Chapter 1

Introduction

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Introduction

In this course we will discus the microprocessor.

We will discuss it from two perspectives.

First, as a unit within a microcomputer system.

Second, as a stand-alone system for controlling
other systems.

From the microprocessors perspective it doesnt

change any thing. The difference comes from our
interaction with it.

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

What is a Microprocessor?

The word comes from the combination micro and

processor.

Processor means a device that processes

whatever. In this context processor means a
device that processes numbers, specifically binary
numbers, 0s and 1s.

To process means to manipulate. It is a general term

that describes all manipulation. Again in this context, it
means to perform certain operations on the numbers that
depend on the microprocessors design.

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

What about micro?

Micro is a new addition.

In the late 1960s, processors were built using

discrete elements.

These devices performed the required operation, but

were too large and too slow.

In the early 1970s 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.
The MicroProcessor was born.
Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Definition of the Microprocessor

The microprocessor is a programmable
device that takes in numbers, performs on
them arithmetic or logical operations
according to the program stored in
memory and then produces other
numbers as a result.

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Definition (Contd.)

Lets expand each of the underlined words:

Programmable device: The microprocessor can
perform different sets of operations on the data it
receives depending on the sequence of instructions
supplied in the given program.
By changing the program, the microprocessor
manipulates the data in different ways.

Instructions: Each microprocessor is designed to

execute a specific group of operations. This group of
operations is called an instruction set. This instruction
set defines what the microprocessor can and cannot
do.
Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Definition (Contd.)
Takes in: The data that the microprocessor
manipulates must come from somewhere.

It comes from what is called input devices.

These are devices that bring data into the system from
the outside world.
These represent devices such as a keyboard, a mouse,
switches, and the like.

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Definition (Contd.)

Numbers: The microprocessor has a very narrow view on

life. It only understands binary numbers.

A binary digit is called a bit (which comes from binary digit).

The microprocessor recognizes and processes a group of
bits together. This group of bits is called a word.
The number of bits in a Microprocessors word, is a measure
of its abilities.

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Definition (Contd.)

Words, Bytes, etc.

The earliest microprocessor (the Intel 8088 and Motorolas

6800) recognized 8-bit words.

Later microprocessors (8086 and 68000) were designed with

16-bit words.

They processed information 8-bits at a time. Thats why they are

called 8-bit processors. They can handle large numbers, but in
order to process these numbers, they broke them into 8-bit pieces
and processed each group of 8-bits separately.

A group of 8-bits were referred to as a half-word or byte.

A group of 4 bits is called a nibble.
Also, 32 bit groups were given the name long word.

Today, all processors manipulate at least 32 bits at a time and

there exists microprocessors that can process 64, 80, 128 bits
or more at a time.

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Definition (Contd.)
Arithmetic and Logic Operations:

Every microprocessor has arithmetic operations such as

add and subtract as part of its instruction set.

Most microprocessors will have operations such as

multiply and divide.
Some of the newer ones will have complex operations
such as square root.

In addition, microprocessors have logic operations as

well. Such as AND, OR, XOR, shift left, shift right, etc.

Again, the number and types of operations define the

microprocessors instruction set and depends on the
specific microprocessor.

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Definition (Contd.)
Program: A program is a sequence of instructions
that bring data into the microprocessor, processes
it and sends it out.

There are many programming languages (C, C++,

FORTRAN, and JAVA) However, these programming
languages can be grouped into three main levels (these
days a fourth level is developing).

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Definition (Contd.)
Programming Languages

Machine language

Machine language is the lowest level programming

language. It is a language intended to be understood by
the microprocessor (the machine) only.
In this language, every instruction is described by binary
patterns.
e.g. 11001101 may mean 1 + 2
This is the form in which instructions are stored in memory.
This is the only form that the microprocessor understands.

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Definition (Contd.)
Programming Languages

Assembly language

This language is more understandable by humans. In this

language, the binary patterns are assigned mnemonics
(short abbreviated names).
e.g. Add 1,2 is assigned to the machine language pattern
11001101 mentioned above to refer to the operation 1+2.
There is usually one assembly language instruction for
each machine language instruction.

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Definition (Contd.)
Programming Languages

High level languages

These are languages like C, PASCAL and FORTRON.

These are more natural for humans to use than assembly
or machine languages. They are also more compact (i.e. it
takes less statements to write the program).
One high level instruction translates into many assembly or
machine language instructions.
e.g. x = y + z may translate into:
MOV
1000, R1
MOV
1004, R2
ADD
R1, R2
MOV
R1, 1008

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Definition (Contd.)
Programming Languages

The new level being developed: is ultra high level

languages which would contain things like C++, and
JAVA.

Here a single instruction may translate into hundreds of

assembly or machine language instructions.

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Definition (Contd.)
Stored in memory :

First, what is memory?

Memory is the location where information is kept while not

in current use.
Memory is a collection of storage devices. Usually, each
storage device holds one bit. Also, in most kinds of
memory, these storage devices are grouped into groups of
8. These 8 storage locations can only be accessed
together. So, one can only read or write in terms of bytes
to and form memory.
Memory is usually measured by the number of bytes it can
hold. It is measured in Kilos, Megas and lately Gigas. A
Kilo in computer language is 210 =1024. So, a KB
(KiloByte) is 1024 bytes. Mega is 1024 Kilos and Giga is
1024 Mega.

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Definition (Contd.)
Stored in memory:

When a program is entered into a computer, it is stored

in memory. Then as the microprocessor starts to execute
the instructions, it brings the instructions from memory
one at a time.

Memory is also used to hold the data.

The microprocessor reads (brings in) the data from

memory when it needs it and writes (stores) the results into
memory when it is done.

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Definition (Contd.)
Produces: For the user to see the result of the
execution of the program, the results must be
presented in a human readable form.

The results must be presented on an output device.

This can be the monitor, a paper from the printer, a

simple LED or many other forms.

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A Microprocessor-based system
From the above description, we can draw the
following block diagram to represent a
microprocessor-based system:

Output

Input

Memory

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Inside The Microprocessor

Internally, the microprocessor is made up of 3

main units.

The Arithmetic/Logic Unit (ALU)

The Control Unit.
An array of registers for holding data while it is
being manipulated.

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Organization of a microprocessor-based system

Lets expand the picture a bit.

I/O
Input / Output
ALU

Register
Array

Control

System Bus
Memory
ROM RAM

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Organization of the Microprocessor

The microprocessor can be divided into three
main pieces:

Arithmetic/Logic Unit

Performs all computing and logic operations such as

addition and subtraction as well as AND, OR and XOR.

Register Array

A collection of registers within the microprocessor itself.

These are used primarily for data storage during program
execution. The number and the size of these registers
differ from one microprocessor to the other.

Control Unit

As the name implies, the control Unit controls what is

happening in the microprocessor. It provides the necessary
control and timing signals to all operations in the
microprocessor as well as its contact to the outside world.

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How do the units interact

Assume that the user has given the following instruction:
ADD R1, R2, R3
(Which translates to: add Register 1 to Register 2 and place the result in Register 3.)

The control unit receives the bit pattern for this instruction
(0100011011) from memory.
It decodes the bit pattern and determines that this is an Add operation
(0100).
It also determines that the inputs to the addition come from Register R1
(01) and Register R2 (10).
It finally determines that the results go into register R3 (11).
It issues a control signal connecting one input of the adder (in the ALU)
to register R1 (in the Register Array) and the other input to register R2.
Then after an appropriate amount of time, it issues a control signal to
register R3 to store the output of the adder.

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How do the units interact

EN

EN

R1

EN

R2

S0
S1

R3

EN

R4

S0

4 X 1 MUX

4 X 1 MUX
S1

Adder

The control unit is in complete control of the system at all times. It

controls the behavior using select and enable inputs to the different
elements of the system.
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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.

Usually, there is a memory sub-system in a

microprocessor-based system. This sub-system includes:

The registers inside the microprocessor

Read Only Memory (ROM)

used to store information that does not change.

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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Memory

To execute a program:

the user enters its instructions in binary format into the

memory.
The microprocessor then reads these instructions and
whatever data is needed from memory, executes the
instructions and places the results either in memory or
produces it on an output device.

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Input/Output ( I/O )

Input and output devices are the systems means

of communicating with the outside world. These
devices are collectively known as peripherals.

Input devices transfer binary information from the

outside world to the microprocessor.

Examples of input devices are: keyboard, mouse, bar

code reader, scanner and the like.

Output devices transfer binary information from

the microprocessor to the outside world.

Theses include things like an LED, a monitor, a printer

and the like.

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System Bus

A communication path between the

microprocessor and peripherals.

It is simply a group of wires carrying the voltages

and currents representing the different bit values.

The microprocessor communicates with only one

peripheral at a time.

Controlling the bus is done by the Control Unit.

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The three cycle instruction execution model

To execute a program, the microprocessor

reads each instruction from memory,
interprets it, then executes it.

To use the right names for the cycles:

This sequence is continued until all instructions

are performed.

The microprocessor fetches each instruction,

decodes it,
Then executes it.

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Machine Language

The number of bits that form the word of a

microprocessor is fixed for that particular processor.

These bits define a maximum number of combinations.

For example an 8-bit microprocessor can have at most 28 = 256

different combinations.

However, in most microprocessors, not all of these

combinations are used.
Certain patterns are chosen and assigned specific
meanings.
Each of these patterns forms an instruction for the
microprocessor.
The complete set of patterns makes up the
microprocessors machine language.

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The 8085 Machine Language

The 8085 (from Intel) is an 8-bit microprocessor.

The 8085 uses a total of 246 bit patterns to form

its instruction set.
These 246 patterns represent only 74 instructions.

The reason for the difference is that some (actually most)

instructions have multiple different formats.

Because it is very difficult to enter the bit patterns

correctly, they are usually entered in hexadecimal
instead of binary.

For example, the combination 0011 1100 which

translates into increment the number in the register
called the accumulator, is usually entered as 3C.

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Assembly Language

Entering the instructions using hexadecimal is quite

easier than entering the binary combinations.

However, it still is difficult to understand what a

program written in hexadecimal does.

So, each company defines a symbolic code for the
instructions.
These codes are called mnemonics.
The mnemonic for each instruction is usually a group
of letters that suggest the operation performed.

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Assembly Language

Using the same example from before,

00111100 translates to 3C in hexadecimal

Its mnemonic is: INR A.
INR stands for increment register and A is short for
accumulator.

Another example is: 1000 0000,

Which translates to 80 in hexadecimal.

Its mnemonic is ADD B.
Add register B to the accumulator and keep the result
in the accumulator.

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Assembly Language

It is important to remember that a machine

language and its associated assembly language
are completely machine dependent.

In other words, they are not transferable from one

microprocessor to a different one.

For example, Motorolla has an 8-bit

microprocessor called the 6800.

The 8085 machine language is very different from

that of the 6800. So is the assembly language.
A program written for the 8085 cannot be
executed on the 6800 and vice versa.
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Assembling The Program

How does assembly language get translated into

machine language?

There are two ways:

1st there is hand assembly.

The programmer translates each assembly language

instruction into its equivalent hexadecimal code (machine
language). Then the hexadecimal code is entered into
memory.

The other possibility is a program called an

assembler, which does the translation
automatically.

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High Level Languages

We said earlier that assembly and machine language are

completely dependent on the microprocessor. They can
not be easily moved from one to the other.
To allow programs to be developed for multiple machines
high level languages were developed.

These languages describe the operation of the program in

general terms.
These programs are translated into microprocessor specific
assembly language using a compiler or interpreter program.

These programs take as an input high level statements such as

I = j + k; and translate them to machine language compatible
with the microprocessor being used.

High level language

Source code

Compiler

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Assembler

Machine language
Object code

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Compiler vs. Interpreter

What is the difference between Compiler and Interpreter?

A compiler translates the entire program at once and produces the

object code.
An interpreter compiles the source code one line at-a-time. The
object code for each line is produced, executed, and forgotten.
Each time the program is to be executed, it has to be re-interpreted.

Interpreters are very inefficient. Compilers produce object code that is

quite a bit smaller and faster to execute.

Compilers are still inefficient when complete control is

needed and when memory is very critical.

In such a situation, it is better to do the job yourself.

Writing a program in assembly language may not be easy. But,

you can control exactly how things are being done and which
instruction is being used to perform each operation.

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The Hardware/Software Interaction

The hardware of a computer system is the collection of

chips that make up its different pieces, including the
microprocessor.

The hardware consists of five main systems:

- The microprocessor
- Memory (RAM & ROM)
- Storage (Disk, CD)
- Input Devices (keyboard, mouse)
- Output Devices (monitor, printer).
Input

Microprocessor

Memory

Introduction to microprocessors Chapter 1

Output

Storage

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The Hardware/Software interaction

Software refers to any program that executes on

the hardware.

It contains very low level programs that control the

behavior of the hardware all the way to
complicated applications like 3D graphics, video
editing, and circuit simulation and design.

The interaction between the two systems

(hardware and software) is managed by a group
of programs known collectively as Operating
system.

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The Operating System

The operating system is a layer between the application

programs and the hardware.

Pieces of the operating system control the operation of the

disks, the monitor, the keyboard, the mouse, the printer, the
sound card, and even memory.

When a program wants to use one of these items, it sends a

request to the operating system and the operating system in
turn will perform the operation.

When the computer is first turned on, the operating

system starts to execute. It stays running as long as the
computer is operating.

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The Operating System

The interaction of the user with the computer is through

the operating system.

When the user invokes a program, the operating system

starts the process and makes the program start executing.
The program is executed on top of the operating system.
Application
Operating

Application Programs
Operating System

Hardware

Hardware
System

Programs

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Operating Systems

Examples of operating systems are:

Most operating systems are hardware specific:

MS-DOS
MS Windows
Macintosh OS
OS/2
UNIX

For example, windows only runs on

microprocessors made by Intel or those that
behave the same way (i.e. compatible).

Other operating systems (like UNIX) are

designed to work on any platform (hardware).

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