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Controller Screen Capture lets AlphaRelay run beside the native flight app on Android drone controllers. The controller’s native flight app remains responsible for aircraft operation; AlphaRelay captures the controller screen, streams it into the mission, records mission footage, and logs events. This is the recommended capture path. On integrated Android drone controllers it turns on automatically after Start Mission. On a detected DJI SDK-controller setup, choose Controller Screen Capture — Recommended instead of Pilot mode when the native flight app should stay in control.
Using a DJI Avata with compatible DJI Goggles and a separate Android phone or tablet? Follow the dedicated DJI Avata with DJI Goggles workflow instead.

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Where it is available

Controller Screen Capture is available on Android-based drone controllers that can install AlphaRelay Copilot and grant Android screen capture permission. It is not limited to one controller manufacturer. AlphaRelay detects known drone-controller identity strings, including DJI RC / RC Pro / RC Plus / RM / Matrice controller families, Autel smart controllers, Herelink / CubePilot controllers, and Inspired Flight GS-ONE controllers. Generic Android phones, tablets, and rugged tablets use the normal pilot workflow unless they are connected to compatible DJI Goggles or Goggles Mode is enabled manually. When the Android pilot device is connected to a detected DJI SDK remote controller, the mission screen also offers Pilot mode. AlphaRelay does not select it automatically: the operator must confirm a listed DJI MSDK 5.17 aircraft, and AlphaRelay must verify a live flight-controller connection before Start Mission unlocks. See Start a mission for the current 12-aircraft catalog and verification steps.

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Install on a controller

You do not need to enable Android Developer mode to install AlphaRelay.
  1. Connect the controller to internet.
  2. Open the controller web browser.
  3. Download AlphaRelay Copilot from the dashboard app download link. If needed, open alpha-relay.com/download.html directly.
  4. When Android asks about installing unknown apps, allow the browser or file manager to install unknown apps from that source.
  5. Install and open AlphaRelay Copilot.
  6. Grant requested permissions.
  7. Activate the app with the short controller pairing code generated by an admin, or use another device license method from Devices and Licenses.

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What changes

  • The controller’s native flight app remains responsible for flight, camera, and safety controls.
  • AlphaRelay disables direct aircraft commands in Copilot.
  • The live source becomes the controller screen instead of an in-app aircraft camera preview.
  • Takeoff, Land, camera controls, and other aircraft commands in AlphaRelay are blocked.
  • AlphaRelay records one continuous controller-screen MP4 for the mission and queues it after closeout.
  • Voice relay can still create timeline events when microphone permission is granted.
  • Device Live AI uses licensed cloud analysis when internet is healthy and automatically falls back to on-device people and possible-weapon detection when it is not.

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Start a mission

  1. Open AlphaRelay on the supported controller.
  2. Tap Choose Scenario.
  3. Select the operator when an agency roster is available, choose a scenario template, enter the mission name, and optionally add mission-specific AI targets.
  4. If AlphaRelay shows capture-mode choices, keep Controller Screen Capture — Recommended selected.
  5. Tap Start Mission.
  6. Approve the Android screen capture prompt.
  7. Wait for AlphaRelay to move itself to the background.
  8. Open or return to the controller’s native flight app and fly from there.
If the controller has validated internet, AlphaRelay starts Live stream (WebRTC) automatically before it requests screen capture. If the controller is offline, capture still starts and remote live is skipped; sync and footage upload wait for connectivity. AlphaRelay starts a foreground capture service before it leaves the screen. The controller-screen recording begins after AlphaRelay is no longer the foreground app, so return to the native flight app before takeoff or before the operational portion you want to capture. Use the controller’s native flight app for flight operation. Use AlphaRelay for mission start, event logging, relay / remote live setup, and mission closeout.

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What to expect on the controller

  • Android shows a persistent Controller Screen Capture notification while screen capture is running.
  • The notification status may say Starting controller screen capture, Waiting for AlphaRelay to close, Recording controller screen, or the current mission-capture state.
  • AlphaRelay captures whatever is visible on the controller screen. If you open Android settings, the notification shade, or AlphaRelay itself, that screen is part of the recording until you return to the native flight app.
  • If the controller shows a screen-recording or screen-casting indicator, leave it enabled for the mission. Turning it off stops screen capture.

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During the mission

  • Live stream (WebRTC) publishes the controller screen to remote Overwatch users when the pilot device has internet.
  • Say relay followed by event details to create a voice relay event. AlphaRelay saves a current controller-screen screenshot with the event when available.
  • Return to Copilot for the dedicated active-mission dashboard. It shows capture, live-stream, Device Live AI, Overwatch AI, alert-banner, queued-event, queued-footage, and mission-time status, plus quick events, manual screenshot-backed events, Sync now, and Stop and complete mission.
  • Use Update AI targets to change mission-only visible targets without restarting. Offline edits remain queued until sync succeeds.
  • Device Live AI uses cloud analysis when available. The on-device fallback and direct Android alerts continue without internet; timeline sync and cloud follow-up wait for connectivity.
  • If you need AlphaRelay controls during the mission, return to AlphaRelay from recent apps or the notification, make the update, then return to the native flight app. The recording follows the visible screen.

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Stop and upload

After the flight, close the mission from AlphaRelay or from the notification:
  1. Land and finish any required work in the native flight app.
  2. Pull down the Android notification shade.
  3. Find the Controller Screen Capture notification.
  4. Tap Stop Mission.
  5. Let AlphaRelay reopen and finish mission closeout.
The notification action uses the same closeout path as the in-app Stop and complete mission button. AlphaRelay finalizes the mission-long controller-screen recording, queues it for upload, closes the mission record, and removes the foreground capture notification when capture has stopped. If you are already in AlphaRelay, tap Stop Mission there instead. Do not force-close AlphaRelay or stop Android screen capture as the normal closeout method. Queued recordings are stored durably and resume uploading automatically when validated internet returns, including after the app process restarts. Keep the controller powered on, and do not force-stop or uninstall AlphaRelay while uploads are pending.

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Limits

  • AlphaRelay does not fly the aircraft in Controller Screen Capture.
  • The captured footage is the controller screen, including native flight-app overlays, not a raw camera file.
  • Android screen capture permission is required every time capture starts.
  • If microphone permission or speech recognition is unavailable, voice relay is disabled but screen capture can still run.
  • Controller-screen overlays can affect Live AI. AlphaRelay instructs cloud analysis to ignore notification text and filters repeated detections, but every alert still requires human review.
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