Slave circuit
A slave circuit was a mechanism that enabled a vehicle's systems to be controlled remotely through a communications device. In technical vernacular, a vehicle fitted with a slave circuit was described as slave-rigged. If a vehicle was not slave-rigged, its owner could establish a temporary slave circuit with a computer and a little programming skill.
Uses
The most widespread application of slave circuitry involved an owner using a beckon call or another handheld communications device to activate their ship's systems well before boarding the vessel. This enabled the owner to use their time more efficiently.
When landing at a spaceport, a ship's pilot could transmit the vessel's slave circuit code, allowing the control tower to assist with the landing. Slave circuit codes could also enable multiple space vessels to make synchronized hyperspace jumps. Some businesses fitted every craft they owned with slave circuits in an effort to make company property more difficult to steal.
A beckon call's user could also use it to signal the craft to fly to their location. The slave circuit would receive the signal and instruct the ship's computer to travel to the beckon call's location. The computer would then start the ship's engines and bring the craft to the user. Some ships could also be programmed to fight their way to the user's location with a reasonable degree of skill.
Highly advanced slave-rigs were used in the Katana fleet project. These full-rig slave circuits automated 200 Dreadnaught-class heavy cruisers to a high degree, lowering the need for an organic complement by a factor of seven—the resulting crew requirements being 2,200 rather than upward of 16,000. Because the fleet's disappearance into Hyperspace caused colossal corporate embarrassment and economic loss, this form of heavy automation was largely abandoned out of fear that similar incidents would occur again.
Drawbacks
Although slave circuits offered considerable convenience, many owners were reluctant to install them aboard their ships. Frequently cited were fears that criminals might steal a ship simply by taking a beckon call or discovering its slave circuit code. More vehement detractors pointed to the infamous Katana fleet incident as an example of what could go wrong with slave-rigged ships.