What each mark on the chart means
Blue arrows below the bar, red arrows above it, white arrows for exits. Everything stacks outward from the bar in the same order.
Everything the Signal Engine draws follows one rule: the elements stack outward from the bar. Arrow first, then the signal name, then the theoretical open position. That order is the same for all three signal types — only the direction changes.
Long Signals
A blue arrow pointing up, sitting below the bar.
- Directly under the arrow — the signal name
- Under that — the theoretical open position
The arrow indicates that market conditions have aligned in a way that may support a bullish opportunity, according to the framework's criteria. It is a statement about the conditions the system evaluated. It is not a recommendation, and it says nothing about what price does next.
Short Signals
A red arrow pointing down, sitting above the bar.
- Directly above the arrow — the signal name
- Above that — the theoretical open position
Same logic, mirrored. Conditions have aligned in a way that may support a bearish opportunity.
Exit Signals
White arrows. Which side of the bar they sit on tells you which kind of position they relate to:
| Placement | Type | Relates to |
|---|---|---|
| Above the bar | Sell to Close | A prior Long Signal |
| Below the bar | Buy to Cover | A prior Short Signal |
Beyond the arrow — above for Sell to Close, below for Buy to Cover — is the specific exit name: Profit Target, Stop Loss, EOD, and so on. That label tells you which of the framework's conditions ended the theoretical position, which is more informative than the arrow alone.
Beyond the label is the theoretical open position, which on an exit should always read 0.
An exit label describes a condition, not a result. “Profit Target” names the framework's exit criterion being met at that price. It is not a claim that a gain was made, and it says nothing about what any trader actually earned or lost. Your outcome depends on whether you took the trade at all, your entry, your fills, your size, and your costs — none of which the Signal Engine knows anything about.
Reading the side placement
Entry and exit arrows sit on opposite sides of the bar for the same direction. A Long Signal prints below; the Sell to Close that follows it prints above. A Short Signal prints above; its Buy to Cover prints below.
Once that clicks, you can read the sequence at a glance without checking colours — arrows alternating sides means a theoretical position was opened and then closed.
The theoretical open position
The number stacked furthest from the bar tracks what position the framework's own rules would have held at that point. It moves to a value on an entry signal and back to zero on an exit.
Two things worth being precise about.
It is theoretical. It tracks the framework, not your account. It does not know whether you took the signal, at what price, in what size, or whether you are still in. If you skipped a Long Signal, the chart still shows a theoretical position until an exit prints.
It is a sequence, not a target. The number describes the framework's state. It is not an instruction about what you should be holding.
When nothing appears
Several conditions have to align before any signal is displayed, so quiet charts are normal rather than a sign of a failed installation. The framework is designed to pass on setups that do not meet its criteria — see why there's nothing to tune and installing the Signal Engine.
After a signal prints
Conditions can weaken before a move develops, and an Exit Signal is only one form of that. What else to watch for is covered in reading what invalidates a setup.