Swing Detection Engine
The foundation of everything. Non-repainting swing detection with HH/HL/LH/LL classification, BOS, and CHoCH.
What It Does
Every serious price action strategy starts with one question: where are the swing highs and swing lows? Everything else — trend direction, structure breaks, reversal signals, entry zones — is derived from swings. If your swing detection is wrong, everything built on top of it is wrong. That's why we built the Swing Detection Engine to be bulletproof.
This indicator identifies swing highs and swing lows using a confirmed lookback method that waits for price to prove a swing is real before labeling it. No guessing, no projecting, no repainting. Once a swing high is marked, it's marked forever. From these confirmed swings, the engine automatically classifies the structure: Higher Highs, Higher Lows, Lower Highs, Lower Lows. You can read the trend state at a glance.
On top of classification, the engine detects two critical structural events: BOS (Break of Structure) when price continues the trend by breaking the last swing in its direction, and CHoCH (Change of Character) when price breaks against the trend, signaling a potential reversal. These two events are the foundation of institutional trading methodology. This is the tool that every other TheTraderShark indicator is built on.
Key Features
Get Started in 4 Steps
Add to Your Chart
Search for 'Swing Detection Engine TheTraderShark' on TradingView and add it. The default Swing Length of 10 works well for most timeframes. You'll immediately see swing labels and structure classifications.
Read the Structure
Look at the swing labels: HH and HL mean the market is bullish. LH and LL mean it's bearish. When you see a sequence like HH, HL, HH, HL — you're in a clean uptrend. When it shifts to LH, LL — the bears are taking over.
Watch for CHoCH Events
A CHoCH label is your early warning for a trend reversal. When you see one, the current trend structure has been broken for the first time. This doesn't guarantee a reversal, but it tells you to pay close attention.
Use BOS for Continuation Trades
BOS labels confirm that the trend is still active. In an uptrend, each new BOS means bulls just broke another high. Pull back to the last HL after a BOS for a textbook continuation entry.
Settings & Configuration
Number of bars on each side of a candle required to confirm it as a swing high or low. The core sensitivity control for the entire engine.
Display HH/HL/LH/LL labels at each confirmed swing point. Disable if you only want BOS/CHoCH events.
Display Break of Structure labels when price breaks a swing in the direction of the trend.
Display Change of Character labels when price breaks structure against the prevailing trend.
Size of the on-chart labels: Tiny, Small, Normal, or Large. Adjust based on your chart zoom level and screen size.
Color for bullish swing labels (HH, HL) and bullish BOS events.
Color for bearish swing labels (LH, LL) and bearish CHoCH events.
Non-Repainting Verified
Once a signal prints on the chart, it stays. No redrawing, no lookback bias, no false history. Every signal you see is exactly what you would have seen in real-time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ready to Try Swing Detection Engine?
Add it to your TradingView charts and see the difference instantly.