An AVR project can entail any number
of things; such is the versatility of the AVR architecture in its micro
controllers. The technology itself started life as a project by two
Norwegian students, which was then picked up by Atmel, who pushed ahead
with the development of the new and improved structure in the
programming of micro controllers. The technology took advantage of
flash memory, being one of the first to utilize that format for storage
of programs as well as the processing of executable instructions. The
power was borne in the simplicity of the architecture of the 8-bit RISC
(reduced instruction set computer) single chip micro controller.
AVR does not stand for anything, and it is not an acronym, but it has
been referred to affectionately as Alf and Vegard's RISC, which is
after the names of the two developers at Atmel who were dedicated to
the project. The AVR project saw the technology advance its usage with
flash memory, which was used to efficiently store program. This was in
contrast to other such micro controllers who were still using the likes
of ROM and EEPROM. With the ability to utilize the flash, it allowed
for different types of memory to be used on the micro controller, so
the flash got integrated with EEPROM and SRAM. By
doing this it cut out
the need for any external memory usage by the AVR.
The design of the AVR, as with RISC micro controllers, is to make
benefit of simplified code and instructions. By stripping back to a
streamline program language, it enabled process and access time to be
run more quickly. Because of the nature of the AVR, all the program
code that gets executed by AVR must happen within the flash memory on
the chip. This is because the AVR has no provision to access and
program memory that is off-chip. The structure of the architecture, as
well as the low power usage, makes the AVR microprocessors very
popular. The AVR project has continued to gather pace by making their
chips easily customizable.
By simply applying a serial connection to the AVR microprocessor, it
can, through a software interface, be rewritten and programmed to
perform whatever task it is intended for. Development kits are readily
available for any AVR project, and this makes the microprocessor such a
popular success. From robots, to generators, to car manufacturing, AVR
microprocessors play a large role in industry and home life, thanks to
their versatility, integration into other systems and the manner in
which they are fully upgradeable for the life of the microprocessors.
|
