NASA, however, is hoping to take the intelligence of those watches to the next level, and has started a contest for the best smartwatch app design for astronauts.
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So an easy job then for app developers and wearable design freelancers.
At present Nasa is using iPads and laptops to fulfil these tasks but those can probably be a bit cumbersome when you’re performing maintenance on the ISS solar array in the icy cold of space.
The competition was launched on Freelancer.com, a well-known websites where free lancers meet with contractors and negotiate the costs and terms of various projects. NASA’s guidelines also stipulate that designers should use Samsung’s Gear 2 smartwatch as a hardware reference for their creations. Now, with the age of the smartwatch upon us, astronauts may be strapping something new to their wrists.
For as long as there have been astronauts in space, there have been wristwatches accompanying them, with the most famous being the Omega Speedmaster worn by NASA’s astronauts. A NASA spokesperson told the New York Times that the space station is equipped with a ham radio, which is set to a public frequency.
The app, however, needs to include a series of features designed after NASA’s explicit instructions. At the time, Freelancer.com CEO Matt Barrie said the move “clearly shows that crowdsourcing solutions has become an essential part of creativity and innovation and that there is a strong demand to develop ingenious and world-leading solutions online”.
Stay tuned to GizBot for more updates!
Another requirement for app designers is asking to ensure they provide appropriate feedback for actions, direct attention to the appropriate info for a task and data be clear displayed on the smaller Samsung Gear screen.
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Having fresh fruits and vegetables would also be a very welcome and beneficial addition to astronauts living in space as they normally subsist on packaged food.
