Physical Computing: Fantasy Device - "Anywhere Box"

The internet has largely transformed data usage and consumption into a location-free activity.  Videos can be streamed, documents can be shared, music downloaded, and conversations had across oceans.  What the "Anywhere Box" attempts to do is take this principle and apply it to physical objects.  By providing the user with a physical interface to a remote box, the anywhere box turns the location of an object into an irrelevant issue, much like email servers or web space do with digital data today.

This, of course, first begs the question of what one might keep in the Anywhere Box.  Perhaps the most obvious answer is those things that people always want to have access to, but are continuously misplacing:  keys, wallets, cell phones, and the like.  However, even more interesting is the possibility of having access to more valuable possessions at a moments notice:  family jewelry, birth certificates, large amounts of cash, etc.

The box consists of two pieces:  the end user "frame", and the box's "home" location.  Much like a safety deposit box, the home location is highly secured to allow for complete ease of mind.  However, it is even far more important to note that the location of the home box is irrelevant, since it can be accessed by the user at any time via their frame.  This means that the box storage facilities could be underground, in space, or any other location that might prove convenient.

The user's frame takes on a guise similar to that of the tablet PC:  it a flat computer-based interface consisting of a screen and a small number of buttons for security and power purposes.  Once the user powers on the frame and completes security scanning (see below), the frame "activates" and provides access to the user's Anywhere Box.

The box itself would be rather modest in size, to allow for easy access from the frame.  It would share the two dimensional sizing of the frame, and a depth of no more than one foot.  This would allow all the contents to be easily accessible, and all visible at one time through the frame.  The box would be equipped with a sister frame (not visible to the user) that would allow the frame to make the connection and provide access to the box.

Security is the primary concern of such a device, and as such would provide a wide range of contingencies to verify the user's identity as follows:

• The frame would feature a voice, retinal and fingerprint scanner, all of which would be required in unison to access the box. This would allow for complete biometric identification, and moreover almost infallible security.
• Once these three tests had been passed, the frame would optionally require a numeric code, for users that wanted an extra layer of security.
• The frame would be irreversibly paired with the home box.  If the frame is destroyed, there would be no other way to connect to the box, aside from physically being in its presence.  In this case the user would have to contact the manufacturer to get access to a new box and frame.  This would ensure against any sort of outside hacking or network based breaches, as the hardware would be linked outside of network protocols.

 The Anywhere Box provides a number of challenges, not the least of which are physics and reality.  It would require something in the nature of a teleporter or a worm hole.  Not only that, but once the connection was established, there's still the issue of the physical relationship between the inside of the box and the outside world.  If one turns box upside down, do its contents spill out?  If it's filled with water, can it spill?  These questions illustrate the unreality of the Anywhere Box.

However, the Anywhere Box also investigates the nature of data in the 21st century through a different lens.  Can we shift our data paradigm to apply to all objects?  If an object is accessible everywhere does it become more or less valuable?  If you had access to your most important objects at all times, how would your life change?  Would an always-secure personal safety deposit box obviate the need for banks?  The Anywhere Box brings about all these questions, and illustrates the remaining necessity of physical objects in a digital age.