Droid "Numbers"

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2005-04-03 04:59am

Ok, I'm sure this has been brought a thousand and one times in the board, but I browse it regularly and don't remember seeing anything like it in the past, oh, 3 years or so.

With names like R2-D2, R4-P17 and C3-P0, I think it's safe to assume that some part of the "name" of the robot is the model, and the rest probably some sequential letter+number thing that describes the individual unit.

In the case of Astromech Droids, we know there are different series of the "R" units, where R2 is pretty much the most reliable one (not necessarily the newest one), and each model shares something in common with the others, but something that makes them more "unique" (like a transparent head but identical otherwise, etc).

Usually ALL droids have the second part, only a letter and one digit. In the case of R4, we see it can have 2 digits, but this is a galaxy of millions. How many robots in the R2 series can you describe with one letter + 2 digits? 27-ish letters in the alphabet, times 100, that's 2700 droids. Must I believe only 2700 astromech droids of the model R2 were made? Or that we're always so lucky that we find the ones that have one or two digits, and there are others with more digits (the odds aren't very high, in fact they increase an order of magnitude AGAINST this by each digit we add). Or is it that they simply reuse the designations, or they have no meaning to anyone except the owner? (implying, that as many owners as they want can name their own R2 "-D2" like I can call my dog "Fido").

What am I missing?

Alexus · Post by **Alexus** » 2005-04-03 05:05am

R2's full designation is a LOT longer. R2-D2 is a sort of 'nickname' Or would you rather have to call YOUR droid "C-3P0174936659483-3883-378446647444-wouldyoutakeamomenttoregisterme?"

Lord Sander · Post by **Lord Sander** » 2005-04-03 03:58pm

The EU screwed the naming conventions up a bit, especially in light of the prequels. Now we have an official 3PO unit called TC-14, and a 3PO cobbled together by a slave boy called C-3PO, which according to the novelization was originally C-PO before he added the 3 to signify it as the third member of his family

And don't even get me started on the R2's...

The one thing I did like in the EU on droid naming was in Cynabar's Fantastic Technology: Droids, which says: "There is no limit to the number of digits in a droid's designation; there could well be a 3PO unit with a designation of Q32H-3PO-9ST somewhere in the galaxy."
So therein lies a possible answer.

Lord Revan · Post by **Lord Revan** » 2005-04-03 04:19pm

I agree that the "names" of droid are probaly shortened versions of true ID number which could things like where the droid was made and so forth.

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2005-04-03 04:23pm

Yeah, that makes sense.

Anyway, I suppose R2D2 could run into another brother with the exact same nickname then

Lord Revan · Post by **Lord Revan** » 2005-04-03 04:27pm

Slartibartfast wrote:Yeah, that makes sense.

Anyway, I suppose R2D2 could run into another brother with the exact same nickname then

it's possible but probaly ain't gonna happen any time soon.

Crazedwraith · Post by **Crazedwraith** » 2005-04-03 04:38pm

For aro units it simple you have more than one number after second letter.

Kell Tainer's R2 unit "Thirteen" was R2 D609

The Original Nex · Post by **The Original Nex** » 2005-04-03 04:54pm

The EU screwed the naming conventions up a bit, especially in light of the prequels. Now we have an official 3PO unit called TC-14, and a 3PO cobbled together by a slave boy called C-3PO, which according to the novelization was originally C-PO before he added the 3 to signify it as the third member of his family

EU fixed this itself, as you mentioned, the "TC"was simply a sequence embedded in the cerial unique to a specific production line of 3-P0 units, which Cybot Galctica used as a marketing device. They're still 3-P0s, they just use a different part of their Serial as their "name."

"C-3P0" is not factory built, so little Anakin could name it whatever he wanted, he ended up going with the "3P0" designation as a part of his Serial, even though he was not built by Cybot Galactica.

Praxis · Post by **Praxis** » 2005-04-03 06:01pm

Yeah, R2 is the model number (he's an R2 droid), but I highly doubt D2 is a full registration number.

There are 27 letters and 10 numbers, so D2 only leaves a mere 270 combinations. I HIGHLY doubt there are only 270 R2 droids in the galaxy...

Praxis · Post by **Praxis** » 2005-04-03 06:02pm

Lord Revan wrote:
Slartibartfast wrote:Yeah, that makes sense.

Anyway, I suppose R2D2 could run into another brother with the exact same nickname then
it's possible but probaly ain't gonna happen any time soon.

Actually it could be much more possible than you think. Some nutty people name their children after famous people, so why not people naming their droids after famous droids?

Lord Revan · Post by **Lord Revan** » 2005-04-03 06:07pm

Praxis wrote:Actually it could be much more possible than you think. Some nutty people name their children after famous people, so why not people naming their droids after famous droids?

possibly, but this what I think Full ID "number" might be Model-Manufacture Company-manufacture factory and planet-assembly line-batch-sub group-personal ID.

Cykeisme · Post by **Cykeisme** » 2005-04-04 11:15pm

Praxis wrote:
Lord Revan wrote:
Slartibartfast wrote:Yeah, that makes sense.

Anyway, I suppose R2D2 could run into another brother with the exact same nickname then
it's possible but probaly ain't gonna happen any time soon.
Actually it could be much more possible than you think. Some nutty people name their children after famous people, so why not people naming their droids after famous droids?

R2-D2 doesn't make fan appearances to screaming throngs of his droid-fans

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2005-04-05 02:57am

Lord Revan wrote:
Praxis wrote:Actually it could be much more possible than you think. Some nutty people name their children after famous people, so why not people naming their droids after famous droids?
possibly, but this what I think Full ID "number" might be Model-Manufacture Company-manufacture factory and planet-assembly line-batch-sub group-personal ID.

It could still start with D2.

Lord Revan · Post by **Lord Revan** » 2005-04-05 09:54am

Slartibartfast wrote:
Lord Revan wrote:
Praxis wrote:Actually it could be much more possible than you think. Some nutty people name their children after famous people, so why not people naming their droids after famous droids?
possibly, but this what I think Full ID "number" might be Model-Manufacture Company-manufacture factory and planet-assembly line-batch-sub group-personal ID.
It could still start with D2.

in this it would start with R2, I was that D2 would the personal ID number, so full registery some thing like R2-W3827-D3ND30DM-32943-35335-132SFN-D2, R2-D2 seems better for every day use.

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2005-04-05 10:00am

IIRC, for the record TC-14's model was a Trade Federation knockoff of Cybot Galactica's 3PO model...

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2005-04-05 04:12pm

Lord Revan wrote:
Slartibartfast wrote:
Lord Revan wrote:possibly, but this what I think Full ID "number" might be Model-Manufacture Company-manufacture factory and planet-assembly line-batch-sub group-personal ID.
It could still start with D2.
in this it would start with R2, I was that D2 would the personal ID number, so full registery some thing like R2-W3827-D3ND30DM-32943-35335-132SFN-D2, R2-D2 seems better for every day use.

You can add all the gazillion quintillion billion digits you want, the chance of any given digit to be "2" is still 1 in 10.

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2005-04-05 04:14pm

Um, how about the "name" and "serial number" being seperate?