ATR Normalised Candles
A 40-pip candle is enormous on a quiet pair and unremarkable on a volatile one, and the same candle looks different again during a low-volatility summer stretch versus a high-volatility news week on the same symbol. Comparing bar sizes directly across symbols or regimes means comparing numbers that are not on the same scale. This indicator removes that by dividing each bar's open, high, low and close distance from the prior close by that bar's own ATR, then chaining the results into a continuous cumulative candlestick series in the subwindow. A bar that moved 1.5x its own ATR always draws the same size candle, whether that is EURUSD on M15 or gold on H1. Reading the subwindow becomes reading "how many ATRs did this bar move and in which direction" directly, with no mental unit conversion. Because this build's MQL4 compiler does not support the DRAW_CANDLES plot type, candles are drawn as chart objects instead - one trend-line wick and one rectangle body per bar, price-anchored into the indicator's own subwindow. Only the most recent InpBarsToDraw bars get objects, which keeps the indicator responsive on long chart history; two invisible buffers still carry the full normalised high/low series so the subwindow scales correctly even before scrolling into the drawn window. Notes and limitations - The cumulative level is recursive - each candle's position builds on the previous candle's own normalised close - so the visible shape of older candles is stable, but the running level itself has no absolute meaning; only relative candle sizes and the local zig-zag shape are informative, not the numeric axis value. - Only the last InpBarsToDraw bars get chart objects; scrolling further back on the subwindow will not show older normalised candles. - A zero or unavailable ATR reading (e.g. on a symbol with too little history) collapses that candle to a single point rather than dividing by zero. - This is a visual smoothing/scaling tool, not a signal generator - it does not predict direction or generate alerts.
Indicator · MT5 · v1.0 · Free
About ATR Normalised Candles
ATR Normalised Candles is an indicator for MetaTrader 5 based on ATR. It has 4 settings, such as Atr period, Bars to draw and Bull color. MQL source code included.
Files in the download: AtrNormalisedCandles.ex5, AtrNormalisedCandles.mq5, AtrNormalisedCandles.txt.
Settings
| Setting | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Atr period | 14 | ATR period each candle is normalised by |
| Bars to draw | 150 | How many recent bars are rendered as candle objects |
| Bull color | clrForestGreen | Body colour when close >= open |
| Bear color | clrCrimson | Body colour when close < open |
How to install
- Download the ZIP from your PolyMaria library and unzip it.
- In MetaTrader 5 open File → Open Data Folder, then go to MQL5 → Indicators.
- Copy the .mq5 file(s) there. Put any .mqh files in MQL5 → Include.
- Open the .mq5 file in MetaEditor and press Compile (F7) if MetaTrader does not show it.
- Drag the indicator from the Navigator onto a chart and adjust the settings.
Tags: ATR · News Trading · MT5 Indicator · MQL5 Source Code