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Is it correct to refer to a microcontroller as processor?

I know microcontroller is different than microprocessor. But is it the same as processor?

The whole point of this question is to verify if there is a difference between these two "definitions": microprocessor and processor core.

Jack
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  • Did you try to google? Or search in this forum? – Chupacabras Sep 04 '16 at 03:14
  • I did, it's all about the difference between micro controller and microprocessor – Jack Sep 04 '16 at 03:37
  • OK. And what exactly do you mean by word "processor"? – Chupacabras Sep 04 '16 at 03:43
  • Process the computer programming codes – Jack Sep 04 '16 at 03:48
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    I think the terms are used with very little attention to whatever distinction may exist between them. I think "processor" is kind of a general term for anything that fetches instructions and executes them. It could include a desktop CPU, or a mobile phone microprocessor or an embedded microcontroller. – user57037 Sep 04 '16 at 03:54
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    Your question is the same as asking what is the difference between apple and fruit. – Chupacabras Sep 04 '16 at 04:06
  • "I know microcontroller is different than microprocessor. But is it the same as processor" lol. You just said they are different, so... – Bradman175 Sep 05 '16 at 12:14
  • I was wondering if there is a difference between microprocessor and processor . Happy to made you laugh but it is good to encourage conceptual questions rather than ridicule them without anything instructive to say. – Jack Sep 05 '16 at 19:34

2 Answers2

2

Microcontroller

A microcontroller (or MCU, short for microcontroller unit) is a small computer on a single integrated circuit containing a processor core, memory, and programmable input/output peripherals.

Bruce Abbott
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  • A processor processes computer instructions.
  • A microprocessor is a very small (micro) processor, using a single chip to store all the transistors to process computer instructions.
  • The MegaProcessor is a very large (mega) processor, that uses multiple 1m x 2m stands to hold individual transistors to, together, process computer instructions.
  • A microcontroller is a very small (micro) processor, that processes computer instructions but also has a number of pins dedicated for controlling and sampling peripherals. It could have any number of the following:
    • General Purpose Input pins (with or without pullups);
    • General Purpose Output pins (with or without tristate capability);
    • General Purpose Input/Output [GPIO] pins - a combination of the above two;
    • Analog input pins, using Analog-to-Digital Converters [ADCs];
    • Analog output pins, using Digital-to-Analog Converters [DACs];
    • Pulse Width Modulation output pins, using inbuilt timers;
    • Universal Asyncrhronous Receiver/Transmitters [UARTs], for serial communications;
    • Universal Synchronous/Asyncrhronous Receiver/Transmitters [USARTs], for serial communications;
    • Serial Peripheral Interconnect [SPI] pins;
    • Inter-Integrated Circuit [IIC, I2C, I²C] pins;
    • Internal timers;
    • Internal Read Only Memory [ROM];
    • Internal Random Access Memory [RAM];
    • Internal Flash memory;
    • Internal Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory [EEPROM];

So a microcontroller is a microprocessor plus other things.

John Burger
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