"The Propeller P8X32A is a multicore microcontroller that excels at parallel processing. It contains eight processors, or cores, (called cogs) which can operate simultaneously at your will. Using the Propeller is like employing a team of up to eight workers for a project; the team members can work in parallel on given tasks and coordinate as needed to achieve a common goal. Being truly flexible and efficient, they can share, shuffle, and dedicate to duties, quietly wait for events, start and stop, and direct each other as needed.
Cogs have exclusive access to their own internal memory and unimpeded access to the System Clock and all 32 I/O pins. Each cog tracks I/O pin states with its own input register and influences pin outputs using its own output and direction registers; the collective of cogs determines an I/O pin's ultimate direction and state.
Cogs share access to main memory in a round-robin fashion through a central hub. Among other things, main memory is used in this fashion for coordination between cogs.
In addition, each cog contains hardware to assist with certain high-speed, repetitive tasks such as signal detection and video generation.
See the P8X32A Block Diagram for a functional view of the Propeller.
Many years of thought and effort went into designing the Propeller to solve the problems plaguing modern embedded system designers. Every aspect of the Propeller was meticulously crafted using elemental concepts and building blocks. Read Why the Propeller Works by designer and Parallax company President, Chip Gracey, for some insight on the thought process and design quality of the Propeller."
Last modified 28 April 2025