Recently we covered the basics of one of our acronyms from our Acronym Soup: EC. If you remember the blog post, you will know that EC stands for embedded controllers, which are microcontrollers located on the motherboard. Embedded controllers serve many purposes when it comes to computer systems and takes on tasks that are not handled by the Central Processing Unit (CPU). Embedded Controllers have been around for a long time and these small, but powerful microchips control various aspects of computer systems!
So what exactly can embedded controllers be used for? Some functions include:
On top of controlling multiple aspects of a system, ECs can also recognize when certain types of devices are connected. Whenever power cords, USBs, Thunderbolt™ ports and/or DisplayPort™ are connected, the embedded controller will be able to identify the devices and direct them to the proper internal connector, i.e. if a power cord is connected, the system will connect to the power and the system will start charging. Embedded controllers have been around for a very long time; in fact, embedded controllers have been around since the first computers were made! So why haven’t embedded controllers been replaced by more advanced technologies over the years? Turns out no one has created an alternative to embedded controllers so they are still used to this day. In fact, more and more features have been developed that make use of the embedded controller! With advanced features being constantly added to ECs, EC development can become complicated at times; however, AMI makes it easy with its top-notch service, making high-quality Embedded Controller solutions!
For more information about AMI Embedded Controllers, visit Power Up page or download the AMI Embedded Controller Data Sheet.
Thunderbolt is a trademark of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. DisplayPort is a trademark of VESA in the U.S. and other countries. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are property of their respective owners.