Microsystems

Microcontrollers & Embedded Systems

Home » Computer Science

Tag: Computer Science

  • Process Synchronization using Semaphores

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    Mutual exclusion typically imposes some conditions on access to a given resource by two or more different processes. For instance, a process can proceed beyond a certain point only after another process has reached some other point of its execution.  If the points in the processes are located before and after the protected resource, then…

  • Key Features of Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs)

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    A field programmable gate array (FPGA) utilizes an array of logic blocks, which can be configured by the user. The term “field programmable” implies that the device is programmable outside the factory where it is produced. The internal architecture of a FPGA device has three main parts, namely: The figure below illustrates the architecture of…

  • SIMD, MISD & MIMD Multiple Processor Architectures

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    Introduction Parallel processing, in which applications are partitioned into multiple tasks that are executed concurrently by multiple processors is used for high-throughput needs where even the single fastest computer cannot be good enough. Multiple processor system architectures differ widely in the number of processors used, the techniques in which applications are partitioned and mapped onto…

  • Computer Memory Organization

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    A computer system uses memory elements for storing program instructions, data, and other information. From the perspective of the instruction set, a memory is an array of words, each identified by a unique address that indicates its location within the memory. In other words, each memory location is assigned a unique address that identifies a…

  • 4 Types of Processor Architectures

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    Processor architecture can be classified as one of the following four architectures: Accumulator-Based Processor Architecture In the accumulator-based processor architecture, illustrated above, instructions begin and end in accumulators (Acc A and Acc B), which are specially designated registers. In a typical operation, one of the operands is found in the accumulator and the other is…

  • Basic Architecture of a Microprocessor

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    The microprocessor is typically referred to as the central processing unit (CPU). It is the part of the processor system which processes the data, fetching instructions from memory, decoding them and executing them. The internal structure (architecture) – depends on the microprocessor concerned. The figure below illustrates a general architecture of a microprocessor: The following…

  • How Special Function Registers (SFRs) are Mapped into Memory Space

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    There are two basic primary architectures used for mapping special function registers into memory space. In the first type of arrangement, I/O space and memory space are separated as illustrated in Figure 1.0. The I/O devices have a separate address space, which is accomplished by either an extra I/O pin on the CPU physical interface…

  • Computer Number Systems

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    Being familiar with number systems is important as it helps you comprehend how data is represented before it can be processed by any digital system including a digital computer. In this article, we look at the most commonly applied number systems in computer systems such as the binary, octal, and hexadecimal number systems. Introduction to…

  • CPU Registers

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    A register is basically an n-bit binary storage element. CPU registers are usually used to temporarily hold data and memory address values that might be required in the near future. Since registers are located within the CPU, they can be accessed more quickly and more efficiently than external memory. Furthermore, since the number of registers…

  • Computer Programming Model

    —

    by

    John Mulindi
    in

    The programming model of a computer system refers to the assembly language programmer’s view of the system. From the programmer’s outlook, a computer is a collection of registers and memory for storing information, a set of instructions to manipulate data and control program flow, and various types of data that can be manipulated by the…