3 - Microcontrollers and micro-electronic technology

Abstract

This chapter presents a brief description of microcontrollers and discusses the sensors used in intelligent vehicles. These processors and sensors are manufactured using the same microelectronic technologies that are used for the fabrication of integrated circuits. Address bus, data bus, and control bus, that are used to allow communications within a microcontroller, are discussed in the chapter. A brief outline of circuit integration in microtechnology is also described. Bipolar junction transistor (BJT) and metal-oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) are the two transistors discussed in the chapter, which are used for circuit implementation in ICs. Successful development of microprocessors and microcontrollers is the direct result of the recent advances in electronic semiconductor technology developments. The chapter has exposed the basic underlying concepts that can be applied later in practice in conjunction with the development of microcontroller-based products, such as those that are being implemented onto intelligent vehicles. While microcontrollers are different, they operate on the same principles, the core of which has been presented in this chapter.