The Candle Patterns indicator provides a visual display of candlestick patterns. There are more than 100 patterns that can be displayed. The indicator allows for candles on the chart to be grouped and considered as one candle. This allows the price action within a candle to be observed in the context of a candlestick pattern. The number of bars per candle can be set in the parameters.

All patterns can be filtered so that only patterns with certain attributes are displayed. The prior trend is taken into account when identifying candlestick patterns. This is useful because the context is very important when considering the meaning of certain patterns. There are many other features and many of the features can be controlled in the parameters.

A control panel can be shown on the chart that allows users to control the display of identified patterns. Users can turn on/off the desired patterns. All control panel parameters can be set by the users.

PARAMETERS

The Candle Patterns indicator has many configurable parameters. This allows for all aspects of the indicator to be changed for the user’s preferences. By default, the indicator is designed to work without any configuration required. The parameters are divided into the following categories:

• Yancy Indicator Parameters
• Candlestick Basic Parameters
• Candlestick Pip Parameters
• Candlestick Ratio Parameters
• Candle Filter Parameters
• Display Parameters
• Location Parameters
• Font Parameters
• Color Parameters
• Sizing Parameters
• Message Parameters
• Quite Time Parameters
• Message Info Parameters
• Debug Parameters

Yancy Indicator Parameters

These parameters control the overall functionality of the indicator. More specifically, it controls how the Candle Patterns indicator is used within the trading terminal. The parameters in this section are:

IndicatorName – Default: YFX Candle Patterns

This is the indicator name that is displayed in the chart data window. Changing this value does not impact the indicator’s calculations.

IndicatorOffset – Default: 0

The indicator calculations are made on the current data bar by default. This value can change the default and force calculations to be made based on previous bars. It is recommend to leave this parameter set to the default value.

CalculationIntervalSeconds – Default: 60

Seconds between calculations. All Candle Pattern calculations are performed on a certain interval, as opposed to every tick. Care should be taken when changing this parameter. Small values may cause the trading terminal to slow down as calculations may cause a constant load. Generally, it is not necessary to perform calculations more than once per period.

Candlestick Basic Parameters

The Candlestick Basic parameters control how the Candle Patterns indicator is calculated and used.

UseCandles – Default: false

Other YFX indicators can use data in the Candle Patterns indicator. This functionality can be enabled by setting this parameter to ‘true’. By default, the integration is disabled.

MaxCandleAnalysisPeriods– Default: 100

Number of periods to go back in history when doing analysis. Different calculations require some amount of previous values. The number of previous values is set by this parameter.

QtyBarsPerCandle– Default: 1

Number of bars to consider as one candle. This allows price action within a candle to be seen more easily. Steve Nison described this method as blending candlesticks.

UseCandleLooseTrend– Default: false

Use a simple definition of trend when evaluation candle patterns. The strict definition of trend checks for a series of higher highs and higher lows to define an uptrend. Similarly a strict down trend is defined by lower highs and lower lows. The loose definition of trend only checks beginning and end values of a series. A loose up trend is defined if the last high is higher than the first higher and the last low is higher than the first low. A loose downtrend is defined similarly if the last high is lower than the first high and last low is lower than the first low.

Candlestick Pip Parameters

The Candlestick Pip parameters define some useful pip values used in candle calculations.

DojiMaxPips - Default: 20.0

A Doji occurs when the open and close are virtually equal, resulting in a body that is a flat line or is very short. Virtually equal is defined by a small difference of pips between the open and close. This parameter sets a margin that can be used as the maximum number of pips to be considered virtually equal.

CandleConsolidationPips - Default: 50.0

Consolidated values are values that are all within a specific range. This parameter defines that range, which is the number of pips to consider values to be consolidated.

CandleUnchangedPips - Default: 15.0

Calculations in the Candle library are not meant to be absolute. A margin of error is allowed when computing values. This parameter determines the number of pips allowed for that margin of error. If two values are within this margin of error then the values are considered unchanged.

Candlestick Ratio Parameters

The Candlestick Ratio parameters define some useful ratio values used in candle calculations.

CandleLongPercentage - Default: 50.0

The term "LONG" is used as a relative term in candlestick analysis. This parameter specifies the percentage above the average length that a specific candle's length needs to be considered long.

CandleShortPercentage - Default: 50.0

The term "SHORT" is used as a relative term in candlestick analysis. This parameter specifies the percentage above the average length that a specific candle's length needs to be considered short.

CandlePenetrationPercentage - Default: 40.0

Measure of penetration that a candle retraces into a previous candle. This value is used when considering how deep a candle penetrates on a retrace of a previous candle.

CandleLongWickBodyRatio - Default: 2.0

A ratio of lengths between a wick and the body of a candle to indicate the wick is long.

CandleShortWickBodyRatio - Default: 0.25

A ratio of lengths between a wick and the body of a candle to indicate the wick is short.

Candle Filter Parameters

The Candle Filter parameters control which candlestick patterns are calculated and searched. There are a large number of patterns that can be searched by this indicator. The filters help in refining the large number of patterns. Each filter on works on a specific attribute of a pattern. Other filters may include some patterns that are excluded by some filters. Filter values are all selected from drop-down list of predefined values, which are all self-explanatory.

FilterCandlePatternType - Default: CP_TYPE_ALL

Candle pattern type refers to the pattern category, which is the forecast market direction.

Filter candle analysis by specific candle types. The default value will not apply filter. This is the most popular filter where patterns can be filtered by bullish or bearish types. Patterns can also be filtered by whether the pattern is a continuation or reversal pattern.

FilterCandlePatternPeriods - Default: CP_PERIODS_ANY

Number of Periods (Days) for a Candle Pattern. In general, all candle patterns are less than 5 periods. If a candle pattern can have different number of periods, then the value can be 'multiple'. If the number of periods is unimportant, then the value can be none or unknown.

Filter candle analysis by number of bars in a candle pattern. The default value will not apply filter. Most patterns contain between one and five candles. There are some patterns that may contain more candles and these are grouped into a single category, which is called "Multiple".

FilterCandlePatternMajorStatus - Default: CP_MAJOR_ANY

Some candle patterns are considered major. These are the most significant patterns when found.

Filter candle analysis by major status ranking. The default value will not apply filter. Some patterns are considered major or they are used more by analysts than other patterns.

FilterCandlePatternPriorTrend - Default: CP_PT_ANY

Prior trend indicates the prior market trend to the pattern, whether going up (bullish) or down (bearish). The prior trend may be neutral or unknown if the prior trend is not important.

Filter candle analysis by prior trend to pattern. The default value will not apply filter. The prior trend to a pattern can be very important in the interpretation of that pattern.

FilterCandlePatternOccurrence - Default: CP_OCCUR_ANY

Some candle patterns are known to appear more than others. Note that this does not imply anything about the significance of the pattern.

Filter candle analysis by ranking of how often the pattern appears. The default value will not apply filter. The occurrence frequency is only an estimate and it has no scientific basis. Some candle patterns are known to be found more than others.

FilterCandlePatternReliability - Default: CP_R_ANY

Reliability refers to the confidence of the pattern predicting the direction of the market.

Filter candle analysis by reliability ranking of pattern. The default value will not apply filter. Some candle patterns are considered to provide more reliable signals than others. This does not guarantee that the signal is accurate. These reliability rankings are only estimates and are reasonable guesses based on historical information.

FilterCandlePatternColorImportance - Default: CP_COLOR_ANY

Some candle patterns are dependent on the specific colors of the candles.

Filter candle analysis by candle color importance ranking. The default value will not apply filter. The bullish or bearish status of candles within a pattern may not be important in some cases. This importance status can be filtered.

FilterCandlePatternConfirmation - Default: CP_CONFIRM_ANY

Some candle patterns may require a confirmation in price action after the pattern. This confirmation may be recommended but not required. The confirmation may be absolutely required.

Filter candle analysis by candle confirmation status. The default value will not apply filter.

Display Parameters

The display parameters control how candle patterns are displayed on the chart.

AlwaysDisplayCurrentPattern - Default: false

Always display the first candle pattern on the chart, regardless of whether it is a pre-defined candle pattern.

DisplayCandlesInBackground - Default: true

Candles may be displayed in the foreground or background of a chart. By default, they are shown in the background. If the bar per candle is set to one, then it would be better to display the candles in the foreground.

BlendPercentage - Default: 0.0

Amount of blend (transparency) to use for drawing candles when they are displayed in the foreground.

DisplayPanelHeader - Default: true

Display panel selector header if true.

DisplayPanelSymbol - Default: true

Display panel symbol information if true.

DisplayPanelPeriod - Default: true

Display panel timeframes if true.

DisplayPanelInformationLines - Default: true

Display the candle pattern information lines if true.

Location Parameters

The location parameters are used to manage how the candle pattern control panel is displayed on the chart.

PanelDisplayCorner - Default: CP_CORNER_TOP_LEFT

Choose which corner to place candle pattern control panel. The options are self-explanatory. Some locations may require the X and Y coordinates to be modified in order to see the actual panel on the chart.

StartCoordinateX - Default: 5

Starting X-coordinate for the candle pattern control panel. The value of this parameter is specified in pixels.

StartCoordinateY - Default: 75

Starting Y-coordinate for the candle pattern control panel. The value of this parameter is specified in pixels.

RowBufferHeight - Default: 2

Amount of space to place between rows of text on the candle pattern control panel. The value of this parameter is specified in pixels.

Font Parameters

The font parameters are used to manage the fonts used in the indicator.

DefaultFontName – Default: Verdana

Font used to display text for indicator. Can be any font available on your system.

DefaultFontSize – Default: 8

Size of font used to display the control panel information.

Color Parameters

Colors can be strongly preferred by users. The Candle Patterns indicator allows all colors to be changed according to each user’s preference. The specific colors do not change the underlying calculations of the indicator.

ColorDefaultFont - Default: clrSilver

Color of font drawn on screen.

ColorHeaderFont - Default: clrSteelBlue

Color of header font drawn on screen.

ColorLine - Default: clrSkyBlue

Color in which to draw patterns lines.

ColorBullCandle - Default: clrMidnightBlue

Color in which to draw bullish candles.

ColorBearCandle - Default: clrMaroon

Color in which to draw bearish candles.

ColorDoji - Default: clrYellow

Color in which to draw doji candles.

ColorDisabledObject - Default: clrDimGray

Color in which disabled objects will be drawn.

Sizing Parameters

The sizing parameters are used to manage the size of line used to draw candle on the chart.

WidthWickLine - Default: 2

Width of lines used to candle wicks.

WidthBodyLine - Default: 2

Width of lines used to candle body outlines.

Message Parameters

The message parameters determine how the indicator notifications are conveyed to the user. There are several options and the user can select which ones to use at any time. Multiple options can be enabled simultaneously.

DoShowComments - Default: false

Messages can be displayed in the comment section on the chart. By default, this option is disabled. Users can enable the option by setting parameter to ‘true’.

DoShowAlerts - Default: false

Messages can be displayed in the alert pop-up window on the terminal. By default, this option is disabled. Users can enable the option by setting parameter to ‘true’.

DoMailMessages - Default: false

Messages can be emailed to users if this option is enabled. By default, the option is disabled but can be enabled by setting the parameter to ‘true’. It is important that the user ensures that the mail options are configured and working in the trading terminal.

DoPushNotifications - Default: false

Messages can be pushed to a user’s mobile phone application. This option is disabled by default but can be enabled by setting the parameter to ‘true’. It is important that push notifications be configured correctly in the user’s trading terminal and mobile application.

DoPrintJournal - Default: false

Messages can also be written in the terminal’s journal. These messages are disabled by default but can be enabled by setting the parameter to ‘true’.

DoPrintFile - Default: false

Messages can be written to an external file on disk in the ‘Files’ folder. By default, this option is disabled by default but can be enabled by setting the parameter to ‘true’.

DefaultMessageFileName - Default: YFX_Messages.log

If the print to file option is enabled, then message notifications are written to a file with this name in the ‘Files’ folder.

DoSoundMessage - Default: false

Sounds can be played when a notification occurs. By default, this option is disabled but can be enabled by setting the parameter to ‘true’.

DefaultSoundFileName - Default: expert.wav

If the sound message option is enabled, then this sound file is played when notifications are generated.

Quiet Time Parameters

The quiet time parameters control when notification messages are conveyed to the user. Parameters in this section specify a time period when all notifications are disable. Settings in this section override the message parameters and alert parameters. No notification will be sent during quiet time.

DoQuietTime - Default: false

The quiet time process can itself be enabled or disable. It is disabled by default and that means that all alert message notifications will be sent when they are generated. Quiet time can be enabled by setting this parameter to ‘true’.

QuietTimeStart - Default: 01:00

If quiet time is enabled, then this parameter sets the start time of the period. No alert message notifications will be sent after this time. This parameter is only used if quiet time is enabled. It is ignored if quiet time is disabled.

QuietTimeEnd - Default: 07:00

If quiet time is disabled, then this parameter sets the end time of the period. No alert message notifications will be sent before this time. The parameter is only used if quiet time is enabled. It is ignored if quiet time is disabled.

Message Info Parameters

The message info parameters are used to configure if internal statistics are maintained by the indicator. The information is generally not needed by the user. Thus, it is recommended to leave the options disabled.

EnableInfo - Default: false

This parameter allow the statistics to be maintained by the indicator. It is disable by default but can be enabled by setting its value to ‘true’. If enabled, then statistical information will be maintained internally. That information would then be conveyed to user when the indicator starts and stops.

Debug Parameters

Sometimes it may be necessary to debug the indicator. Debugging can be configured with the parameters in this section. Debugging would cause a great number of messages to be generated if enabled. It is highly recommended to leave debug disabled.

EnableDebug - Default: false

Debugging can be enabled or disabled. By default, it is disabled and no debugging information is generated. Debugging can be enabled by setting this parameter to ‘true’. It is highly recommended to leave this option disabled as the amount of debug logging can be huge and slow down the trading terminal.

DebugLevel - Default: DEBUG_LEVEL_NONE

The amount of debugging information can be configure. By default, no information is generated. This is a drop down list and the user can select any one of the values in the list.

UseDatedLogs - false

If debugging is enabled, the information is written to an external file. The name of the file can be coded to contain the date of the log file.