I’m no expert so asking with curiosity, but wouldn’t even simple things like your coffee machine changing lights when the coffee is ready require (a very simple) one?
Not necessarily. You could have a sensor that detects when the water reservoir is emptied that doesn’t need logic - e.g.
a floater with a magnet. If it reaches the bottom, a magnet sensor detects that the water now emptied (or in the coffee pot) or
a temperature dependent resistor. If there’s no more water, the temperature in the heater rises and the voltage rises on a wire. If the voltage (=temperature) is above a certain level you get a signal
You can then use those signals to do something like switch off the heater, change a light,… all without using a microcontroller. There’s no programming needed for that. You might see things like transistors and some basic digital circuitry here but it’s all very basic and still far from a microcontroller.
I’m no expert so asking with curiosity, but wouldn’t even simple things like your coffee machine changing lights when the coffee is ready require (a very simple) one?
Not necessarily. You could have a sensor that detects when the water reservoir is emptied that doesn’t need logic - e.g.
You can then use those signals to do something like switch off the heater, change a light,… all without using a microcontroller. There’s no programming needed for that. You might see things like transistors and some basic digital circuitry here but it’s all very basic and still far from a microcontroller.