UV151: a simulation tool for teaching/learning the 8051 microcontroller

Teaching/learning microcontrollers in the laboratory has been traditionally carried out using general purpose simulators and/or evaluation boards. In-circuit emulators are not widely used because of their high cost. This paper presents UV151, a software tool developed for teaching/learning the 8051 microcontroller in the laboratory and/or the classroom. UV151 includes an assembler, a multimicro simulator, a logic analyzer, and an assistant. The tool allows to simulate systems consisting of up to 4 microcontrollers plus a set of external peripherals. Both the CPU core and the embedded peripherals of each microcontroller are simulated. Everything in UV151 has been designed with the educational perspective in mind. A set of windows depict the configuration and behaviour of every embedded peripheral. UV151 is being used in several courses on microcontrollers at University of Vigo (Spain) and also at the college level. The tool is suitable for learning nearly everything about the 8051, ranging from the CPU and instruction set basics to complex use of timers, interrupts and the serial port. This paper shows the benefits of using UV151 as an alternative to traditional instruction tools.