Unit 3- Part2

8051 Serial Communication Interface

Outline
• Serial Port Operation
• Setting the Serial Port Mode
• Setting the Baud Rate
• Writing to the Serial Port
• Reading from the Serial Port
• Programming example in assembly
• Programming examples in Embedded ‘C’

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 Basics of Serial Communication
Parallel: expensive - short distance – fast – no
modulation
Serial :cheaper– long (two different cities by
modem)-slow

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 Basics of Serial Communication
• When a microprocessor communicates with the
outside world, it provides the data in byte-sized
chunks.
• In some cases, such as printers, the information is
simply grabbed from the 8-bit data bus and
presented to the 8-bit data bus of the printer.
• This can work only if the cable is not too long,
since long cables diminish and even distort
signals.
• Further, an 8-bit data path is expensive
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• For these reasons, serial communication is used
for transferring data between two systems
located at distances of hundreds of feet to
millions of miles apart.

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• Since serial communication uses single data line
instead of the 8-bit data line of parallel
communication, it is much cheaper and also it
enables two computers located in two different
cities to communicate over the telephone
• For serial communication to work, byte of data
must be converted to serial bits using a parallel
in serial out shift register, then it can be
transmitted over a single data line.
• At the receiving end, there must be a serial in
parallel out shift register to receive the serial
data and pack them into a byte
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• If the data is to be transferred on the telephone
line, it must be converted from 1’s and 0’s to audio
tones, which are sinusoidal shaped signals
• This conversion is performed by a peripheral
device called a modem, (modulator/demodulator)
• When the distance is short, the digital signal can
be transferred as it is on a simple wire and requires
no modulation
• Ex:data transfer from keyboard to the
motherboard

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• For long distance data transfers using
communication lines such as telephone, serial
data communication requires a modem to
modulate (convert 0’s and 1’s to audio tones)
and demodulate( converting from audio tones
to 0s and 1s)

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• Serial data communication uses 2 methods,
synchronous and asynchronous
• The synchronous method transfers a block of
data(characters) at a time, while the
asynchronous method transfers a single byte
at a time
• It is possible to write software to use either of
these methods, but the programs can be
tedious and long
• Hence special ICs , UART and USART are used
for serial data communications
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Half duplex and full duplex
transmission

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• In data transmission if the data can be
transmitted and received, it is duplex
communication
• In simplex transmissions such as with printers,
the computer only sends data
• Duplex transmission can be half or full duplex,
depending on whether or not the data transfer
can be simultaneous
• If data is transmitted one way at a time, it is
referred to as half duplex
• If the data can go both ways at the same time, it
is full duplex
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 Asynchronous serial
communication and data framing
• The data coming in at the receiving end of the
data line in a serial data transfer is all 0s and
1s
• It is difficult to make sense of the data unless
sender and receiver agree on a set of rules, a
protocol, on how the data is packed, how
many bits constitute a character, and when
the data begins and ends

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 Start and stop bits
• Asynchronous serial data communication is
widely used for character-oriented transmissions,
while block-oriented data transfers use the
synchronous
• In the asynchronous method, each character is
placed between start and stop bits
• This is called framing
• Data is packed between a start and a stop bit
• Start bit is always one bit while the stop can be
one or two bits
• Start bit is always low(0) while stop bit is always
high(1) Veena N Hegde 12
 Start and stop bits

• When there is no transfer, the signal is 1 –

referred to as mark. The 0 is referred to as
space
• The transmission begins with a start bit
followed by d0, which is the LSB, then the rest
of the bits until d7, and finally the one stop bit
is sent indicating the end of the character “A”
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 Data transfer rate
• The rate of data transfer in serial
communication is stated in bps. (bits per
second)
• Another widely used terminology for bps is
baud rate(number of signal changes per
second)
• In modems, single change of signal,
sometimes transfers several bits of data
• As far as the conductor wire is concerned, the
baud rate and bps are the same

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 RS 232 standards
• To allow compatibility among data
communication equipment made by various
manufacturers, an interfacing standard called
RS232 was set by the Electronics Industries
Association(EIA) in 1960
• Most widely used interfacing standard
• Used in PCs and numerous types of equipments

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❑ Standard for serial comm (COM port)
❑ Logic 1 : represented by -3 to -25 volt
❑ Logic 0 : represented by +3 to +25 volt
❑ Hence to connect any RS232 to a microcontroller
system, we must use voltage converters such as
MAX232 to convert the TTL logic levels to the RS232
voltage levels and vice versa
❑ The baud rate of the 8051 must matched the baud rate
of the pc
❑ PC standard baud rate
❖ 2400-4800-9600-14400-19200-28800-33600-57600
• Connectors
– Minimally, 3 wires: RxD, TxD, GND
– Could have 9-pin or 25-pin
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 RS232 Connector

DB-25, 25 pin connector

DB-9, 9 pin connector

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RS232 Connector (cont’d)

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 Data communication classification
• Current terminology classifies data
communication equipment as DTE or DCE (Data
terminal/communication Equipment)
• DTE refers to the terminals and computers that
send and receive data
• DCE refers to communication equipment, such as
modems, that are responsible for transferring the
data
• The simplest connection between a PC and a
microcontroller requires a minimum of 3 pins,
TXD, RXD and ground
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• DTR-data terminal ready-DTE sends out DTR signal to
indicate that it is ready for communication
• DSR-data set ready-DCE(modem) asserts DSR to indicate
that it is ready to communicate
• RTS-request to send-When the DTE has a byte to
transmit, asserts RTS to signal the modem that it has a
byte of data to transmit
• CTS-clear to send-DCE sends out this signal to DTE, in
response to RTS, when it has room for storing the data
• DCD-Carrier data detect-the modem asserts this signal
to inform DTE (PC) that a valid carrier has been
detected and that contact b/w it and the modem is
established
• RI-ring indicator-o/p from the modem(DCE) and an i/p
to a PC(DTE) indicates that the telephone is ringing 21
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 8051 connection to RS232
• 8051 has 2 pins for transferring and receiving
data serially
• TxD pin 11 of the 8051 (P3.1)
• RxD pin 10 of the 8051 (P3.0)
• These pins are TTL compatible
• Hence require a line driver to make them RS232
compatible
• One such driver is the MAX232 chip

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 MAX232
• Since the RS232 is not compatible with today’s
microprocessors and microcontrollers, we need
a line driver (voltage converter) to convert the
RS232’s signals to TTL voltage levels that will be
acceptable to the 8051’s TxD and RxD pins
• The MAX232 converts from RS232 voltage levels
to TTL voltage levels, and vice –versa

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MAX232 or MAX233

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 Serial Interface
•The serial port of 8051 is full duplex, i.e., it can
transmit and receive simultaneously.
•The register SBUF is used to hold the data.
•The special function register SBUF is physically two
registers.
• One is, write-only and is used to hold data to be
transmitted out of the 8051 via TXD.
• The other is, read-only and holds the received data
from external sources via RXD.
•Both mutually exclusive registers have the same
address 099H.

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 SBUF register
MOV SBUF,#’D’ ;load SBUF=44H, ASCII for ‘D’

MOV SBUF,A ;copy accumulator into SBUF

MOV A,SBUF ;copy SBUF into accumulator

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 Serial Interface
• Serial Port Control Register (SCON)
• Register SCON controls serial data communication.
Address: 098H (Bit addressable)
7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
SM0 SM1 SM2 REN TB8 RB8 TI RI
SM0 SM1 MODE operation transmit rate
0 0 0 shift register fixed (xtal/12)
SM0 : mode specifier 0 1 1 8 bit UART variable (timer1)
SM1 : mode specifier 1 0 2 9 bit UART fixed (xtal/32 or xtal/64)
1 1 3 9 bit UART variable (timer1)

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SM2 : used for multi processor communication
REN : receive enable (by software enable/disable)
TB8 : transmit bit8-used for serial mode 2 & 3
RB8 : receive bit 8-In serial mode 1, this bit gets a copy of the stop bit
when an 8-bit data is received
TI : transmit interrupt flag set by HW after send , clear by SW-when the
8051 finishes the transfer of the 8-bit character, it raises the TI flag to
indicate that it is ready to transfer another byte
RI : receive interrupt flag set by HW after received ,clear by SW
• When the 8051 receives data serially via RxD, it gets rid of the start
and stop bits and places the byte in SBUF register
• Then it raises the RI flag bit to indicate that a byte has been received
and should be picked up before it is lost

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• The next bit, SM2, is a flag for "Multiprocessor
communication.
• Generally, whenever a byte has been received
the 8051 will set the "RI" (Receive Interrupt)
flag. This lets the program know that a byte
has been received and that it needs to be
processed.
• When SM2 is set the "RI" flag will only be
triggered if the 9th bit received was a "1".

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•The SCON SFR allows us to configure the Serial Port.
Go through each bit and review its function.
•The first four bits (bits 4 through 7) are configuration
bits.
•Bits SM0 and SM1 let us set the serial mode to a value
between 0 and 3, inclusive.
•Selecting the Serial Mode selects the mode of
operation (8-bit/9-bit, UART or Shift Register) and also
determines how the baud rate will be calculated.
• In modes 0 and 2 the baud rate is fixed based on the
oscillators frequency.
• In modes 1 and 3 the baud rate is variable based on
how often Timer 1 overflows.
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• That is to say, if SM2 is set and a byte is received
whose 9th bit is clear, the RI flag will never be set.
• This can be useful in certain advanced serial
applications.
• For now it is safe to say that you will almost always
want to clear this bit so that the flag is set upon
reception of any character

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• The next bit, REN, is "Receiver Enable." This bit is
very straightforward: If you want to receive data via
the serial port, set this bit. You will almost always
want to set this bit.
• The last four bits (bits 0 through 3) are operational
bits. They are used when actually sending and
receiving data--they are not used to configure the
serial port.

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• The TB8 bit is used in modes 2 and 3. In
modes 2 and 3, a total of nine data bits are
transmitted.
• The first 8 data bits are the 8 bits of the main
value, and the ninth bit is taken from TB8. If
TB8 is set and a value is written to the serial
port, the data bits will be written to the serial
line followed by a "set" ninth bit. If TB8 is clear
the ninth bit will be "clear."

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• The RB8 also operates in modes 2 and 3 and
functions essentially the same way as TB8, but
on the reception side.
• When a byte is received in modes 2 or 3, a
total of nine bits are received.
• In this case, the first eight bits received are the
data of the serial byte received and the value
of the ninth bit received will be placed in RB8.

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• TI means "Transmit Interrupt." When a
program writes a value to the serial port,
certain amount of time will pass before the
individual bits of the byte are "clocked out"
the serial port.
• If the program were to write another byte to
the serial port before the first byte was
completely output, the data being sent would
be garbled.

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• Thus, the 8051 lets the program know that it
has "clocked out" the last byte by setting the
TI bit.
• When the TI bit is set, the program may
assume that the serial port is "free" and ready
to send the next byte.

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• Finally, the RI bit means "Receive Interrupt." It
functions similarly to the "TI" bit, but it
indicates that a byte has been received.
• That is to say, whenever the 8051 has received
a complete byte it will trigger the RI bit to let
the program know that it needs to read the
value quickly, before another byte is read.

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 Power Control Register(PCON)

• SMOD: Serial baud rate modify bit

GF1: General purpose user flag bit 1
GF0: General purpose user flag bit 0
PD: Power down bit
IDL: Idle mode bit

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 Serial Interface

• Power Mode control Register

• Register PCON controls processor power
down, sleep modes and serial data baud rate.
Only one bit of PCON is used with respect to
serial communication. The seventh bit (b7)
(SMOD) is used to generate the baud rate of
serial communication.
• Address: 87H

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 Baud Rate
• baud: A data transmission rate (bits/second) for
modems
• The Baud Rate is determined based on the oscillators
frequency when in mode 0 and 2.
• In mode 0, the baud rate is always the oscillator
frequency divided by 12.
• This means if crystal is 11.0592Mhz, mode 0 baud
rate will always be 921,600 baud.
• In mode 2 the baud rate is always the oscillator
frequency divided by 64, so a 11.0592Mhz crystal
speed will yield a baud rate of 172,800.
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• In modes 1 and 3, the baud rate is determined
by how frequently timer 1 overflows.
• The more frequently timer 1 overflows, the
higher the baud rate.
• There are many ways one can cause timer 1 to
overflow at a rate that determines a baud
rate, but the most common method is to put
timer 1 in 8-bit auto-reload mode (timer mode
2) and set a reload value (TH1) that causes
Timer 1 to overflow at a frequency
appropriate to generate a baud rate.
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 Baud rate in the 8051
• 8051 transfers and receives data serially at many
different baud rates
• The baud rates in the 8051 is programmable
• This is done with the help of timer 1
• 8051 divides the crystal frequency by 12 to get the
machine cycle frequency
• In the case of XTAL=11.0592Mhz, the machine cycle
frequency is 921.6khz
• The 8051’s serial communication UART circuitry
divides the machine cycle frequency of 921.6khz by
32 once more before it is used by timer1 to set the
baud rate

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• To determine the value that must be placed in TH1 to
generate a given baud rate, we may use the following
equation (assuming PCON.7 is clear).

• TH1 = 256 - ((Crystal / 384) / Baud)

• If PCON.7(SMOD) is set then the baud rate is
effectively doubled, thus the equation becomes:
• TH1 = 256 - ((Crystal / 192) / Baud)

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• Therefore, 921.6khz /32 gives 28,800hz
• When timer 1 is used to set the baud rate it
must be programmed in mode 2, ie 8 bit auto
reload
• To get baud rates compatible with the PC, we
must load TH1 with the values shown below
Baud rate TH1(decimal) TH1(hex)
9600 -3 FD
4800 -6 FA
2400 -12 F4
1200 -24 E8

• XTAL=11.0592Mhz
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 Example
◈With XTAL=11.0592 MHz, find the
TH1 value needed to have the
following baud rate.
(a) 9600
(b) 2400
(c) 1200

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Solution:with XTAL=11.0592 MHz:

Machine cycle frequency: 11.0592 MHz/12 = 921.6kHz,

Frequency provided by UART: 921.6kHz/32 =28,800 Hz (if SMOD=0)
or 921.6kHz/16 =57,600 Hz (if SMOD=1)
should be provided by Timer 1 to set baud rate.

Case I: SMOD=0.
(a) 28,800/9,600 = 3. 256-3 = 253 = FDh
(b) 28,800/2,400 = 12. 256-12 = 244 = F4h
(c) 28,800/1,200 = 24. 256-24 = 232 = E8h
should be loaded into TH1.

Case II: SMOD=1.

(a) 57,600/9,600 = 6. 256-6 = 250 = FAh
(b) 57,600/2,400 = 24. 256-24 = 232 = E8h
(c) 57,600/1,200 = 48. 256-48 = 232 = D0h
should be loaded into TH1.
÷ 16 57,600 Hz
by UART
11.0592 MHz 921.6 kHz (SMOD=1)
XTAL
÷ 12 Timer 1
OSC
÷ 32 28,800 Hz
by UART
(SMOD=0)

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Programming the 8051 to transfer the data serially
1. TMOD register is loaded with the value 20h,
indicating the use of timer 1 in mode2 to set
the baud rate
2. The TH1 is loaded with one of the values
(refer table) to set the baud rate for serial
data transfer(assuming XTAL=11.0592mhz)
3. The SCON register is loaded with the value
50h, indicating serial mode1, where an 8-bit
data is framed with start and stop bits
4. TR1 is set to start timer1
5. TI is cleared by the CLR TI instruction
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6. The character byte to be transferred serially is
written into the SBUF register.
7. The TI flag bit is monitored using the
instruction JNB TI, xx to see if the character
has been transferred completely.
8. To transfer the next character, goto step 5

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 ◈Write a program for the 8051 to transfer
letter “A” serially at 4800 baud,
continuously.

Solution:
MOV TMOD,#20H ;timer 1, mode 2 (auto reload)
MOV TH1,#-6 ;4800 baud rate
MOV SCON,#50H ;8-bit, 1 stop, REN enabled
SETB TR1 ;start timer 1
AGN: MOV SBUF,#"A" ;letter "A" to be transferred
HERE: JNB TI,HERE ;wait for the last bit
CLR TI ;clear TI for next char
SJMP AGN ;keep sending A

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 Data Transmission
• Data Transmission :Transmission of serial data
begins at any time when data is written to
SBUF.
• Pin P3.1 (Alternate function bit TXD) is used to
transmit data to the serial data network.
• TI is set to 1 when data has been transmitted.
This signifies that SBUF is empty so that
another byte can be sent

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 Data Reception
• Reception of serial data begins if the receive
enable bit is set to 1 for all modes. Pin P3.0
(Alternate function bit RXD) is used to receive
data from the serial data network.
• Receive interrupt flag, RI, is set after the data
has been received in all modes. The data gets
stored in SBUF register from where it can be
read

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 Reading the Serial Port or
Data Reception
• Reading data received by the serial port is
equally easy.
• To read a byte from the serial port one just
needs to read the value stored in the SBUF
(99h) SFR after the 8051 has automatically set
the RI flag in SCON.

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• For example, if your program wants to wait for
a character to be received and subsequently
read it into the Accumulator, the following
code segment may be used
• JNB RI,$ ;Wait for the 8051 to set the RI flag
MOV A,SBUF ;Read the character from the
serial port

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• The first line of the above code segment waits
for the 8051 to set the RI flag; again, the 8051
sets the RI flag automatically when it receives
a character via the serial port.
• So as long as the bit is not set the program
repeats the "JNB" instruction continuously.
• Once the RI bit is set upon character reception
the above condition automatically fails and
program flow falls through to the "MOV"
instruction which reads the value.

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 Importance of TI flag
• Ex: to transmit a character via TxD-steps
1. The byte character to be transmitted is
written into the SBUF register
2. The start bit is transferred
3. The 8-bit character is transferred one bit at a
time
4. The stop bit is transferred. It is during the
transfer of the stop bit that the 8051 raises th
TI flag indicating that the last character was
transmitted and it is ready to transfer the
next character
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5. By monitoring the TI flag, we make sure that
we are nor overloading the SBUF register
• If we write another byte into the SBUF before
TI is raised, the untransmitted portion of the
previous byte will be lost. In other words,
when the 8051 finishes transferring a byte, it
raises the TI flag to indicate it is ready for the
next character
6. After SBUF is loaded with a new byte, the TI
flag bit must be forced to 0 by the CLR TI
instruction in order for this new byte to be
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 8051 INTERRUPTS
• 8051 provides 5 vectored interrupts.
• TF0
• TF1
• RI/TI
• INT0
• INT1
• Out of these, INT0 and INT1 are external interrupts
whereas Timer and Serial port interrupts are
generated internally. The external interrupts could be
negative edge triggered or low level triggered.

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