[SpaghettiForex] ABR - Activity Bar Range

[SpaghettiForex] ABR — Activity Bar Range is a context indicator that highlights on the chart the High–Low range of the most recently active candle, selected within a user-defined lookback.

ABR does not use volume. It estimates activity purely from price movement (True Range or Absolute Return), normalised by ATR. The goal is to provide a clean, objective reference area showing where price has recently expressed the most meaningful impulse.

What it displays:
- An Activity Range Zone: the area between High and Low of the candle with the highest activity score in the selected lookback.
- Optional BRK (breakout) and BDN (breakdown) labels when price breaks the zone while meeting basic quality filters.

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Screenshots (examples):

Screenshot 1 — Range context (no labels)

A sideways/ranging phase where ABR provides a single reference zone.
This is a context tool: the zone is the focus, not the signals.
Note: in Dynamic mode the zone updates when a new “highest activity” candle appears inside the lookback.

Screenshot 2 — Clean breakout (BRK)

Example of a BRK label on a breakout above the Activity Range Zone.
Recommended: signals set to bar-close only for cleaner real-time behaviour.

Screenshot 3 — Edge case / false breakout (honest limitation)

Example where a breakout attempt fails and price returns into the zone.
ABR helps with context, but it cannot eliminate false moves—risk management still matters.

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How the Activity Range Zone is built:
1. ABR computes an activity score for each candle using either:
- True Range / ATR, or
- Absolute Return / ATR
2. Within the selected lookback, it finds the candle with the highest activity score.
3. It draws the High–Low range of that candle on the chart as the Activity Range Zone.
Practical use

ABR is designed as a context filter for breakout/breakdown reads:
- it can help reduce breakouts triggered on “empty” or low-quality areas,
- it keeps charts clean by providing one key zone at a time,
- it makes the question simple: “Is price truly breaking the range of the most active candle in the recent window?”

BRK / BDN labels (optional):
BRK/BDN labels are not financial advice and do not “decide” trades. They are visual markers triggered when a zone break meets user-defined conditions such as:
- bar-close confirmation (recommended to reduce historical vs real-time differences),
- minimum relative activity vs an SMA (ratio filter),
- close-position quality within the candle,
- minimum distance (ticks) beyond the zone.

Zone update behaviour (Lock Mode):
- Dynamic: the zone updates continuously to follow the most active candle within the lookback.
- Lock After Signal: after a BRK or BDN event, the zone can remain fixed for a more stable reference.

Main settings overview:
- Lookback and activity proxy (no volume)
- Signal filters (bar-close confirmation, activity ratio, candle quality, minimum distance)
- Lock Mode (dynamic vs locked after signal)
- Visual controls (zone fill/lines, colours, labels)

Important note:
ABR is a price-action context tool. It does not provide performance promises and should be used as part of a broader process and sound risk management.