Secretly Packed Communication via Cardboard Holocron.

The Cardboard Holocron is a realization of the Star Wars information-storage device through the commonly-used medium of cardboard. As a concept, the holocron is a secret object belonging to the spiritual characters of Star Wars known as the Jedis (or their evil counterparts- the Sith) containing ancient lessons or valuable information in holographic form. Since it relayed vital, sensitive knowledge pertaining to the “Force” (a mystical energy field that connected all living things in the Star Wars galaxy), it was essential for it to be hidden away in locations known only to those who belonged to its respective group. The holocrons were thus equipped with a security mechanism that granted access only to those who were strong with the Force. Such a concept can be seen in the real world through encryption devices which encode information that is typically of high importance to be kept confidential. Many such encryption devices were used throughout history in their rudimentary form consisting of cipher wheels. A cipher wheel converts normal text into something known as ciphertext, which can only be reverted back to the normal text if one has knowledge of the algorithm used to make the cipher wheel. Thus, confidential information was encoded using cipher wheels and the encryption key was only shared with those authorized to receive the information. 

In order to do justice to the realization of this concept of encryption through looking at the real-world example of the cipher wheel whilst drawing inspiration from the Star Wars holocrons, the material used to make it would need to be able to link to the concept. Cardboard filled the requirement of such a material, due to its extensive use in packaging. A common theme in cardboard packaging is how deceiving it can be. Due to its plain exterior giving away no extra information about what is contained within, it is a perfect example of an encryption device housing vital information that is shared with none other than those authorized to access it- mentioned through the labels of delivery on packaged goods. My project makes use of the disk structure of the cipher wheels as well as the solid structure of the holocron, through the implementation of concentric cylinders. The rims of the cylinders would be used as the actual cipher wheels, with the Star Wars Aurebesh alphabets encoding the password. In order to implement the locking mechanism, each cylinder contains an obstruction with a narrow opening that aligns with the position of the correct character on the corresponding cipher wheel. Once all four cylinders are aligned correctly, the hidden message will be accessible by passing through the openings in each obstruction. 

Encryption devices have been used throughout history to secure confidential information, and the concept of holocrons has been rife within the Star Wars universe. The connection between them was waiting to be made through the medium of cardboard, and my project finally accomplishes this. Further developments could be made to the locking mechanism to give it a better feel of coming into place once all the cipher wheels are correctly aligned. Another potential development could be the integration of the hidden message along with an incomplete map where the hidden message fills the empty space. This is also a major storyline from one of the Star Wars canon movies, and hence a very clear relation can be observed. This project integrated the nature of the material used into the ideation process. The conceptual linkage between the object and the material used to realize it is an interesting future for Star Wars architecture.