A single chip that contains the processor (the CPU), non-volatile memory for the program (ROM or flash), volatile memory for input and output (RAM), a clock and an I/O control unit. Also called a "computer on a chip," billions of microcontroller units (MCUs) are embedded each year in a myriad of products from toys to appliances to automobiles. For example, a single vehicle can use 70 or more microcontrollers.
Microcontrollers come in all sizes and architectures, with the smaller, commodity chips costing as little as 50 cents in quantities of 10,000.
One of the First
This diagram shows the components of a Motorola 6801. Introduced in 1978, it was one of the first semiconductor products to claim the "computer on a chip" moniker.
Actual Images
These highly magnified images are of the actual 6801 chip. The middle picture shows all 256 bytes of RAM memory with barely six bits revealed at the bottom (400x magnification).
They Don't Get Much Smaller
These PICmicro chips from Microchip (www.microchip.com) are the world's smallest microcontrollers. Used in a myriad of applications, such chips can sell for as little as 50 cents in quantities of 10,000 (2007 dollars).
Microcontrollers come in all sizes and architectures, with the smaller, commodity chips costing as little as 50 cents in quantities of 10,000.
One of the First
This diagram shows the components of a Motorola 6801. Introduced in 1978, it was one of the first semiconductor products to claim the "computer on a chip" moniker.
Actual Images
These highly magnified images are of the actual 6801 chip. The middle picture shows all 256 bytes of RAM memory with barely six bits revealed at the bottom (400x magnification).
They Don't Get Much Smaller
These PICmicro chips from Microchip (www.microchip.com) are the world's smallest microcontrollers. Used in a myriad of applications, such chips can sell for as little as 50 cents in quantities of 10,000 (2007 dollars).
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2009 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- Spark Loader 1.0 (Windows)
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- Software downloads 2009-11-09
- 1 Wire Keyboard Calculator 1.10b (Mac)
- 1 Wire Keyboard Calculator is a tool for embedded system designers to implement a keypad using a single analog to digital converter (A/D) input. For larger keyboards, or keypads that require chording more than one key pressed at a time multiple A/D inputs can be used, each with a portion...
- Software downloads 2009-09-28
- EDWinXP 1.71 (Windows)
- The history of Visionics starts with our first EDA package, the CAD ABC, way back in 1983, there were no other PC-based EDA systems, and we urgently needed this kind of tool for our own research and development. Ever since then, we have regularly introduced state-of-the-art PC-based EDA systems based...
- Software downloads 2009-08-15
- Real Pic Simulator 1.2 (Windows)
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- Software downloads 2009-08-04
- SeriCon 2.7 (Windows)
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- Software downloads 2009-07-30
- The Trusted Platform Module: Benefits for Data-at-Rest Encryption
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- White papers 2009-06-02
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- Blog posts 2009-03-24
- TI execs ramp up green tech contributions, at work and at home
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- Blog posts 2008-11-24
- Design of an RFID-Based Battery-Free Programmable Sensing Platform
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- Discussion threads 2008-10-15
- Intel's roadmap comes into focus: Can rivals respond?
- Intel's developer forum in San Francisco has more than its share of chest thumping and as the roadmap comes into focus you really wonder how competitors will respond. To be sure, Intel won't have a cakewalk, but it's making a lot of waves, creating new markets (Netbooks...
- Blog posts 2008-08-20
- The news on Intel's Nehalem; chips with integrated GPUs up next
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- Blog posts 2008-08-20
- Intel launches new chip for consumer electronics
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- Blog posts 2008-07-24
- Apple announces ZFS on Snow Leopard
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- Discussion threads 2008-06-20
- Apple announces ZFS on Snow Leopard
- Finally, a modern file system on a consumer OS As if Grand Central weren't enough bad news for Microsoft, now they have ZFS to contend with. Building a reliable, high-performance file system takes years and Microsoft doesn't have years to respond. The formal announcement is...
- Blog posts 2008-06-19
- Developed a Feature Rich Speed Controller Board for a Leading Air Conditioning Company That Would Equip the Client to Be First Mover in the Market
- The client wanted to take to market the All Electric Air Conditioning System for large vehicles. The system would control evaporator fan speeds to ensure uniform temperature control and increase safety. MindTree leveraged its expertise in hardware design and development to develop a microcontroller based system with enhanced features that...
- Case studies 2008-01-26
- Get Smart: Researchers call results of GridWise energy demand-response project encouraging
- Get Smart: Researchers call results of GridWise energy demand-response project encouragingOne of these days......we'll finally talk about actually creating energy.RE: Get Smart: Researchers call results of GridWise energy demand-responseI'm not familiar with the technology behind this experiment. The blog mentions it cost about $1,000 per household to set a...
- Discussion threads 2008-01-09
- Intel wants you to put the Internet in your pocket
- Intel wants you to put the Internet in your pocketOtellini and Jobs have said they're working on some exciting stuffOtellini knows very well that it takes Apple to crack open new innovative markets.I wouldn't be surprised if Intel has Apple in mind to make a splash with this technology. ...
- Discussion threads 2007-09-19
- ASEBA, an Event-Based Middleware for Distributed Robot Control
- Computing infrastructures of mobile robots have grown in complexity in the last decades; They have evolved from single processor systems to networks of microcontrollers communicating through a shared bus. This has induced additional architectural constraints that do not fit well with the traditional polling-based sensors and actuators control. To address...
- White papers 2007-09-07
- Photos: Happy developers in da house
- Some 150 people gather in a Los Gatos, Calif., mansion for SuperHappyDevHouse, a 12-hour marathon of coding, hacking and socializing.Participants of the 19th SuperHappy DevHouse hackathon session descended on Tom Harrison''s family home last weekend in Los Gatos, Calif. Harrison far left opened his house up to some 150 tech...
- Image galleries 2007-08-16
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