マイコン

まいこん
noun
microcontroller; microcomputer
technicalelectronicstechnology
1. microcontroller; microcomputer
The small computer built into an appliance or a piece of equipment to control it. In consumer advertising it is a selling point meaning the device adjusts itself automatically rather than running a fixed timer.
マイコン制御(せいぎょ)の炊飯器(すいはんき)だ。
It is a microcontroller-controlled rice cooker.
マイコンが温度(おんど)を自動(じどう)で調節(ちょうせつ)する。
The microcontroller adjusts the temperature automatically.
最近(さいきん)の家電(かでん)はほとんどマイコンで動(うご)いていて、故障(こしょう)すると自分(じぶん)では直(なお)せない。
Most recent home appliances run on microcontrollers, so when they break you cannot fix them yourself.

A Japanese-made abbreviation of "microcomputer" or "microcontroller". In the 1980s it also meant a home computer, but that sense is dated; today it nearly always means the control chip inside an appliance.

Common collocations

Similar words

  • パソコン: personal computer — a general-purpose computer you sit at, not an embedded chip

Related Words

Compare: パソコン (personal computer)
general
Added 2026.8.9 12:19 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
30500/30520_maikon