The hyperspace cannon was an early device used to achieve hyperspace travels.
Prior to the invention of the hyperdrive, the hyperspace cannons were used by the first Core Worlds colonists to launch their starships into hyperspace. Once they had achieved lightspeed in this way, a vessel could then induce a drag element to slow back down and return to realspace.
Over the course of many centuries, a network of hyperspace cannons were developed, linking the newly-colonized Core Worlds with the Duros civilization.