LE manifest droid
- "I am Ellie. It is my function here to note all inventories, issue clearances, and keep all records."
- ―LE-series unit LE-914
The LE manifest droid was a third-degree shipping management droid produced by Cybot Galactica.
History
It was manufactured almost three centuries prior to the establishment of the New Republic.[1]
The LE series was designed as a protocol droid variant catering for starship captains and spaceport operators. LE units were programmed with knowledge of import-export restrictions of the galaxy's major trade regions and the codes of conduct of the Bureau of Ships and Services.[1]
This meant manifest droids were able to carry out tedious tasks such as inventorying cargo to triplicating datawork, thus freeing up their sentient colleagues for other duties.[1]
Despite this, the LE-series was not without its faults. Its scrupulous honesty did little to endear the droid to portworkers in areas such as Bothan and Hutt Space, where bribes were commonplace.[1]
Such flexibility was not a facet of the LE's programming, and so the droid saw nothing wrong with reporting contraband stashed beneath their freighter's deck plating—thus leading many owners to decide that these droids were simply not worth the trouble.[1]
This was partly the reason why Cybot Galactica ultimately retired the line, though many LE-series droids continued to operate in smaller starports and aboard short-hop corporate freighters. Eventually, continued work in such areas led to many LE droids shedding their prudish artificial personalities, and learn to make compromises where necessary.[1]
Behind the scenes
Like the design of C-3PO and other protocol droids in the films, the LE-series droid borrows heavily from the design of the Maria robot from the silent film Metropolis.
Appearances
- Star Wars (1977) 80 (First appearance)
Sources
- The New Essential Guide to Droids (First identified as LE manifest droid)
Notes and references
External links
"Endnotes for The New Essential Guide to Droids: PART 2 of 3" – Continuity, Criticisms, and Captain Panaka, Daniel Wallace's StarWars.com Blog (content now obsolete; archived from the original) 
I'd Just as Soon Kiss a Wookiee: Star Wars Romances on StarWars.com (backup link not verified!)- Repurposed Star Wars Technology - Back from the Drawing Board, Part 2 on StarWars.com (backup link not verified!)