8085 NOTES BY PROF.

AMIT PIMPALKAR

1. What is a microcomputer?
Ans:-A computer that is designed using a microprocessor as its CPU is called microcomputer.

2. What is Microcontroller and Microcomputer

Ans: Microcontroller is a device that includes microprocessor; memory and I/O signal lines on
a single chip, fabricated using VLSI technology. Microcomputer is a computer that is designed
using microprocessor as its CPU. It includes microprocessor, memory and I/O.

3. Compare Microprocessor and Microcontroller.

Ans:
Microprocessor Microcontroller
Microcontroller contains the circuitry
Microprocessor contains ALU, GPR, SP,
of microprocessor and in addition it
PC, clock timing circuit and interrupt
has built- in ROM, RAM, I/O
circuit.
devices, timers and counters.

It has many instructions to move data It has one or two instructions to move data
between memory and CPU. between memory and CPU.
It has one or two bit handling instructions. It has many bit handling instructions.
Access times for memory and I/O devices Less access time for built-in memory and
are more. I/O devices.

Microcontroller based system requires less

Microprocessor based system requires
hardware reducing PCB size and increasing
more hardware.
the reliability.

4. What is assembler?
Ans: The assembler translates the assembly language program text which is given as input to
the assembler to their binary equivalents known as object code. The time required to translate
the assembly code to object code is called access time. The assembler checks for syntax errors &
displays them before giving the object code.

5. What is loader?
Ans: The loader copies the program into the computer’s main memory at load time and begins
the program execution at execution time.
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6. What is linker?
Ans: A linker is a program used to join together several object files into one large object file.
For large programs it is more efficient to divide the large program modules into smaller
modules. Each module is individually written, tested & debugged. When all the modules work
they are linked together to form a large functioning program.

7. What is µp? Give the power supply & clock frequency of 8085?
Ans: A microprocessor is a multipurpose, programmable logic device that reads binary
instructions from a storage device called memory accepts binary data as input and processes
data according to those instructions and provides result as output. The power supply of 8085 is
+5V and clock frequency in 3MHz.

8. What does it mean by embedded system?

Ans: A specialized computer system that is part of a larger system or machine. Typically, an
embedded system is housed on a single microprocessor board with the programs stored in
ROM. Virtually all appliances that have a digital interface like watches, microwaves, VCRs, cars
etc utilize embedded systems. Some embedded systems include an operating system, but many
are so specialized that the entire logic can be implemented as a single program.

9. List few applications of microprocessor-based system.

Ans: It is used for:
1. Measurements, display & control of current, voltage, temperature, pressure, etc.
2. Traffic control and industrial tool control.
3. Speed control of machines.

10. Which type of architecture 8085 has?

Ans: 8085 has Von Neumann architecture. It was derived after the name of mathematician
John Von Neumann. It’s having 16 address bus and 8 bit data bus. It can access 2^16
individual memory location.

11. How many memory locations can be addressed by a microprocessor with 14

address lines?
Ans: 2^14=16384

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12. 8085 is how many bit microprocessors?

Ans: 8 bit as its data bus is 8 bit.
13. What is clock frequency for 8085?
Ans: 3 MHz is the maximum clock frequency for 8085.

14. Can an RC circuit be used as clock source for 8085?

Ans: Yes, it can be used, if an accurate clock frequency is not required. Also, the component
cost is low compared to LC or Crystal.

15. Why crystal is a preferred clock source?

Ans: Because of high stability, large Q (Quality Factor) & the frequency that doesn’t drift with
aging. Crystal is used as a clock source most of the times.

16. Why is data bus bi-directional?

Ans: As it has to carry data from µP to external device or the reverse.

17. What are the functions of an accumulator?

Ans: The accumulator is the register associated with the ALU operations and sometimes I/O
operations. It is an integral part of ALU. It holds one of data to be processed by ALU. It also
temporarily stores the result of the operation performed by the ALU. This register is used to
store 8-bit data and to perform arithmetic and logical operations. The result of an operation is
stored in the accumulator.

18. What is the use of bi-directional buffers?

Ans: It is used to increase the driving capacity of the data bus. The data bus of a
microcomputer system is bi-directional, so it requires a buffer that allows the data to flow in
both directions.

19. What is Tri-state logic?

Ans: Three Logic Levels are used and they are High, Low, High impedance state. The high and
low are normal logic levels & high impedance state is electrical open circuit conditions. Tri-
state logic has a third line called enable line.

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20. Why tri-state devices they are essential in a bus oriented system?
Ans: Tri state logic devices have three states (0, 1 and high
impedance). When the enable (may be active high or active low)
line is activated, the device works. The disabled enable line
makes the device at high impedance state and it is disconnected
from the circuit. Eg. see the tri stated inverter in the figure.

In microcomputer system the peripherals are connected in parallel between address bus
and data bus. Because of tri stated interfacing devices, peripherals do not load the system
buses. Processor communicates with one peripheral or device at a time by enabling the tri state
line of the interfacing peripheral or device. Tri state logic is critical to proper functioning of the
microcomputer.

21. Give the register organization of 8085

Ans:

22.Define Flags
Ans: The flags are used to reflect the data conditions in the accumulator. The 8085 flags are S-
Sign flag, Z-Zero flag, AC-Auxiliary carry flag, P-Parity flag, CY-Carry flag, D7 D6 D5 D4 D3 D2
D1 D0. The ALU includes five flip-flops, which are set or reset after an operation according to
data conditions of the result in the accumulator and other registers.

23.In 8085 which is called as High order / Low order Register?

Ans: Flag is called as Low order register & Accumulator is called as High order Register.

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24. What is PSW?

Ans: PSW (Program Status Word) represents the contents of the accumulator and the flag
register together considering the accumulator as the high order and flag as the low order
register as if it is the AF register pair. For example POP PSW.

25. List the 16 – bit registers of 8085 microprocessor.

Ans: Stack pointer (SP) and Program counter (PC).

26. List the allowed register pairs of 8085.

Ans: B-C, D-E & H-L

27. Why are program counter and stack pointer 16-bit registers?
Ans: SP points to the beginning of stack memory (LXI SP 8000H) which is 16-bits. Also PC
points to the memory locations (16-bits) of the instructions to be executed to maintain the
proper sequence of execution of program.

28. What is a program counter? What is its use?

Ans: This 16-bit register deals with sequencing the execution of instructions. This register is a
memory pointer. Memory locations have 16-bit addresses, and that is why this is a 16-bit
register. The microprocessor uses this register to sequence the execution of the instructions.
Program counter holds the address of either the first byte of the next instruction to be fetched
for execution or the address of the next byte of a multi byte instruction, which has not been
completely fetched. In both the cases it gets incremented automatically one by one as the
instruction bytes get fetched. Also Program register keeps the address of the next instruction.

29. Which Stack is used in 8085?

Ans: LIFO (Last In First Out) stack is used in 8085.In this type of Stack the last stored
information can be retrieved first.

30. What is bus?

Ans: Typical system uses a number of busses, collection of wires, which transmit binary
numbers, one bit per wire. A typical microprocessor communicates with memory and other
devices (input and output) using three busses: Address Bus, Data Bus and Control Bus.

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Address Bus
The Address Bus consists of 16 wires; therefore its "width" is 16 bits. A 16 bit Address
bus can identify 2^16=65536 memory locations i.e. 0000000000000000 up to
1111111111111111. Because memory consists of boxes, each with a unique address, the size of the
address bus determines the size of memory, which can be used. To communicate with memory
the microprocessor sends an address on the address bus, e.g. 0000000000000011 (3 in
decimal), to the memory. The memory the selects box number 3 for reading or writing data.
Address bus is unidirectional, i.e. numbers only sent from microprocessor to memory, not
other way.
Control Bus
It is a group of various single lines used to provide control and synchronization signals.
µP generates different control signals for different operations. These signals are used to
identify the device with which the µP wants to communicate.
Data Bus
Data Bus: carries ‘8-bit data’, in binary form, between µP and other external units, such
as memory. The Data Bus typically consists of 8 wires. Data bus used to transmit "data", i.e.
information, results of arithmetic, etc, between memory and µP. Bus is bi-directional. Size of
the data bus determines what arithmetic can be done. If only 8 bits wide then largest number is
11111111 (255 in decimal). Data Bus also carries instructions from memory to the
microprocessor. Size of the bus therefore limits the number of possible instructions to 256,
each specified by a separate number.

31. What is the signal classification of 8085?

Ans:-All the signals of 8085 can be classified into 6 groups
1) Address bus
2) Data bus
3) Control and status signals
4) Power supply and frequency signals
5) Externally initiated signals
6) Serial I/O ports

32.How does the microprocessor differentiate between data and instruction?

Ans: When the first m/c code of an instruction is fetched and decoded in the instruction
register, the microprocessor recognizes the number of bytes required to fetch the entire
instruction. For example MVI A, Data, the second byte is always considered as data.
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If the data byte is omitted by mistake whatever is in that memory location will be considered as
data & the byte after the “data” will be treated as the next instruction.

33.What is ALE? Explain the functions of ALE in 8085.

Ans: - It is the acronym for Address Latch Enable (pin number 30) used to de-multiplex the
multiplexed lower order address/data bus. The ALE is used to latch the lower order address so
that it can be available in T2 and T3 and used for identifying the memory address. During T1
the ALE goes high, the latch is transparent i.e., the output changes according to the input data,
so the output of the latch is the lower order address. When ALE goes low the lower order
address is latched until the next ALE.
During T1 the ALE goes HIGH. When ALE goes HIGH, the latch is enabled. So the O/P
changes according to I/P data. During T1 the O/P of latch is 05H. When ALE goes LOW, the
data byte 05H is latched until the next ALE. And after the latching operation the O/P of the
latch represents the lower order address bus A0-A7. The following figure will illustrate the
function:

34. What is the function of IO/M signal in the 8085?

Ans: It is a status signal. It is used to differentiate between memory locations and I/O
operations. When this signal is low (IO/M = 0) it denotes the memory related operations.
When this signal is high (IO/M = 1) it denotes an I/O operation.

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35. Explain the purpose of the I/O instructions IN and OUT.
Ans: The IN instruction is used to move data from an I/O port into the accumulator. The OUT
instruction is used to move data from the accumulator to an I/O port. The IN & OUT
instructions are used only on microprocessor, which use a separate address space for
interfacing.

36. What are the Control signals used for DMA operation?
Ans:-HOLD & HLDA.

37. Explain the signals HOLD and READY

Ans: HOLD indicates that a peripheral such as DMA controller is requesting the use of address
bus, data bus and control bus. READY is used to delay the microprocessor read or write cycles
until a slow responding peripheral is ready to send or accept data.

38. Mention the purpose of SID and SOD lines

Ans: SID (Serial input data line): It is an input line through which the microprocessor accepts
serial data. SID is used to accept serial data bit by bit
SOD (Serial output data line): It is an output line through which the microprocessor
sends output serial data.

39. What are the different addressing modes in 8085?

Ans:
1) Register: - Data is provided through the registers. Or operand is only register(s). Example:
MOV Rd, Rs.
2) Register indirect: - Operand M or register pair. Example: MOV A,M; LDAX B; STAX D;
3) Direct: - Operand 8-bit port address or 16-bit memory address. Example: IN 84H, OUT
84H, all CALLs.
4) Immediate: - Instruction has the letter I. Or immediate data to the destination provided.
Also all jump instructions as the meaning is jump immediately. Example MVI M, 2H; ADI
47H; LXIH 2050 (exception for direct addressing mode).
5) Implicit: - No operand. Example: XCHG.

40. How many operations are there in the instruction set of 8085
microprocessor?
Ans: There are 74 operations in the 8085 microprocessor.
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41. List out the five categories of the 8085 instructions. Give examples of the
instructions for each group.
Ans:
• Data transfer group – MOV, MVI, LXI.
• Arithmetic group – ADD, SUB, INR.
• Logical group –ANA, XRA, CMP.
• Branch group – JMP, JNZ, CALL.
• Stack I/O and Machine control group – PUSH, POP, IN, HLT.

42. Explain the difference between a JMP instruction and CALL instruction.
Ans: A JMP instruction permanently changes the program counter. A CALL instruction leaves
information on the stack so that the original program execution sequence can be resumed.

43. What is an instruction?

Ans:-An instruction is a binary pattern entered through an input device to command the
microprocessor to perform that specific function

44. What is an Opcode and what is an Operand?

Ans: The part of the instruction that specifies the operation to be performed is called the
operation code or Opcode.
The data on which the operation is to be performed is called as an Operand.

45. What are operations performed on data in 8085

Ans: - The various operations performed are
• Store 8-bit data
• Perform arithmetic and logical operations
• Test for conditions
• Sequence the execution of instructions
• Store data temporarily during execution in the defined R/W memory locations
called the stack

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46. Steps involved fetching a byte in 8085
Ans:-
i. The PC places the 16-bit memory address on the address bus
ii. The control unit sends the control signal RD to enable the memory chip
iii. The byte from the memory location is placed on the data bus
iv. The byte is placed in the instruction decoder of the microprocessor and the task is
carried out according to the instruction

47.Define instruction cycle, machine cycle and T-state

Ans:-Instruction cycle is defined, as the time required completing the execution of an
instruction. Machine cycle is defined as the time required completing one operation of
accessing memory, I/O or acknowledging an external request. T-cycle is defined as one
subdivision of the operation performed in one clock period

48. How many machine cycles does 8085 have, mention them
Ans: The 8085 have seven machine cycles. They are
1. Opcode fetch 5. I/O write
2. Memory read 6. Interrupt acknowledge
3. Memory write 7. Bus idle
4. I/O read

49. Explain LDA, STA and DAA instructions

Ans:
LDA copies the data byte into accumulator from the memory location specified by the 16-bit
address.
STA copies the data byte from the accumulator in the memory location specified by 16-bit
address.
DAA changes the contents of the accumulator from binary to 4-bit BCD digits.

50. Explain the different instruction formats with examples

Ans: The instruction set is grouped into the following formats
• One byte instruction -MOV C,A
• Two byte instruction -MVI A,39H
• Three byte instruction -JMP 2345H

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51. Define stack and explain stack related instructions

Ans: The stack is a group of memory locations in the R/W memory that is used for the
temporary storage of binary information during the execution of the program. The stack related
instructions are PUSH & POP

52. What is the difference between the shifts and rotate instructions?
Ans: A rotate instruction is a closed loop instruction. That is, the data moved out at one end is
put back in at the other end. The shift instruction loses the data that is moved out of the last bit
locations.

53. Why do we use XRA A INSTRUCTION?

Ans: The XRA A instruction is used to clear the contents of the Accumulator and store the
value 00H.

54.What happens when HLT instruction is executed in processor?

Ans: The Micro Processor enters into Halt-State and the buses are tri-stated.

55. Compare CALL and PUSH instructions

Ans:

CALL PUSH

1. When CALL is executed the

1.PUSH The programmer uses the
microprocessor automatically stores the
instruction to save the contents of the
16-bit address of the instruction next to
register pair on the stack
CALL on the stack.
2. When PUSH is executed the stack
2.When CALL is executed the stack pointer
pointer is decremented by two
is decremented by two

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56.Compare RET and POP
Ans:

RET POP

1.POP transfers the contents of the top two

1.RET transfers the contents of the top two
locations of the stack to the specified
locations of the stack to the PC
register pair
2.When RET is executed the SP is
2. When POP is executed the SP is
incremented by two
incremented by two
3.Has 8 conditional RETURN instructions
3.No conditional POP instructions

57. What is the difference between MOV and MVI?

Ans:
Rd = Destination register,
Rs = Source register,
M = Memory location pointed
out
by HL register pair,
reg = Register,
data = 8-bit data.

58. What are the functions of RIM, SIM, IN?

Ans: Read Interrupt Mask (RIM)
RIM is a multipurpose instruction used to read the status of interrupts 7.5, 6.5, 5.5 and to read
serial input data bit. RIM loads 8-bit data in the accumulator with the following interpretation:

Actually RIM does the following three

tasks:

Read the interrupt mask (bit 2, 1, 0).

Identify pending interrupts (bit 6, 5, 4).
Receive serial input data bit (bit 7).

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Set Interrupt Mask (SIM)
SIM is a multipurpose interrupt used to implement the 8085 interrupts (RST 7.5, 6.5, 5.5) and
serial data output. SIM interprets the accumulator content as follows:
Actually, SIM does the following three
tasks:
Mask the interrupts (bit 2, 1, 0).
Reset RST 7.5 (bit 4). This is mainly used to
overwrite RST 7.5 without serving it.
To implement serial I/O (bit 7, 6). If bit 6 =
1 is used to enable serial I/O and bit 7 is
used to transmit serial output data bit.

59.Input Data to Accumulator from a Port with 8-bit Address (IN)

Ans: The contents of the input port designated in the operand are read and loaded into the
accumulator. The operand is an 8-bit address. During execution, this port address is duplicated
in the lower order and higher order address buses. Any one of the sets of address lines can be
decoded to enable the input port.

60. What happens during DMA transfer?

Ans: To make a fast data transfer, the MPU releases the control of its buses to DMA. DMA acts
as an external device and the active high input signal HOLD goes HIGH when the DMA is
requesting to the MPU to use its buses. After receiving the HOLD request from DMA, the MPU
releases the buses in the following machine cycle and generates an active high output signal
HLDA indicating the release of buses. Once the DMA gains that control, it acts in the role of the
MPU for data transfer.

61. What do you mean by wait state? What is its need?

Ans:-This state is used by slow peripheral devices. A wait state is a delay experienced by µP
when accessing external memory or another device that is slow to respond; the vice versa also
cone into scenario. Now, to be able to access slow memory the µP must be able to delay the
transfer until the memory access is complete. One way is to increase the µP clock period by
reducing the clock frequency. Some µP provide a special control input called READY to allow
the memory to set its own memory cycle time. When the memory access is completed the
READY goes high to indicate that the memory is ready for specified transfer. During the wait
state, the contents of the address, address/data and control buses are held constant.
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62. What is an interrupt?

Ans:-Interrupt is an external signal that causes a microprocessor to jump to a specific
subroutine. The interrupt I/O is a process of data transfer whereby an external device or
peripheral can inform the processor that it is ready for communication and requests attention.
The process is initiated by external device and is asynchronous (i.e. can be initiated anytime
irrespective of the system clock).

63. What is Interrupt Service Routine?

Ans: Interrupt means to break the sequence of operation. While the CPU is executing a
program can interrupt breaks the normal sequence of execution of instructions & diverts its
execution to some other program. This program to which the control is transferred is called the
interrupt service routine.

64. List the four instructions which control the interrupt structure of the 8085
microprocessor.
Ans:-
• DI ( Disable Interrupts ) • RIM ( Read Interrupt Masks )
• EI ( Enable Interrupts ) • SIM ( Set Interrupt Masks )

65.Explain priority interrupts of 8085.

Ans:-The 8085 microprocessor has five interrupt inputs. They are TRAP, RST 7.5, RST 6.5,
RST 5.5, and INTR. These interrupts have a fixed priority of interrupt service. If two or more
interrupts go high at the same time, the 8085 will service them on priority basis. The TRAP
has the highest priority followed by RST 7.5, RST 6.5, and RST 5.5.

66. In what way interrupts are classified in 8085?

Ans: In 8085 the interrupts are classified as Hardware and Software interrupts.

67. How many interrupts are there in 8085?

Ans: There are 12 interrupts in 8085.

68. What are Hardware interrupts?

Ans: TRAP, RST7.5, RST6.5, RST5.5, & INTR.

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69. What are Software interrupts?

Ans: RST0, RST1, RST2, RST3, RST4, RST5, RST6, RST7.

70. Which interrupt has the highest priority?

Ans: TRAP has the highest priority.

71. What is the RST for the TRAP?

Ans: RST 4.5 is called as TRAP.

72. Which interrupt is not level-sensitive in 8085?

Ans: RST 7.5 is a raising edge-triggering interrupt.

73. What are level-triggering interrupt?

Ans: RST 6.5 & RST 5.5 are level-triggering interrupts.

74. Which line will be activated when an output device require attention from
CPU?
Ans: Interrupt Request (INTR, pin 10, it is an input signal to µP). It goes high when the
external devices want to communicate.

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75. What is meant by polling?
Ans:-Polling or device polling is a process which identifies the device that has interrupted
the microprocessor.

Interrupts vs. polling

• The CPU services various devices. There are two ways for the CPU to provide service
to those devices: interrupts and polling.
• In the interrupt method, whenever any device needs its service, the device informs
the CPU by sending it an interrupt signal. The CPU interrupts whatever it is doing
and serves the request for service.
• In polling, the CPU continuously monitors a status condition and when the conditions
are met it will perform the service.
• The advantage of interrupts is that the CPU can serve many devices (of course, not all
at the same time). Each device receives service from the CPU based on the priority
assigned to it. It can also ignore (mask) a device request for service.
• The disadvantage of interrupts is that they require much more hardware and
software.
• In contrast, polling is cheap and requires minimal software, but it ties down the CPU.
To avoid tying down the CPU, interrupts are the preferred choice.

76. Basic concepts in memory interfacing

Ans:-The primary function of memory interfacing is that the microprocessor should be able
to read from and write into a given register of a memory chip. To perform these operations
the microprocessor should
• Be able to select the chip
• Identify the register
• Enable the appropriate buffer

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77. Comparison between full address decoding and partial address decoding

Full Address Decoding Partial Address decoding

All higher address lines are decoded to Few higher address lines are decoded to
select the memory or I/O device. select the memory or I/O device.
More hardware is required to design H/W required to design decoding logic is
decoding logic. less; sometimes it can be eliminated.
Higher cost for decoding circuit. Less cost for decoding circuit.
No Multiple addresses. It has an advantage of multiple addresses.
Used in large systems Used in small systems

78.What is the need for timing diagram?

Ans: The timing diagram provides information regarding the status of various signals, when
a machine cycle is executed. The knowledge of timing diagram is essential for system
designer to select matched peripheral devices like memories, latches, ports etc from a
microprocessor system.
79. Distinguish between the memories mapped I/O peripheral I/O?
Ans:

Memory Mapped I/O Peripheral OR I/O Mapped I/O

16-bit device address 8-bit device address

Data transfer between any general- Data is transfer only between

purpose register and I/O port. accumulator and I.O port

The memory map (64K) is shared The I/O map is independent of the
between I/O device and system memory map; 256 input device and 256
memory. output device can be connected

More hardware is required to decode 16- Less hardware is required to decode 8-

bit address bit address

Arithmetic or logic operation can be Arithmetic or logical operation cannot

directly performed with I/O data be directly performed with I/O data

The assignment of memory addresses to The assignment of addresses to various I/O

various registers in a memory chip is called devices in the memory chip is called as I/O
as memory mapping. mapping.

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80. What is programmable peripheral device?
Ans: If the function performed by the peripheral device can be altered or changed by a
program instruction then the peripheral device is called programmable device. It have
control register. The device can be programmed by sending control word in the prescribed
format to the control register.

81. What are the basic modes of operation of 8255?

Ans: There are two basic modes of operation of 8255; They are:
1. I/O mode. 2. BSR mode.
In I/O mode, the 8255 ports work as programmable I/O ports, while In BSR mode only port
C (PC0-PC7) can be used to set or reset its individual port bits. Under the IO mode of
operation, further there are three modes of operation of 8255, So as to support different
types of applications, viz. mode 0, mode 1 and mode 2.
• Mode 0 - Basic I/O mode
• Mode 1 - Strobed I/O mode
• Mode 2 - Strobed bi-directional I/O.

82. Write the features of mode 0 in 8255?

Ans:
1. Two 8-bit ports (port A and port B) and two 4-bit ports (port C upper and lower) are
available. The two 4-bit ports can be combined used as a third 8-bit port.
2. Any port can be used as an input or output port.
3. Output ports are latched. Input ports are not latched.
4. A maximum of four ports are available so that overall 16 I/O configurations are
possible.

83. What are the features used mode 1 in 8255?

Ans: Two groups – group A and group B are available for strobed data transfer.
1. Each group contains one 8-bit data I/O port and one 4-bit control/data port.
2. The 8-bit data port can be either used as input or output port. The inputs and outputs
both are latched.
3. Out of 8-bit port C, PC0-PC2 is used to generate control signals for port B and
PC3=PC5 are used to generate control signals for port A. The lines PC6, PC7 may be
used as independent data lines.

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84. What are signals used in input control signal & output control signal?
Ans: Input control signal
• STB (Strobe input)
• IBF (Input buffer full)
• INTR(Interrupt request)
Output control signal
• OBF (Output buffer full)
• ACK (Acknowledge input)
• INTR(Interrupt request)

85. What are the features used mode 2 in 8255?

Ans: The single 8-bit port in-group A is available.
1. The 8-bit port is bi-directional and additionally a 5-bit control port is available.
2. Three I/O lines are available at port C, viz PC2-PC0.
3. Inputs and outputs are both latched.
4. The 5-bit control port C (PC3=PC7) is used for generating/accepting handshake
signals for the 8-bit data transfer on port A.

86. List the operation modes of 8255

Ans:
1. I.O Mode
2. Mode 0-Simple Input/Output.
3. Mode 1-Strobed Input/Output
4. Mode 2-Strobed bidirectional mode
5. Bit Set/Reset Mode.

87.What is a control word?

Ans: It is a word stored in a register (control register) used to control the operation of a
program digital device.

88. What’s the purpose of control word written to control register in 8255?
Ans: The control words written to control register specify an I/O function for each I.O
port. The bit D7 of the control word determines either the I/O function of the BSR function.

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89. What is the size of ports in 8255?
Ans:
• Port-A : 8-bits • Port-CU : 4-bits
• Port-B : 8-bits • Port-CL : 4-bits

90. Give the features of INTEL 8259?

Ans: 1. It manages 8 interrupt requests.
2. The interrupt vector addresses are programmable.
3. The priorities of interrupts are programmable.
4. The interrupt can be masked or unmasked individually.

91. Give the operating modes of 8259a?

Ans:
(a) Fully Nested Mode (g) Edge and level Triggered Mode
(b) End of Interrupt (EOI) (h) Reading 8259 Status
(c) Automatic Rotation (i) Poll command
(d) Automatic EOI Mode (j) Special Fully Nested Mode
(e) Specific Rotation (k) Buffered mode
(f) Special Mask Mode (l) Cascade mode

92. Define scan counter?

Ans: The scan counter has two modes to scan the key matrix and refresh the display. In the
encoded mode, the counter provides binary count that is to be externally decoded to provide
the scan lines for keyboard and display. In the decoded scan mode, the counter internally
decodes the least significant 2 bits and provides a decoded 1 out of 4 scan on SL0-SL3.The
keyboard and display both are in the same mode at a time.

93. What is scanning in keyboard and what is scan time?

Ans: The process of sending a zero to each row of a keyboard matrix and reading the
columns for key actuation is called scanning. The scan time is the time taken by the
processor to scan all the rows one by one starting from first row and coming back to the first
row again.

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94. What are the tasks involved in keyboard interface?
Ans: The tasks involved in keyboard interfacing are sensing a key actuation, debouncing the
key and generating key codes (Decoding the key). These tasks are performed software if the
keyboard is interfaced through ports and they are performed by hardware if the keyboard is
interfaces through 8279.

95. How a keyboard matrix is formed in keyboard interface using 8279?

Ans: The return lines, RL0 toRL7 of 8279 are used to form the columns of keyboard matrix.
In decoded scan lines SL0 t0SL3 of 8279 are used to form the rows of keyboard matrix. In
encoded scan mode, the output lines of external decoder are used as rows of keyboard
matrix.

96. What is the output modes used in 8279?

Ans: 8279 provides two output modes for selecting the display options.
1. Display Scan
In this mode, 8279 provides 8 or 16 character-multiplexed displays those can be organized
as dual 4-bit or single 8-bit display units.
2. Display Entry
8279 allows options for data entry on the displays. The display data is entered for display
from the right side or from the left side.

97. What are the modes used in keyboard modes?

Ans:
Scanned Keyboard mode with 2 Key Lockout.
Scanned Keyboard with N-key Rollover.
Scanned Keyboard special Error Mode.
Sensor Matrix Mode.

98. What are the modes used in display modes?

Ans: 1. Left Entry mode
In the left entry mode, the data is entered from the left side of the display unit.
2. Right Entry Mode.
In the right entry mode, the first entry to be displayed is entered on the rightmost display.

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99. List the major components of the keyboard/Display interface.
I. Keyboard section
II. Scan section
III. Display section
IV. CPU interface section

100. What is Key bouncing?

Ans: Mechanical switches are used as keys in most of the keyboards. When a key is pressed
the contact bounce back and forth and settle down only after a small time delay (about
20ms). Even though a key is actuated once, it will appear to have been actuated several
times. This problem is called Key Bouncing.

101. What are the various programmed data transfer methods?

Ans: i) Synchronous data transfer
ii) Asynchronous data transfer
iii) Interrupt driven data transfer

102. What is synchronous data transfer?

Ans: It is a data method which is used when the I/O device and the microprocessor match
in speed. To transfer a data to or from the device, the user program issues a suitable
instruction addressing the device. The data transfer is completed at the end of the execution
of this instruction.

103. What is asynchronous data transfer?

Ans: It is a data transfer method which is used when the speed of an I/O device does not
match with the speed of the microprocessor. Asynchronous data transfer is also called as
Handshaking.

104. What is baud rate?

Ans: The baud rate is the rate at which the serial data are transmitted. Baud rate is defined
as (The time for a bit cell). In some systems one bit cell has one data bit, then the baud rate
and bits/sec are same.

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105. What is the use of modem control unit in 8251?

Ans: The modem control unit handles the modem handshake signals to coordinate the
communication between the modem and the USART.

106. What is an USART?

Ans: USART stands for universal synchronous/Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter. It is a
programmable communication interface that can communicate by using either synchronous
or asynchronous serial data.

107. What is the use of 8251 chip?

8251 chip is mainly used as the asynchronous serial interface between the processor and the
external equipment.

108. What is TXD?

Ans: TXD- Transmitter Data Output This output pin carries serial stream of the transmitted
data bits along with other information like start bit, stop bits and priority bit.

109. What is RXD?

Ans: RXD- Receive Data Input This input pin of 8251A receives a composite stream of the
data to be received by 8251A.

110. What is swapping?

Ans: The procedure of fetching the chosen program segments or data from the secondary
storage into the physical memory is called ‘swapping’.

111. Write the function of crossbar switch?

Ans: The crossbar switch provides the inter connection paths between the memory module
and the processor. Each node of the crossbar represents a bus switch. All these nodes may be
controlled by one of these processors or by a separate one altogether.

112. What is a data amplifier?

Ans: Transceivers are the bi-directional buffers are some times they are called as data
amplifiers. They are required to separate the valid data from the time multiplexed address
data signal. They are controlled by 2 signals i.e DEN & DT/R.
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113. What is status flag bit?

Ans: The flag register reflects the results of logical and arithmetic instructions. The flag
register digits D0, D2, D4, D6, D7 and D11 are modified according to the result of the
execution of logical and arithmetic instruction. These are called as status flag bits.

114. What is a control flag?

Ans: The bits D8 and D9 namely, trap flag (TF) and interrupt flag (IF) bits, are used for
controlling machine operation and thus they are called control flags.

115. What is instruction pipelining?

Ans: Major function of the bus unit is to fetch instruction bytes from the memory. In fact,
the instructions are fetched in advance and stored in a queue to enable faster execution of
the instructions. This concept is known as instruction pipelining.

116. Give the register organization of 8257?

Ans: The 8257 perform the DMA operation over four independent DMA channels. Each of
the four channels of 8257 has a pair of two 16-bit registers. DMA address register and
terminal count register. Also, there are two common registers for all the channels; namely,
mode set registers and status register. Thus there are a total of ten registers. The CPU selects
one of these ten registers using address lines A0- A3.

117. What is the use of stepper motor?

Ans: A stepper motor is a device used to obtain an accurate position control of rotating
shafts. A stepper motor employs rotation of its shaft in terms of steps, rather than
continuous rotation as in case of AC or DC motor.

118. What is the function of DMA address register?

Ans: Each DMA channel has one DMA address register. The function of this register is to
store the address of the starting memory location, which will be accessed by the DMA
channel. Thus the starting address of the memory block that will be accessed by the device is
first loaded in the DMA address register of the channel. Naturally, the device that wants to
transfer data over a DMA channel, will access the block of memory with the starting address
stored in the DMA Address Register.

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119. What is the use of terminal count register?

Ans: Each of the four DMA channels of 8257 has one terminal count register. This 16-bit
register is used for ascertaining that the data transfer through a DMA channel ceases or
stops after the required number of DMA cycles.

120. What is the function of mode set register in 8257?

Ans: The mode set register is used for programming the 8257 as per the requirements of
the system. The function of the mode set register is to enable the DMA channels individually
and also to set the various modes of operation.

121. Define HRQ?

Ans: The hold request output requests the access of the system bus. In non- cascaded 8257
systems, this is connected with HOLD pin of CPU. In cascade mode, this pin of a slave is
connected with a DRQ input line of the master 8257, while that of the master is connected
with HOLD input of the CPU.

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