CHAPTER 3

CONTROL UNIT

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ControlUnit
• Control unit (CU) of a processor translates from machine instructions
to the control signals for the microoperations that implement them.
• The function of the control unit in a digital computer is to initiate
sequences of microoperations.
• The number of different types of microoperations that are available
in a given system is finite.
• The complexity of the digital system is derived from the number of
sequences of microoperations that are performed.
Two techniques used for implementing control unit are hardwired and
microprogrammed control unit.

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 Hardwired Control Unit Microprogrammed Control Unit

Microprogrammed control unit generates the control

Hardwired control unit generates the control signals
signals with the help of micro instructions stored in
needed for the processor using logic circuits
control memory

Hardwired control unit is faster when compared to

This is slower than the other as micro instructions are
microprogrammed control unit as the required control
used for generating signals here
signals are generated with the help of hardwares

Difficult to modify as the control signals that need to Easy to modify as the modification need to be done
be generated are hard wired only at the instruction level

More costlier as everything has to be realized in terms Less costlier than hardwired control as only micro
of logic gates instructions are used for generating control signals

It cannot handle complex instructions as the circuit

It can handle complex instructions
design for it becomes complex

Used in computer that makes use of Reduced Used in computer that makes use of Complex
Instruction Set Computers(RISC) Instruction Set Computers(CISC)
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Control Unit of a
Basic Computer
(Hardwired
Control)

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 Description
• A Hard-wired Control consists of two decoders, a sequence counter, and a number of logic
gates.
• An instruction fetched from the memory unit is placed in the instruction register (IR).
• The component of an instruction register includes; I bit, the operation code, and bits 0
through 11.
• The operation code in bits 12 through 14 are coded with a 3 x 8 decoder.
• The outputs of the decoder are designated by the symbols D0 through D7.
• The operation code at bit 15 is transferred to a flip-flop designated by the symbol I.
• The operation codes from Bits 0 through 11 are applied to the control logic gates.
• The Sequence counter (SC) can count in binary from 0 through 15.

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Cont..
• Hardwired Control:
When the control signals are generated by hardware using
conventional logic design techniques, the control unit is said to be
hardwired.
• Microprogrammed Control:
Microprogramming is a second alternative for designing the control
unit of a digital computer which uses microoperations sequences.
A computer that employs a microprogrammed control unit will
have two separate memories: a main memory and a control memory.

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Control Memory
• Control Memory (Control Storage: CS): Storage in the
microprogrammed control unit to store the microprogram.
• Control word: It is a string of control variables (0’s and 1’s) occupying
a word in control memory.
• Microprogram:
• Program stored in control memory that generates all the control
signals required to execute the instruction set correctly
• Consists of microinstructions

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Cont..
• Microinstruction:
Contains a control word and a sequencing word
Control Word – contains all the control information required for one
clock cycle
Sequencing Word - Contains information needed to decide the next
microinstruction address
• Microoperation:
A microinstruction contains one or more microoperations to be
completed.

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Cont..
• A computer that employs a microprogrammed control unit will have
two separate memories: main memory and a control memory.
• The user’s program in main memory consists of machine instructions
and data. The control memory holds a fixed microprogram that
cannot be altered by the occasional user. The microprogram consists
of microinstructions that specify various internal control signals for
execution of register microoperations
The general configuration of a microprogrammed control unit is
demonstrated in the following block diagram:

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Block Diagram of Microprogrammed control
unit

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Description
A more advanced development that permits a microprogram to be
loaded initially from an auxiliary memory such as magnetic disk.
Computer system whose control unit is implemented with a
microprogram in WCS.
Microprogram can be changed by a systems programmer or a user.
Sequencer: The device or program that generates address of next
microinstruction to be executed is called sequencer. While the
microoperations are being executed, the next address is computed in
the next address generator circuit and then transferred into the control
address register to read the next microinstruction.

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Cont..
• Control Address Register: CAR contains address of microinstruction.
• Control Data Register: CDR contains microinstruction read from
memory. The microinstruction contains a control word that specifies
one or more microoperations. The data register is sometimes called a
pipeline register.
It allows the execution of the microoperations specified by the
control word simultaneously with the generation of the next
microinstruction. This configuration requires a two-phase clock, with
one clock applied to the address register and the other to the data
register.

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Address Sequencing
Each computer instruction has its own microprogram routine in control
memory to generate the microoperations that execute the instruction.
Process of finding address of next microinstruction to be executed is called
address sequencing. The address sequencing capabilities required in a
control memory are:
a) Incrementing of the control address register.
b) Unconditional branch or conditional branch, depending on status bit
conditions.
c) A mapping process from the bits of the instruction to an address for
control memory.
d) A facility for subroutine call and return.
Following is the block diagram for control memory and the associated
hardware needed for selecting the next microinstruction address.

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• The diagram shows four different paths from which the control address
register (CAR) receives the address.
• The incrementer increments the content of the control address register by
one, to select the next microinstruction in sequence.
• Branching is achieved by specifying the branch address in one of the fields of
the microinstruction.
• Conditional branching is obtained by using part of the microinstruction to
select a specific status bit in order to determine its condition.
• An external address is transferred into control memory via a mapping logic
circuit.
• The return address for a subroutine is stored in a special register whose
value is then used when the microprogram wishes to return from the
subroutine.
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• Conditional Branch:
Simplest way of implementing branch logic hardware is to test the specified
condition and branch to the indicated address if condition is met otherwise address
register is simply incremented. If Condition is true, hardware set the appropriate
field of status register to 1. Conditions are tested for O (overflow), N (negative), Z
(zero), C (carry), etc.
• Unconditional Branch:
Fix the value of one status bit at the input of the multiplexer to 1. So that,
branching can always be done.
• Mapping
Assuming operation code of 4-bits which can specify 16 (24) distinct
instructions. Assume further and control memory has 128 words, requiring an
address of 7-bits. Now we have to map 4-bit operation code into 7-bit control
memory address. Thus, we have to map Op-code of an instruction to the address of
the Microinstruction which is the starting microinstruction of its subroutine in
memory.
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• Direct mapping:
Directly use op-code as address of Control memory

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• Another approach of direct mapping:
Transfer Op-code bits to use it as an address of control memory.
In this mapping, one 0 is placed in the MSB and two 0s in the LSB as
shown in figure:

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• Extended idea: Mapping function implemented by ROM or PLD
(Programmable Logic Device)
Use op-code as address of ROM where address of control
memory is stored and then use that address as an address of control
memory. This provides flexibility to add instructions for control
memory as the need arises.

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Subroutines:
• Subroutines are programs that are used by another program to
accomplish a particular task. Microinstructions can be saved by
employing subroutines that use common sections of micro code.
• Example: the sequence of microoperations needed to generate the
effective address is common to all memory reference instructions.
Thus, this sequence could be a subroutine that is called from within
many other routines to execute the effective address computation.
Subroutine register is used to save a return address during a
subroutine call which is organized in LIFO (last in, first out) stack.

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Computer Configuration:
It consists of two memory units: a main memory for storing instructions
and data, and a control memory for storing the microprogram
Four registers are associated with the processor unit and two with the
control unit. The processor registers are PC, AR, DR and AC.
The control unit has control address register CAR and subroutine register
SBR.
The transfer of information among the registers in processor is done
through multiplexer rather than a common bus. DR can receive information
from AC, PC or memory. AR can receive information from PC or DR. PC can
receive information only from AR.
The arithmetic, logic and shift unit performs microoperations with data
from AC and DR and places the result in AC. Note that memory receives its
address from AR. Input data written to memory come from DR, and data
read from memory can go only to DR.
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Microinstruction Format and Description
• Microinstruction Format
The 20 bits of the microinstruction are divided into four functional parts. The three
fields F1, F2, and F3 specify microoperations for the computer. The CD field selects
status bit conditions. The BR field specifies the type of branch to be used. The AD
field contains a branch address. The address field is seven bits wide, since the
control memory has 128 = 2^7 words.

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Cont..

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Symbolic Microinstructions

• Symbols are used in microinstructions as in assembly language. A

symbolic microprogram can be translated into its binary equivalent by
a microprogram assembler.
• Format of Microinstruction:
Contains five fields: label; micro-ops; CD; BR; AD
Label: may be empty or may specify a symbolic address
terminated with a colon

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Cont…
Micro-ops: consists of one, two, or three symbols separated by
commas
CD: one of {U, I, S, Z},
Where
U: Unconditional Branch
I: Indirect address bit
S: Sign of AC
Z: Zero value in AC
BR: one of {JMP, CALL, RET, MAP}
AD: one of {Symbolic address, NEXT, empty (in case of MAP and RET)}

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Symbolic Microprogram (example)
FETCH Routine: During FETCH Read an instruction from memory and
decode the instruction and update PC
• Sequence of microoperations in the fetch cycle:

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Symbolic microprogram for the fetch cycle:

Binary
Microprogram

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END of CHAPTER 3

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