History and functionality of the microprocessor

¶ … Functionality of the Microprocessor

HISTORY OF MICROPROCESSOR

WHAT IS A MICROPROCESSOR?

THE FIRST SINGLE CHIP MICROPROCESSOR

THE INTEL FAMILY

OTHER MICROPROCESSOR FAMILIES

Intel 4004 (Internal View)

Intel 4004 (External View)

This paper aims to provide information on the history of microprocessor from the time it was developed up to the present time. Along with its history, this paper will discuss the diverse functionalities microprocessor serves in the development of state-of-the-art electronic machines and how it contributed in the revolution of computer technology.

Before the microprocessor was invented, a computer used to fill an entire room due to the large size of computer parts and components. Before, to computer users, size does not matter. A computer used to be a very expensive machine that only few was able to afford it. This includes several government labs, research universities, and large corporations (Taylor, 1997).

In 1964, silicon chip was invented. This chip integrates and miniaturizes the electronic circuitry of a computer. It was from this silicon chip that an engineer from Intel started to develop the first computer microprocessor that changed the way things used to be in computers.

What is a Microprocessor?

Before I discuss the history of microprocessor, let us first know what a microprocessor is.

Online article History of the Microprocessor indicates Dennis Kitzs's definition of a microprocessor,

The microprocessor is a general-purpose electronic calculation, comparison, and storage device capable of high speed and inexpensive manufacture. Most important its operation can be changed by programming"

In simple terms, microprocessor is the brain of the computer. It is the component that performs all the computing tasks to provide output to users. Without the microprocessor, a computer will not be able to function.

Intel 4004 - The First Single Chip Microprocessor

The history of computer microprocessor began from the development of the Intel 4004, the first microprocessor in the world.

Intel's 4004 started when Busicom, a Japanese manufacturer of calculators, ordered from Intel a set of design of chips for their upcoming high-performance calculator products. Logic chips then were customized for specific products. Busicom had

Intel 4004 (External View) an original design that would require 12 sets of chips, each for a particular function in a calculator. Instead of developing separate designs for this, Ted Hoff, an Intel engineer, proposed a single-chip design that will accommodate all functions required by Busicom. Hoff developed a general-purpose single-chip that retrieves instructions from a semiconductor memory (Taylor, 1997). The design success met the needs of Busicom, which aside from this, also served other applications without the Intel 4004 (Internal View) need for a re-design.

Because of the success in Hoff's multi-purpose single-chip, Intel bought the rights to the product from Busicom. Busicom agreed to Intel's proposal that paved the way for the introduction of Intel 4004, the first microprocessor in the world, in 1971.

The Intel Family

Following the Intel 4004 was Federico Faggin's development of Intel 8008 in 1972. While 4004 was a 4-bit microprocessor, 8008 has an 8-bit architecture, twice as powerful as 4004, that accommodates alphanumeric data.

Next to 8008 of Intel was the release of 8080 microprocessor in 1974. 8080's development was considered the beginning of other milestones in the computer industry. From A Brief History of Microprocessors, Faggin stated that "The 8080 really created the microprocessor market. The 4004 and the 8008 suggested it, but the 8080 made it real." The first personal computer, Altair, used Intel 8080 for its microprocessor. This started the history of personal computer (PC). In the same year, Bill Gates and Paul Allen started Microsoft when they wrote a BASIC program for Altair (Taylor, 1997).

In 1976, another microprocessor of Intel was released - the 8086. 8086 was a 16-bit processor. Intel 8088 microprocessor came next in 1978. It was a 16-bit processor based from the 8086. Unlike 8086 however, which has a 16-bit data bus, 8088 only has an 8-bit data bus. IBM's first PC used the Intel 8088 chip.

The 16-bit 80286 of Intel was released in 1982. 80286 is six times as powerful as 8086, and can support an addressable virtual memory of 1GB and physical memory of 16MB. This chip was only used in a PC, by IBM AT, two years later after its release.

Intel's 80386, a 32-bit data bus and address bus microprocessor, was introduced in 1985. It was with 80386 that MS Windows and OS/2 commercially functioned. Intel 486, an enhancement of was released in1989.