Maker Pro
Maker Pro

Interface microprocessor with microcontroller

Hello

I am trying to interface a microprocessor with a microcontroller. I am not using anything fancy like an Arduino or PC. I just have intel x86 chip with dip packaging and a microcontroller chip with dip packaging. I was wondering how would I connect the processor to the controller using the processor and controllers pins. I have looked at many forms of communication like UART, Serial Communication, and I2C. But when I check the intel x86 chip there is no rx/tx or serial or I2C pins . So I was wondering how would I connect the microprocessor and microcontroller so they can communicate with each other. I also looked up wifi communication but that seemed to complicated to implement using 2 chips.

Thanks
 
Micro-processor and micro-controller are usually considered synonymous.
Most current one's available have some form of communication module built in, USART, I2c etc.
What are the numbers of the ones you are using?
At one time there used to be LSI USART IC's available.
M.
 
Last edited:

Harald Kapp

Moderator
Moderator
Micro-processor and micro-controller are usually considered synonymous.
I disagree. A microprocessor classically is a CPU with memory interface and only a bare set of peripheral components (e.g. clock system).
A microcontroller on the other hand is a CPU typicaly with some built-in memory and with lots of peripheral function blocks (e.g. timers, parallel I/O, serial I/O etc.).
Using the term microprocessor for a microcontroller and vice versa is rather sloppy use of language.
The Intel x86 microprocessors are not microcontrollers. Therefore you'll find no communication interfaces of the type you are looking for on these chips. You'll have to add a companion chip (e.g. a UART).

Another method for communicating between the x86 and the microcontroller is e.g. using a shared (dual ported) RAM.
 
ALL microprocessors/controllers have data ports and/or busses (in varying configurations) that allow input/output directly therefore communication between the two is only 'restricted' by the programmers ability to utilise the functionality of the relevant device - there is nothing 'physically' stopping this from happening no matter which two are chosen.
 
An X86 chip communicates with the outside world through memory mapped I/O. You would have to decode a memory address to know that a read / write was intended for the microcontroller and supply / accept the data when it is accessed.

Hopefully you realize that the X86 chip will need external memory and perhaps other peripherals as well, it is not a single chip system.

That said, there are x86 like microcontrollers. What specific chip are you talking about?

Bob
 
Top