1.3 The Processor - History
Microprocessor Evolution
Generations of microprocessor:
- First generation: From 1971 to 1972 the era of the first generation came which brought microprocessors like INTEL 4004 Rockwell international PPS-4 INTEL 8008 etc.
- Second generation: The second generation marked the development of 8 bit microprocessors from 1973 to 1978. Processors like INTEL 8085 Motorola 6800 and 6801 etc came into existence.
- Third generation: The third generation brought forward the 16 bit processors like INTEL 8086/80186/80286 Motorola 68000 68010 etc. From 1979 to 1980 this generation used the HMOS technology.
- Fourth generation: The fourth generation came into existence from 1981 to 1995. The 32 bit processors using HMOS fabrication came into existence. INTEL 80386 and Motorola 68020 are some of the popular processors of this generation.
- Fifth generation: From 1995 till now we are in the fifth generation. 64 bit processors like Pentium, Celeron, dual, quad and octa core processors came into existence.
Types of microprocessors:
-
Complex instruction set microprocessor:
The processors are designed to minimize the number of instructions per program and ignore the number of cycles per instructions. The compiler is used to translate a high level language to assembly level language because the length of code is relatively short and an extra RAM is used to store the instructions. These processors can do tasks like downloading, uploading and recalling data from memory. Apart from these tasks these microprocessor can perform complex mathematical calculation in a single command.
Example: IBM 370/168, VAX 11/780 -
Reduced instruction set microprocessor:
These processor are made according to function. They are designed to reduce the execution time by using the simplified instruction set. They can carry out small things in specific commands. These processors complete commands at faster rate. They require only one clock cycle to implement a result at uniform execution time. There are number of registers and less number of transistors. To access the memory location LOAD and STORE instructions are used.
Example: Power PC 601, 604, 615, 620 - Super scalar microprocessor: These processors can perform many tasks at a time. They can be used for ALUs and multiplier like array. They have multiple operation unit and perform fast by executing multiple commands.
- Application specific integrated circuit: These processors are application specific like for personal digital assistant computers. They are designed according to proper specification.
- Digital signal multiprocessor: These processors are used to convert signals like analog to digital or digital to analog. The chips of these processors are used in many devices such as RADAR SONAR home theaters etc.
Advantages of microprocessor
- High processing speed
- Compact size
- Easy maintenance
- Can perform complex mathematics
- Flexible
- Can be improved according to requirement
Disadvantages of microprocessors
- Overheating occurs due to overuse
- Performance depends on size of data
- Large board size than microcontrollers
- Most microprocessors do not support floating point operations
Adapted from:
"Evolution of Microprocessors"
by
Ayusharma0698
,
Geeks for Geeks
is licensed under
CC BY-SA 4.0