Advanced RISC Machine (ARM)

Last Updated: August 2, 2019

Definition - What does Advanced RISC Machine (ARM) mean?

Advanced RISC Machine (ARM) is a processor architecture based on a 32-bit reduced instruction set (RISC) computer. Licensed worldwide, the ARM architecture is the most commonly implemented 32-bit instruction set architecture. ARM architecture is implemented on Windows, Unix, and Unix-like operating systems, including Apple iOS, Android, BSD, Inferno, Solaris, WebOS, Plan 9 and GNU/Linux.

Advanced RISC Machine was originally known as Acorn RISC Machine.

Techopedia explains Advanced RISC Machine (ARM)

Acorn Computer Group developed the first RISC processor in 1985, which was followed by its release of the first budget-friendly PC processor. In 1990, ARM was released. It was the result of a collaborative effort between Acorn and Apple Computer to establish a new microprocessor standard.

ARM features include:

Load/store-based architecture
Single-cycle instruction execution
Consistent 16x32 bit register file
Link register
Easy decoding and pipelining
Power-indexed addressing modes
Fixed 32-bit instruction set

Popular ARM-based processors include ARM7, ARM9, ARM11 and cortex. ARM Holdings Group licenses processor architecture on behalf of parent company ARM Holdings PLC. ARM provides compiler, debugger and software development kit tools, along with a complete hardware description of the ARM core, to interested parties.