. (Image courtesy of IBM Archives.)

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• Intel 4004 released in 1971.
• First general-purpose programmable
processor on the market
• It contained around 2,300 transistors on a
single chip.

Fig. 3. Intel 4004 chip Fig. 4. Intel 4004 on Busicom 141-PF printing calculator
circuit board

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Definition of the Microprocessor
• Programmable device that takes in binary input, arithmetic, logic, control,
and input/output (I/O) operations according to the program stored in
memory and then produces output.
• Eg. Intel 8085, Qualcomm Snapdragon 888, Intel Xeon Ice Lake, Intel Core
11th Gen, Apple M1 etc.
• Practical uses of Intel 8085 uP:
o Home Computers: Early computer such as Intel SDK-85, Altair 8800, and IMSAI
8080.
o Industrial Control Systems
o Radiation hardened 8085 was used in several NASA and ESA space physics missions
in the 1990s and early 2000s, including CRRES, HESSI, the Sojourner Mars Rover etc.

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Word & Half-word
• Word refers to the maximum size of data that a microprocessor can process in a
single operation.
• Typically, word size= width of the data bus and size of the register of the uP.
• For example, in an 4 bit uP (Intel 4004), a word is 4 bit.
• 8-bit uP (Intel 8008, 8085; Motorola 6800), a word is 8 bits.
• Half-word is half the size of a word.
• It represents the data size that is half the width of the data bus in the microprocessor.
• For example, in an 8-bit uP, a half-word is 4 bits; in a 16-bit uP, a half-word is 8 bits; and in a
32-bit uP, a half-word is 16 bits.
• Half-word data is often used in operations that require smaller data sizes or when dealing
with more limited ranges of values.

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Microprocessor-based System

Fig. 5. Block diagram of microprocessor based system

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Microcomputer
• A relatively inexpensive computer having a central processing unit (CPU)
made out of a microprocessor.
• Eg. Laptop, Desktop, Tablet etc.
Is there any computer which are not Microcomputer??
• Supercomputers, mainframes, and minicomputers.

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Organization of a microprocessor based system

Fig. 6. Microprocessor based System with Bus Architecture

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Inside The Microprocessor
• The microprocessor is made up of 3 main units.
a) The Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU): To perform arithmetic and logical
instructions based on computer instructions.
b) The Control Unit: To control the overall operations of the computer through
signals.
c) Registers (Internal Memory): They are used to hold the instruction and data for
the execution of the processor.

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Memory
• Memory stores information such as instructions and data in binary format
(0 and 1).
• It provides this information to the microprocessor whenever it is needed.
• Memory sub-system:
a) registers inside the microprocessor
b) Read Only Memory (ROM)-used to store information that does not change
c) Random Access Memory (RAM) (also known as Read/Write Memory)-used to
store information supplied by the user. Such as programs and data.

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I/O (Input/Output)
• It communicates with the outside world.
• I/O includes two types of devices: input and output; these I/O devices are
also known as peripherals.

System Bus
• The system bus is a communication path between the microprocessor and
peripherals.
• It is nothing but a group of wires to carry bits.
• There are several buses in the system.

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System Bus
• Address Bus: Group
of 16 bits from A0 to A15.
• Each location size=8bits

Q. If a processor has 4 (8 bit)

GB memory then how
many address lines are (16 bit)
required to access this
memory? (8 bit)

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How does a Microprocessor Work?
• The microprocessor follows a sequence: Fetch, Decode, and then Execute.
• The instructions are stored in the memory in a sequential order.
• The microprocessor fetches those instructions from the memory, then
decodes it and executes those instructions till STOP instruction is reached.
• Later, it sends the result in binary to the output port or stored in the
appropriate memory location or register.
• Between these processes, the register stores the temporarily data and ALU
performs the computing functions.

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Machine Cycle

Fetch

Store Decode

Execute

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How does uP understand what to do?
• Instructions (Mnemonics):
1. Task to perform (Operation Code or Opcode)
2. Date to be operated on (Operand)
• Operand can be 8 bit or 16 bit data, registers, memory location or address.

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• Consider a small uP with only 4 instructions.
00

01
Opcode Instructions
10
decoder
11

• 8085 uses 8 bit instruction decoder.

• So, 256 total instruction possible.
• 246 available and 10 undocumented opcode.

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Microcontroller
• A minicomputer which is designed using a single chip is called
Microcontroller.
• Microcontrollers are specifically intended for embedded systems and
dedicated control applications.
• Some common applications:
• home automation systems, IoT devices, industrial automation, consumer
electronics, household appliances, like washing machines, microwaves, and air
conditioners, smartwatches, fitness trackers, medical devices etc.

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Some Microcontroller and their real-time Applications
• Wearable Devices: Nordic nRF52, STMicroelectronics STM32, TI MSP430 are
used in wearable devices like smart watches, fitness trackers, and health
monitoring devices.
• Industrial Automation: Siemens S7 and Allen-Bradley MicroLogix are used to
control processes, monitor sensors, and manage machinery in factories and
production lines.
• Automotive Control Systems: Infineon AURIX, Renesas RH850, and NXP S32 are
used in automotive control systems for engine management, safety features
(e.g., airbags, anti-lock brakes), infotainment systems, and other functionalities.
• Robotics: Arduino, Teensy, and STM32 are used in robotics for controlling robot
movements, sensors, actuators, and decision-making algorithms.
• Note: Raspberry Pi is a microprocessors but can also be designed as a
microcontroller (Raspberry Pi Pico is a microcontroller).

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Machine Language
• Machine language is the language understood by a computer.
• It is a collection of binary digits or bits that the computer reads and
interprets.
• Below is an example of machine language (binary) for the text "Hello
World.“

• Very difficult for human to understand.

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Assembly Language
• Assembly Language is a type of low-level programming language.
• It helps in understanding the programming language of machine code.
• Machine code is a series of instructions that is provided to the processor to
perform a task.
• Assembly language uses mnemonics to represent individual machine
instructions. Eg. MOV, ADD, JMP etc.
• Needs an Assembler to convert the assembly code into machine code.
• Different CPU architecture have different Assembly Language.
• Eg. assembly languages for x86 (Intel and AMD processors), ARM, MIPS etc. are
all different and each has its unique set of instructions and syntax showing its
capabilities and features.
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Difference between Low & High Level Language
Parameter High-Level Language Low-Level Language
Basic Programmer-friendly languages. Machine-friendly languages but not to
programmer.
Process of Translation Require a compiler or an interpreter for their Requires an assembler for directly translating the
translation into the machine code. instructions of the machine language.
Efficiency of Memory Low High

Portability These are portable from any one device to A user cannot port these from one device to
another. another.
Debugging It is very easy to debug these languages. A programmer cannot easily debug these
languages.
Maintenance High-level languages have a simple and It is quite complex to maintain any low-level
comprehensive maintenance technique. language.
Speed of Execution Slow Fast

Need of Hardware One does not require a knowledge of hardware Having knowledge of hardware is a prerequisite
for writing programs. to writing programs.
Examples C, Python, BASIC, COBOL, Pascal, Ruby, etc. Machine language and Assembly language.
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• Important Things to Know:
• Why 8085 uses hex number system.

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