Indicators: volume flow (OBV, A/D, CMF, Force Index, NVI/PVI)

Fourteen classic volume studies complete the Volume group: OBV, Accumulation/Distribution, Chaikin Money Flow, Chaikin Oscillator, Force Index, Ease of Movement, NVI, PVI, Volume Oscillator, Price Volume Trend, Volume-Weighted MACD, Money Flow Volume, Volume Divergence and Session Cumulative Volume. Accumulators keep a running path; ratios return gaps.

Senzoukria · Documentation · Updated September 2026

Where to find it

Where
Chart toolbar → Indicators → group "Library · Volume" (Volume Divergence is under "Library · Tape & flow")
Target
Pane; Volume Divergence draws markers on the price chart
Session reset
Only Session Cumulative Volume; all others run continuously
Accumulator seed
0 on the first loaded bar (OBV, A/D, PVT); 1000 for NVI and PVI

What it does

OBV adds the whole bar volume when the close rises, subtracts it when it falls and leaves it unchanged on an equal close (strict inequalities). Accumulation/Distribution weights volume by the money-flow multiplier ((close − low) − (high − close)) / (high − low); a bar without range contributes 0 rather than breaking the path. Chaikin Money Flow is the same term normalised over N bars, bounded −1..+1. Chaikin Oscillator is EMA(3) − EMA(10) of the A/D line. Force Index is the EMA of (close change × volume). Ease of Movement is the SMA of mid-price distance divided by the box ratio volume / range.

NVI and PVI multiply an index by the close return only on bars where volume fell (NVI) or rose (PVI); equal volume moves neither. Volume Oscillator is (SMA short − SMA long) / SMA long × 100. Price Volume Trend accumulates percent close change × volume. Volume-Weighted MACD replaces the two EMAs of the MACD with VWMAs and keeps an EMA signal. Money Flow Volume is the non-cumulated A/D term per bar. Volume Divergence marks a bar whose high exceeds the previous N highs while its volume is below the previous N volumes. Session Cumulative Volume sums volume from each source session open.

Settings

Numeric parameters per study (colors omitted; Smoothing defaults to 1 = off where present)
StudySettingDefault (range)What it changes
On Balance VolumeSmoothing1 (1–200)Optional SMA of the cumulative line
Accumulation/DistributionSmoothing1 (1–200)Optional SMA of the A/D line
Chaikin Money FlowPeriod20 (1–500)Normalisation window
Chaikin OscillatorFast EMA / Slow EMA3 (1–200) / 10 (1–500)EMAs of the A/D line
Force IndexEMA period13 (1–200)Smoothing; 1 returns the raw product
Ease of MovementSMA period14 (1–200)Smoothing; 1 returns the raw ratio
Negative / Positive Volume IndexBase1000 (1–100 000)Starting level of the index
Volume OscillatorShort SMA / Long SMA5 (1–200) / 20 (1–500)The two volume averages
Price Volume TrendSmoothing1 (1–200)Optional SMA of the cumulative line
Volume-Weighted MACDFast VWMA / Slow VWMA / Signal EMA12 (1–200) / 26 (1–500) / 9 (1–200)Two VWMAs and the signal; histogram colors
Money Flow VolumeSmoothing1 (1–200)Optional SMA of the histogram
Volume DivergenceLookback20 (1–500)Strictly preceding bars compared for high and volume
Session Cumulative VolumeSmoothing1 (1–200)Optional SMA inside the session

How to use it

All studies except Volume Divergence open a pane. Volume Divergence places a red downward arrow labelled DIV at the high of the qualifying bar; only the bearish pattern (new high on the lowest volume) is detected, the mirror is not emitted. Session Cumulative Volume restarts at every source session open (CME 17:00 Chicago or crypto midnight UTC), never at midnight or at the first loaded bar.

Loading more history shifts OBV, A/D, PVT, NVI and PVI, because their seed sits on the first loaded bar. Read their slope and divergences, not their absolute level.

Limits and pitfalls

  • Accumulators use a zero contribution when a term is undefined (zero range for A/D, zero previous close for PVT/NVI/PVI); non-cumulative studies return a gap or no histogram point instead.
  • Volume-Weighted MACD's signal restarts its SMA seed after any gap in the VW-MACD line and does not stitch segments together.
  • Ease of Movement returns nothing for bars with zero volume or zero range; a window containing such a bar returns nothing.
  • Money Flow Volume (Chaikin) and MFI (Momentum group) share a name root but are different measures.
  • None of these studies read the tick size; an unknown tick size does not change their output.

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Frequently asked questions

Does OBV reset at the session open?
No. OBV, A/D, PVT, NVI and PVI are long-term accumulations and run continuously. Only Session Cumulative Volume restarts at the source session boundary.
Why does the A/D line not show a gap on a bar with no range?
An accumulator is a path; a gap would cut the line and lose the anchor for every later bar. The bar contributes 0, which is the Chaikin convention and matches TradingView and StockCharts.

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