With more powerful MCUs and CPUs being announced every month, there is a virtually endless number of options to pick from. Multi-core MCUs are becoming more common. But the real question is—do you really need multiple cores or multiple processors in your design? Yes, they are readily available, but will it ultimately help or hurt the design in the long run?
Choosing between multi-core and multi-processor systems
When to use multi-core MCUs
There are several cases where multi-core MCUs are an excellent fit:
- When true parallel-processing is required and space is constrained
- When tightly coupled parallel threads of execution are required
If your design is space-constrained, requires true parallel processing, or communication...