# Privacy Policy – Flight Plate Control
**Effective date:** October 20th 2026
This privacy policy describes how the Android app **Flight Plate Control** (package `rss.timo.flightcontrolapp`, "the app") handles information. The app is published by **Timo Rantalainen / Rantalainen Sports Science Consulting** ("we", "us").
Flight Plate Control is the companion app for **Flight Plate Monitor**. It runs on a second phone and connects to the phone running Flight Plate Monitor ("the camera phone") to show its camera view and to calibrate its camera.
## Summary
- The app does **not** collect, upload or sell any personal data.
- We do **not** run servers that receive data from the app. The app contains no analytics, advertising, tracking or crash-reporting services.
- The app only exchanges data with **your own camera phone**, over a USB cable or your local Wi-Fi network. Calibration images, calibration results and recordings are stored **on your device**.
## Information the app uses and why
### Video from the camera phone
The app does not use its own phone's camera. It receives the live video from the camera phone and shows it on screen, so that you can check the framing and calibrate the camera. The camera phone points upward during use, so the video may show you, other people, or the ceiling, sky and surroundings that happen to be in view.
- During camera calibration, the app analyses the video on the device to find the printed pattern. When a target position is accepted, that single video frame is saved as an image in the app's own storage, and the calibration is computed from these images.
- The resulting camera calibration is sent back to the camera phone.
- If you press **Start Recording**, the video is saved as a video file on your device (see the table below) until you press **Stop Recording**.
### Information received from the camera phone
Together with the video, the camera phone sends camera settings (such as exposure and frame timing), the direction of gravity measured by its accelerometer, and its phone model name. The app uses these for the calibration and stores them with calibration results and recordings. The camera phone's model name is part of the name of the saved calibration file so that each calibration can be matched to the right device.
### Local network (Wi-Fi)
The app can connect to the camera phone over a local Wi-Fi network. To make this possible:
- The app searches the local network for the camera phone, which announces itself with the service name "FlightPlate" followed by its model name.
- The app also announces a service named "Camera Advertisement" on the local network. Other devices on the same local network can see this name. It contains no personal information.
- The video, camera control commands and calibration data are sent directly between the two phones over the local network. They do not pass through the internet or through any server operated by us.
- The local link is **not encrypted**. We recommend using it only on a Wi-Fi network you trust, such as your own home network or a phone hotspot.
The app's "Internet" permission is required by Android for any network connection, including this local one. The app does not contact any internet service. The Info page has links to the calibration video on YouTube, our web site and the pattern PDF. These open in your browser or the YouTube app only when you tap them, and those services handle your visit under their own privacy policies.
### USB
The app can connect to the camera phone with a USB cable. Android asks for your permission before the app can use a connected USB device. Data sent over the cable is exchanged only between the two phones.
### Foreground service
The app uses a foreground service so that the connection to the camera phone keeps working. Android shows a notification while this service is running.
## Data stored on your device
| Data | Location | How to remove it |
|---|---|---|
| Calibration images (`pose_XX.png`) and calibration session files (`.json`) | App-specific storage | Clear the app's storage (Settings → Apps → Flight Plate Control → Storage) or uninstall the app |
| Camera calibration results (`CameraCalibration_<model>_<time>.json`) | The phone's shared **Documents** folder | Delete them with a file manager. These files remain after you uninstall the app |
| Recorded videos (`FlightControl_….mp4`) | The phone's shared **Movies** folder | Delete them with a file manager or gallery app. These files remain after you uninstall the app |
| Recording details (`FlightControl_….json`: camera settings, gravity direction, frame timing) | The phone's shared **Documents** folder | Delete them with a file manager. These files remain after you uninstall the app |
## Backups
If Android backup is turned on for your Google account, Android's system backup may include the app's stored files, such as calibration images and calibration files. Google handles these backups under your Google account settings and Google's privacy policy. We do not have access to them. You can turn backup off in your phone's settings.
## Sharing of information
We do not share any information with third parties, because the app does not send any information to us or to anyone else. Data leaves your device only when:
- the app is connected to your camera phone over USB or your local network, or
- you yourself copy, share or export files from your device.
## Children
The app is not directed at children under 13, and it does not knowingly collect any personal information from anyone, including children.
## Security
All data stays on your devices and your local network. Android's app sandbox protects the app's storage. Because the local Wi-Fi link is unencrypted, use it only on networks you trust.
## Your rights
We do not hold any personal data about you, so there is nothing for us to access, correct or delete. You control all data the app creates, and you can delete it at any time as described above. If you are in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom or another region with data protection laws, you keep all rights those laws give you. Contact us with any questions.
## Changes to this policy
We may update this policy if the app's features change. Any update will be posted on this page with a new effective date.
## Contact
Timo Rantalainen, Rantalainen Sports Science Consulting
Email: tjrantal at gmail dot com