Difference between 8051, ARM, AVR, And PIC Microcontrollers
Hello guys, welcome back to my blog. In this article, I will discuss the difference between 8051, ARM, AVR, and PIC microcontrollers, what is 8051 microcontrollers, what is AVR microcontroller, what is ARM microcontroller, what is PIC microcontroller, and I will also discuss applications of all these microcontrollers.
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Difference between 8051, ARM, AVR, And PIC Microcontrollers
Microcontrollers may be called computers on-chip. A combination of a controller, internal ROM, RAM, parallel and serial ports is a Microcontroller. Microcontrollers are dedicated devices embedded within an application. Ex:- as an engine controller in automobiles, as an exposure and focus controller in cameras. On-chip peripheral is selected depending on the specifics of the target application.
As we know that the Microcontrollers are powerful digital processors, the degree of control and programmability in which they provide significantly enhances the effectiveness of the application. Intel designed the first microcontroller and this is known as the 8051 microcontrollers. This microcontroller was developed in the late 1970 and in 1981 it was developed by Intel.
What Is 8051 Microcontroller?
8051 microcontroller is an 8-bit microcontroller. 8051 microcontroller has the ability to read, write and process 8-bit data. It is widely used in embedded systems, consumer electronics, robotics, etc. The peripherals of this microcontroller are integrated into a single chip, and the overall system cost is very low.
The size of the product is small as compared to the microcontroller-based system thus very handy. All features are available in 40 pin IC of the 8051 microcontrollers.
Applications of 8051 microcontrollers:
- Home appliances like Microwave Oven, Washing machines, etc.
- Light sensing and controlling devices like audio systems.
- Temperature sensing and control devices.
- Fire detection and safety devices such as home security systems.
- Other devices like calculator, ATM machine, etc.
What Is ARM Microcontroller?
Advanced RISC Machine (ARM) this microcontroller was introduced by Acron Computer Organization. It is manufactured by Apple, Qualcomm, Motorola, etc. The Processor of the ARM microcontroller belongs to the family of CPUs which are based on Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) and also ARM Microprocessor. Mostly ARM microcontrollers are of 32-bit bus width and also 64 bit is available. The speed of the ARM microcontroller is 1 clock cycle per machine cycle and the power consumption is low.
The popular microcontroller of ARM includes ARM Cortex-M0 to ARM Cortex-M7, etc. Flash, EEPROM, SDRAM memory is used in ARM microcontroller. ARM consists of an Arithmetic logic unit, booth multiplier, barrel shifter, control unit, register file.
Features of ARM Microcontroller:-
- It consists of a three-stage pipeline.
- It must have the ability to control different types of software.
- It is compatible with the sleep mode of operation.
Three-stage pipeline
01. Fetch: The instruction is fetched from memory and placed in the instruction pipeline.
02. Decode: The instruction is decoded and the datapath control signals are prepared for the next cycle. In this stage, the instruction owns the decode logic but not the datapath.
03. Execute: The instruction owns the datapath; the register bank is read, an operand shifted, the ALU register generated and written back into a destination register.
Applications Of ARM Microcontroller
- ARM microcontroller is used in space and aerospace.
- Used in medical devices such as MRI Machines, ultrasound machines.
- Used in accelerators, nuclear reactors, and X-ray machines.
What Is AVR Microcontroller
It is an electronic chip which is manufactured by Atmel. This microcontroller is the advanced version of a microcontroller. It contains a chip CPU, ROM, RAM, input/output unit, interrupts controller, etc. This microcontroller is used for high-speed signal processing operation which is connected inside an embedded system.
Features Of AVR Microcontroller
- 32×8 general working function registers.
- 32k bytes of in-system self-programmable flash program memory.
- 2k bytes of internal SRAM.
- 1024bytes of EEPROM.
- Available in 40pin DIP, 44lead QTFP, 44-pad QFN/MLF.
- 32 programmable I/O lines.
- 8 channel, 10bit ADC.
- Harvard architecture.
- UART, I2C, SPI protocol support.
What Is PIC Microcontroller
PIC stands for Programmable Interface Controllers. These are electronic circuits that can be programmed to carry out a vast range of tasks. It consists of memory structure, input/output ports, timers, A/D Converter, Oscillators, CCP module. PIC Microcontrollers are relatively cheap. PIC devices are familiar with both industrial developers and hobbyists due to their low cost, wide availability, large user base, extensive collection of application notes, serial programming, free development tools, and reprogrammable flash memory capability.
Features of PIR Microcontroller
- Flash memory
- Watchdog Timer
- Sleep mode
- EEPROM memory
Difference between 8051, ARM, AVR, And PIC Microcontrollers
| AVR | ARM | 8051 | PIC | |
| Speed | 1 clock/instruction cycle | 1 clock/instruction cycle | 12 clock/instruction cycle | 4 clock/instruction cycle |
| Bus width | 8/32 bit | 32 bit mostly also available in 64 bit | 8 bit for the standard core | 8/16/32 bit |
| Manufacturer | Atmel | Apple, Nvidia, Qualcomm, Samsung Electronics, and TI | NXP, Atmel, Silicon Labs, Dallas, Cyprus, Infineon, etc | Microchip Average |
| Memory Architecture | Modified | Modified Harvard Architecture | Von Neumann Architecture | Harvard Architecture |
| Power Consumption | Low | Low | Average | Low |
| Community | Very Good | Vast | Vast | Very Good |
| Communication Protocols | UART, USART, SPI, I2C, (special purpose AVR support CAN, USB, Ethernet) | UART, USART, LIN, I2C, SPI, CAN, USB, Ethernet, 12S, DSP, SAI (serial audio interface), IrDA | UART, USART, SPI, I2C | PIC, UART, USART, LIN, CAN, Ethernet, SPI, I2S |
| Popular Microcontrollers | Atmega8, 16, 32, Arduino Community | LPC2148, ARM Cortex-M0 to ARM Cortex-M7, etc | AT89C51, P89v51, etc | PIC18fXX8, PIC16f88X, PIC32MXX |
| Memory | Flash, SRAM, EEPROM | Flash, SDRAM, EEPROM | ROM, SRAM, FLASH | SRAM, FLASH |
| Families | Tiny, Atmega, Xmega, Special purpose AVR | ARMv4, 5, 6, 7, and series | 8051 variants | PIC16, PIC17, PIC18, PIC24, PIC32 |
I hope this article “Difference between 8051, ARM, AVR, And PIC Microcontrollers” may help you all a lot. Thank you for reading.
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