Microprocessor laboratory based on the AMD 29205 32-bit RISC processor

Microprocessor laboratories must constantly change and evolve as technology advances and new processors with new features emerge. The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, offers two microprocessor courses, an introductory course using the Motorola 68HC11 in the lab, and an advanced course which, until this year, has used the Intel 8086 in the lab. Although the 68HC11 continues to demonstrate current techniques and capabilities to beginning students, the 8086 is outdated and did not prepare students for the challenges of using current advanced microprocessors. This year, the outdated 8086 systems have been replaced with new systems based on the AMD 29205, a 32-bit RISC processor that demonstrate many of the features common to today's state-of-the-art processors. This paper details the techniques used to implement an advanced microprocessor lab based on this processor, the AMD 29205, using the SA-29205 Demonstration Board acquired from AMD.