Author: Jamie Kellett

The Cortex-M4 processor from ARM is a very popular 32-bit microcontroller that is widely used in embedded systems and IoT devices. It has a simplified integer pipeline compared to high-performance application processors, optimized for low-power operation. At the core of the Cortex-M4 is the AMBA 3 AHB-Lite bus interface, nested vectored interrupt controller, and memory

The xPSR (program status register) is one of the key registers in the ARM Cortex-M processor that contains status information about the processor state. It provides details on the current state of the application program being executed as well as the result of the previously executed instruction. The ‘x’ in xPSR stands for ‘extended’ as

The short answer is yes, UART is generally considered to be the same as serial communication. UART stands for Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter and it is a hardware protocol that allows serial communication between devices. What is UART? UART is a hardware protocol that handles asynchronous serial communication. It provides the following main functions: Some key

The key differences between the ARM M4 and M55 processors come down to performance, features, and intended use cases. The M55 is newer and more powerful, while the M4 is older and more basic. The M4 is meant for general microcontroller applications, while the M55 targets more advanced IoT and edge processing. Overview of ARM

The ARM Cortex-R52 is the latest processor core in ARM’s real-time Cortex-R series. It is designed for high-performance real-time and safety-critical applications that require deterministic timing behavior and freedom from interference. The Cortex-R52 builds upon the previous Cortex-R generations, bringing significant improvements in performance, power efficiency, and architectural features. Overview Some key highlights of the

ARM Cortex-R8 is a 32-bit real-time processor core designed by ARM based on the ARMv7-R architecture. It is intended for use in real-time embedded systems that require deterministic timing behavior and high reliability. Overview The Cortex-R8 core is optimized for high-performance real-time applications and can operate at clock frequencies up to 300 MHz. It has

ARM processors utilize interrupts extensively to handle events and peripherals. There are two main interrupt controller systems used in ARM processors – the Nested Vectored Interrupt Controller (NVIC) and the Generic Interrupt Controller (GIC). The key differences between NVIC and GIC are: 1. NVIC is used in Cortex-M processors, GIC is used in Cortex-A processors

The Memory Protection Unit (MPU) in ARM Cortex processors provides memory access control to ensure that software accesses only the memory regions it is permitted to. The MPU defines regions of memory and assigns access permissions to each region to control which software can access that region for read, write, or execute operations. Overview of

A memory map refers to the layout and organization of memory in a computing system. In ARM processors, the memory map defines different memory regions and what they are used for. Understanding the ARM memory map is important for programmers to properly utilize memory and avoid conflicts. Overview of ARM Memory Map The ARM memory

The Arm Cortex-M4 is a popular 32-bit processor designed for embedded applications. It is based on the Armv7-M architecture and features a 3-stage pipeline, Memory Protection Unit, Floating Point Unit, and optional DSP instructions. Like any complex processor, the Cortex-M4 is susceptible to lockups under certain conditions. This article will examine the potential causes and