Bollinger Band Width Pass Node
BB Width — Series Input
Overview
The Bollinger Band Width Pass Node measures the relative width of Bollinger Bands applied to any upstream numeric series. It normalises band separation by the middle band so the result is comparable across different magnitude series — making it useful for volatility regime detection on indicator outputs, not just raw price.
Low Band Width values indicate a consolidation or "squeeze"; rising values signal expanding volatility. This metric is the foundation of the Bollinger Band Squeeze strategy, generalised here to work on any data stream.
Formula
Parameters
| Parameter | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| period | number | 20 | Lookback window for the underlying Bollinger Bands calculation. |
Inputs & Outputs
| Slot | Direction | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| input | Input | { values, timestamps } | Any upstream numeric series |
| values | Output | (number | null)[] | Normalised band width per bar; nulls during warm-up |
| timestamps | Output | number[] | Unix timestamps aligned to the input series |
Use Cases
Indicator Squeeze Detection
Detect periods of low volatility in any oscillator or moving-average output, signalling potential breakouts.
Cross-Instrument Volatility Comparison
Compare normalised width across multiple assets or time frames to rank by relative calm.
Regime Filter
Use a threshold on Band Width to switch between trend-following and mean-reversion strategies.
Tips & Best Practices
📉 Squeeze Threshold
A historically low BW (e.g. below 6-month percentile) often precedes a large directional move.
⚠️ Division by Zero
If the middle band is zero (constant series), BW returns null. Ensure your input series has meaningful variance.