Why PIC32?

Created Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:20:14 +0000 by Sal Ammoniac

Sal Ammoniac

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:20:14 +0000

I'm curious, why was the PIC32 chosen for the chipKIT? I would have thought that with the recent ARM juggernaut, that would have been a "safer" choice.

Not that I'm complaining, mind you -- I like the PIC32.

EmbeddedMan

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:39:18 +0000

Because chipKIT grew out of a collaboration with Microchip.

And they don't make ARM chips.

*Brian

Sal Ammoniac

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 14:51:46 +0000

What about the Cerebot MX boards which came before the chipKIT boards? Was that a result of a collaboration with Microchip too?

leon_heller

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 21:37:39 +0000

The Cerebot uses an AVR.

The PIC32 has several advantages over an ARM. For instance, the outputs can deliver 12 mA, whereas most ARM chips can only manage 4 mA.

lloyddean

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 22:23:46 +0000

You may wish to correct that as there are more than one line of CEREBOT processor boards.

leon_heller

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 22:37:10 +0000

You are correct. The MX Cerebots use the PIC32.

They weren't mentioned on the Microchip web site and supported by Microchip, as has been the case with the chipKITs.

Sal Ammoniac

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 22:58:56 +0000

The Cerebot uses an AVR. The PIC32 has several advantages over an ARM. For instance, the outputs can deliver 12 mA, whereas most ARM chips can only manage 4 mA.

What are some of the other advantages?

leon_heller

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 23:08:33 +0000

Outputs can be toggled at the clock speed.

Five-stage pipeline.

Faster multiply/divide (IIRC).

Etc.

lloyddean

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 23:26:09 +0000

Original post was meant for a different forum.

Sal Ammoniac

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 22:44:57 +0000

How is a five-stage pipeline an advantage?

leon_heller

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 03:47:43 +0000

It's faster than a three-stage one.

Sal Ammoniac

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 19:00:57 +0000

So what are some of the disadvantages of PIC32? Other than the fact that it's not spelled A-R-M, of course...

leon_heller

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 19:31:16 +0000

Power consumption is the main one. There are no 20-pin ones.

EmbeddedMan

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:42:55 +0000

Leon, out of curiosity, why is 20 a magic number? They do have 28 pin PIC32s, and that's pretty close.

*Brian

leon_heller

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:55:39 +0000

It can be made a lot cheaper, and will compete directly with the smaller 8-bit devices. There is even one NXP ARM in a tiny 2 mm wafer-scale package with 16 balls, the LPC1102.

Acerrimus

Fri, 31 Mar 2017 15:01:54 +0000

Because chipKIT grew out of a collaboration with Microchip. And they don't make ARM chips. *Brian

Don't they?

majenko

Fri, 31 Mar 2017 15:36:32 +0000

No, they don't. They buy companies that attempt to make poor excuses for ARM chips.