Plotting Time Series
overview 

Minitab provides several tools you can use to view patterns in data over time. For example, you can use these tools to examine monthly sales for your company for the past two years, by product line.

Graph

Description/Uses

Time Series Plot

Use a time series plot if your data were collected in equally-spaced time intervals and are in chronological order in the worksheet.

Minitab plots observations on the y-axis against equally spaced time intervals on the x-axis.

Display options include fitted lowess lines.

 

Area Graph

Use an area graph to see how the composition of the sum changes over time.

Minitab plots a series of stacked variables on the y-axis against equally spaced time intervals on the x-axis.  Each line on the graph is the cumulative sum.

Display options include stacking columns by either column order (worksheet order) or variation order (largest on top).

Scatterplot with a connect line

Use a scatterplot with a connect line if your data were collected at irregular intervals or are not in chronological order in the worksheet. Unlike Time Series Plot, you must provide a time variable from the worksheet.

This graph plots observations on the y-axis against the time on the x-axis.