|
There are many types and brands of microprocessor on the market. For
instrumentation the following are usually the key deciding factors:
- Price and availability
- Power consumption (particularly for battery powered units)
- Additional support components needed
- Component footprint size
- Input and output possibilities
For these reasons we usually recommend one of the Microchip PIC devices.
These low cost devices can be bought in small quantities for between £1
and £10 depending on the functionality needed. They also require
little in the way of support circuitry - very low power with sleep function;
no program memory is needed, this is built in; some need no external clock
or crystal; available with built in A/D converters.
The microcontroller tends to be ideal for this type of instrumentation,
keeping the cost down while offering the power needed.
|
