VisionChess

1. 1. Stabilize your phone — Mount or prop it at least 45 cm above the board. A tripod, books, or a phone stand all work. Stable + high = accurate detection.
   
   Too low — the phone is barely above the board.
2. 2. Frame the whole board — Make sure the entire 8×8 grid is visible in the camera view. Don't cut off the back rank or sides.
   

   Zoomed in too far — sides of the board are cut off.

   

   Pieces in the back rank will be cut off.
3. 3. Zoom in as much as possible — Use the +/− zoom buttons until the board nearly fills the frame, but the whole board is still inside. Bigger pieces = better accuracy. Aim for the Fill indicator to be green (>40%).
   
   Not zoomed in enough — Fill is well below 40%.
4. 4. Press Scan — Use it with an empty board or with pieces in starting position. If the board isn't empty, make sure all 4 rooks are in their corners — the scan relies on them to lock onto the board. Wait until the green coordinate overlay appears on every square. If any square looks misaligned, re-position the phone and Scan again.
   
   Overlay is misaligned — the squares don't sit on the board. Re-position and Scan again.
5. 5. Set the clock and start — Before tapping Start, make sure every piece is in its correct starting position. Then tap Start, choose your time control, and play — the app records every move automatically.

• Tilt (📐 + degrees) — How tilted your phone is relative to the board. Aim for 60° or higher for best accuracy. Green ≥ 55° (good top-down angle). Yellow 50–54° (borderline — may miss back pieces). Red < 50° (too shallow, prop the phone higher).
• Fill (▢ + percent) — How much of the camera frame the board occupies. Higher fill = bigger pieces in the image = better detection. Use zoom (the +/− buttons on screen) to increase fill. Aim for the highest Fill value you can while still keeping the whole board visible — that's the sweet spot. Green > 40% (good size). Yellow ≤ 40% (zoom in, or move closer).

Board orientation

By default, VisionChess assumes the A1 square is in the bottom-right corner of your camera view — i.e. the phone is sitting on the side of the board next to White's queenside / Black's kingside. If you place the phone elsewhere, change the corner from Settings → Camera Perspective. Two options are supported: A1 (A-side) and H8 (H-side) in the bottom-right.

Bottom menu buttons

• Scan — Detects the board automatically. Use it once at the start, with an empty board or pieces in their starting position. The app maps the 64 squares onto the camera view so it knows what's where.
• Start — Begins the game: starts both clocks and starts recording moves in standard chess notation. Tap again to stop.
• Board — Switch to a different chess set model (e.g. Pokemon, Drago, H.C. Andersen). Models can be downloaded on demand.
• Correct — Lets you fix anything the AI got wrong on a square. Your corrections help the model improve for everyone.
• Moves — Shows the move list in chess notation, ready to copy or share as PGN to chess.com / lichess.

Status indicators (top bar)

• Help (?) — Toggle help mode. Tap any button to see a short explanation instead of triggering its action.
• Settings (⚙) — Opens the settings page (explained below).
• Board OK / Scanning / Failed — The current detection state. Green when the board is locked in, amber while scanning, red if detection failed.

Audio

• Audio Setup — Assign custom sounds to each piece type. You can record your own voice ("pika pika!"), upload effects, or pick from defaults. Great fun for teaching kids.
• Turn Announcement — Speaks "White's turn" or "Black's turn" out loud after each move. Useful when you're not staring at the clock. On by default — turn it off in Settings if you find it distracting.
• Piece Move Audio — Plays a sound whenever a piece moves. Combine with Audio Setup to use your own custom sounds per piece.
• Clock Warning Audio — Plays a warning tone when a clock runs low on time. Helps you speed up without staring at the clock.

Gameplay

• Camera Perspective — Which corner sits at the bottom-right of your camera view. Pick this based on where you placed the phone: A-side or H-side. Most players put the phone on the side and use the default A-side.

Advanced

• Manual Board Detection — Adds a Manual button that lets you tap each of the four board corners (A1, H1, A8, H8) when automatic detection fails.