Instructions to Authors

Article Types
Preparing Main Manuscript
Preparing Graphical Abstract, Highlights, and Checklist
References
Submission
Peer Review
Accepted Manuscripts
Reporting Guidelines

The Editors welcome submissions to Journal of Computational Design and Engineering (JCDE) which adhere to the Instructions to Authors. Manuscripts that do not meet all of the requirements below will not be considered for publication and may be returned to the authors for completion. However, for first-time submissions of original manuscripts, authors are required to follow only the selected instructions outlined in the submission checklist.

For support and more information, please contact the JCDE’s Editorial Office at [email protected].

Article Types

Editorials

Editorials are invited manuscripts or comments concerning a specific manuscript in the journal or a topical issue in the field. Although editorials are normally invited or written by the Editors, unsolicited editorials may be submitted. 
Typical length: 1,500-2,000 words, 10-20 references.

Review articles

These should aim to provide the reader with a balanced overview of an important and topical subject related to the aim and scope of this journal and highlight unresolved questions and future directions. Anyone can submit a review article if this is the case. Most reviews are solicited by the Editors, but unsolicited submissions may also be considered for publication. Section headings should be Abstract, Introduction, brief main headings, and References.
Typical length: 4,000-6,000 words, 40-80 references.

Research articles

These may report significant developments, describe the relevant theoretical background, present a workable algorithm, and give examples taken from real applications, stressing the practicality of the approach being presented. These can also contain new analyses of techniques related to computational design and engineering in practice, presenting authoritative results in a way that is likely to stimulate and influence research. Section headings can be Abstract, Introduction, Material and Methods, Theory/Calculation, Results, Discussion, Conclusions, Conflicts of Interest, Author Contributions, Funding (if applicable), Data Availability (if applicable), Acknowledgments (if applicable), References, and Appendices (if applicable). The Introduction should provide a brief background to the manuscript's subject, explain the study's importance, and state a precise study question or purpose. The Material and Methods section should describe the research methods and state the procedures employed in the study. The Theory/Calculation section should extend, not repeat, the background to the manuscript already dealt with in the Introduction, lay the foundation for further work, and represent a practical development from a theoretical basis. The Results section should comprise the study results presented in a logical sequence, supplemented with tables and/or figures. Take care that the text does not repeat data that are presented in the tables and/or figures. The Discussion section should be used to emphasize the new and important aspects of the study, placing the results in context with published literature and the implications of the findings. The Conclusions section should place the conclusions that follow from the study results and future works.
Typical length: 6,000-8,000 words, 20-40 references.
For more details, please refer to the Structure for research articles.

Data articles

These may report high-quality, peer-reviewed datasets accompanied by adequate text material to illustrate them and their usage in a regular manuscript format. A data article published in JCDE be situated within the current research landscape, explicitly stating the relevant research field it pertains to. Authors are strongly encouraged to reference related work and articulate the specific communities that would derive value from the data. Authors must showcase the clarity and applicability of their datasets while ensuring their availability in repositories for a minimum of ten years.
Articles accompanying data sets are short submissions that support and summarize a substantial archival data set. Both the dataset and the accompanying article undergo peer review with the same scrutiny applied to regular submissions. The essence of the contribution should lie in the quality and practicality of the data for the computational design and engineering community.
Typical length: 6,000-8,000 words, 20-40 references.
For more details, please refer to the Structure for data articles.

Short communications

These include brief constructive comments concerning previously published manuscripts in the journal. They should have a title, appropriate references, and the corresponding author’s e-mail address. They are edited, sometimes extensively, to sharpen their focus. They may be sent for peer review at the discretion of the Editors.
Typical length: 300-600 words, 5 references; 1 table and/or 1 figure may be included.

Preparing Main Manuscript

Manuscript condition

JCDE considers all manuscripts on the condition that:

• The manuscript is your original work and does not duplicate any other previously published work, including your work.
• The manuscript has been submitted only to JCDE. It should not be under consideration or peer review or accepted for publication or published elsewhere.
• The manuscript contains nothing abusive, defamatory, libelous, obscene, fraudulent, or illegal.
• When submitting an original manuscript for the first time, authors need to follow only the essential instructions for the review process, which are specified in the Submission Checklist. However, when submitting a revised manuscript after review, the author must compy with all the instructions necessary for publication. The Submission Checklist clearly indicates which items are required for original and revised manuscripts, respectively.

File list and order to submit

General formatting and style 

Manuscript structure

Tables, Figures, Videos, Mathematics, and Citations

Preparing Graphical Abstract, Highlights, Author’s Response, Figures, Videos, Supplementary Data, and Checklist

References

All references should adhere to the APA 7th edition style. Organize them alphabetically by the first author's last name, using initials for first names. Include a DOI link when available.

Citation in text

Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list (and vice versa). Citations in the text should follow the referencing style used by the American Psychological Association. You are referred to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA), Seventh Edition, ISBN 978-1-4338-3215-4, copies of which may be ordered online. References in the Abstract should be avoided, but if essential, then cite the author(s) and year(s). Unpublished results and personal communications are not recommended in the reference list but may be mentioned in the text. If these references are included in the reference list, they should follow the standard reference style of the journal. They should include a substitution of the publication date with either ‘Unpublished results’ or ‘Personal communication.’ Citing a reference as ‘in press’ implies that the item has been accepted for publication.

A list of references

References should be arranged first alphabetically and then further sorted chronologically if necessary. More than one reference from the same author(s) in the same year must be identified by the letters ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, etc., placed after the year of publication.

Web references

The full URL and the date when the reference was last accessed should be given at the minimum. Any further information should also be given, if known (DOI, author names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc.). Web references can be listed separately (e.g., after the reference list) under a different heading if desired or can be included in the reference list.

References in a Special Issue

Please ensure that the words ‘this issue’ are added to any references in the list (and any citations in the text) to other manuscripts in the same Special Issue.

Examples of reference style

Note: some articles may not exist as they were made up to illustrate how to format references.

Van der Geer, J., Hanraads, J. A. J., & Lupton, R. A. (2010). The art of writing a  
     scientific manuscript. Journal of Scientific Communications, 163, 51–59.
     https://doi.org/10.1016/j.Sc.2010.00372

Van der Geer, J., Hanraads, J. A. J., & Lupton, R. A. (2018). The art of writing a 
     scientific manuscript. Heliyon, 19, Article e00205.
     https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2018.e00205

Strunk, W., Jr., & White, E. B. (2000). The elements of style. (4th ed.). New York: Longman.

Mettam, G. R., & Adams, L. B. (2009). How to prepare an electronic version of your article.  
     In B. S. Jones, & R. Z. Smith (Eds.), Introduction to the electronic age (pp. 281–304).   
     New York: E-Publishing Inc.

Cancer Research UK. (2003, March 13). Cancer statistics reports for the UK.   
     http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/aboutcancer/statistics/cancerstatsreport/

Oguro, M., Imahiro, S., Saito, S., & Nakashizuka, T. (2015). Mortality data for Japanese oak  
     wilt disease and surrounding forest compositions (v1) [Data set]. Mendeley Data.
     https://doi.org/10.17632/xwj98nb39r.1

Son, S., Fitriani, H., Kim, J. T., Go, S., & Kim, S. (2017). Mathematical algorithms of 
     patterns for free-form panels. Proceedings of the 2nd World Congress on Civil, 
     Structural, and Environmental Engineering, 1-8. Barcelona, Spain.
     https://doi.org/10.11159/icsenm17.101

Stuster, J., Adolf, J., Byrne, V., & Greene, M. (2018). Human exploration of Mars: 
     Preliminary lists of crew tasks (Report No. NASA/CR-2018-220043). National Aeronautics 
     and Space Administration.
     https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20190001401.pdf

Miranda, C. (2019). Exploring the lived experiences of foster youth who obtained 
     graduate-level degrees: Self-efficacy, resilience, and the impact on 
     identity development (Publication No. 27542827) [Doctoral dissertation, 
     Pepperdine University]. PQDT Open.   
     https://pqdtopen.proquest.com/doc/2309521814.html?FMT=AI

You can find more information about the APA 7 reference examples here.

Submission

Submission through ScholarOne

All manuscripts are submitted and reviewed via the journal’s web-based manuscript submission system, ScholarOne. New authors should create an account before submitting a manuscript for consideration. Questions about submitting to the journal should be sent to [email protected].

When submitting a manuscript, you should upload both a PDF file for the initial submission and editable source files (in either doc/docx or TeX/LaTeX format) for the revision. Please note that any figures should be embedded within the manuscript and also provided as separate files in EPS, tiff, or JPG format for production purposes. Further instructions can be found at the submission point.

More information about using ScholarOne here.

General Notes

Upload as many files as needed for your manuscript in groups of three or fewer. These files will be combined into a single PDF document for the peer-review process. If you are submitting a revision, please include only the latest set of files. If you have updated a file, please delete the original version and upload the revised file. To designate the order in which your files appear, use the dropdowns in the "order" column below. View your uploaded files by clicking on HTML or PDF. When you are finished, click "Save and Continue." 

Submitting a new manuscript

The order of the files should be as follows:

• Main Document (.pdf) > Graphical Abstract > Highlights > Checklist>> Main Document Source File (.zip)

Submitting a revised manuscript

The order of the files should be as follows:

•  Author's Response >Main Document (with changed text turned blue) (.pdf) > Graphical Abstract > Highlights > Checklist> Main Document Source File (.zip)

On submission of revised manuscripts after review, you should upload a PDF file with track changes in blue for "Main Document." 

If you are submitting a revision, please include only the latest set of files. If you have updated a file, please delete the original version and upload the revised file. 

 Submitting a final version of manuscript

The order of the files should be as follows:

•   Main Document (clean version) > Graphical Abstract > Highlights > Checklist > Main Document Source File (.zip) (clean version) > Figures (.zip)

On submission of revised manuscripts after conditional acceptance, you should upload clean PDF and source files for "Main Document."

Peer Review

This journal operates a single-blind review process. The editors will initially assess all contributions to determine their suitability for the journal. Manuscripts deemed suitable are then typically sent to at least three independent expert reviewers to assess the scientific quality of the manuscript. The Editors are responsible for the final decision regarding acceptance or rejection of manuscripts. The Editors’ decision is final.

Accepted Manuscripts

Payment of APC (Article Processing Charge)

JCDE is an open-access journal. The Article Processing Charge (APC) is applied to your manuscript. The corresponding author will receive a manuscript acceptance letter, including the payment information about the open access charges, in a separate email from the journal office ([email protected]). For the publication, you have to pay the APC. Without the payment of the APC, your paper will not be published. For more details about the APC, please refer to Submit > Open Access and APCs on the journal home page. And for the authors from developing countries, please refer to the site (https://academic.oup.com/journals/pages/open_access/apc-waiver-policy).

Open Access License

After you pay the APC, you will receive an email from [email protected]  within 7 days, which is your invitation to sign up for an account with SciPris, Oxford University Press’ author portal hosted by Aptara, if you do not already hold one.

Please register, or log into your account and follow the online instructions which will guide you through signing your license. The email and the portal have clearly signposted support options if you need any help during this process.

Please note that SciPris is a completely different system from ScholarOne, so your credentials to submit your manuscript here will not work there. Once you’ve created a SciPris account, you will be able to use it whenever you publish with our journal or any OUP journal.

Advance articles

Advance Articles enables us to publish accepted papers online soon after they have been accepted. Manuscripts are then copyedited, typeset, proofed out, and corrected. Once the manuscripts are finalized, the uncorrected manuscripts are taken off the Advance Articles page and the final corrected article is published.

Manuscripts are removed from the Advance Articles page once they have been paginated, at which point the issue into which they are incorporated will be posted online. Abstracts and titles are searchable and accessible within the journal’s web pages, the archive and PubMed. Appearance in Advance Articles constitutes publication. The official publication date appears beneath the title of each manuscript article just before its digital object identifier (DOI).

Papers published in Advance Articles are citeable using the DOI and publication date.

Proof correction

Authors will receive a link to the PDF proof of their manuscript by e-mail on our online system, and a current e-mail address must be supplied with all manuscripts. Proofing instructions will accompany the PDF file, but the proof should be checked immediately upon receipt and uploaded using the covering instructions. Only essential corrections should be made at the proof stage.

Reporting Guidelines

Ethical policies

Authors should observe high standards for publication best practices. Falsification or fabrication of data, plagiarism, including duplicate publication of the author’s work without proper citation, and misappropriation of work are all unacceptable practices. Any cases of ethical or publication malpractice are treated very seriously and will be managed by the Commission on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines. Further information about OUP’s ethical policies.

Authorship

Authors are responsible for ensuring that the author list is complete and accurate when submitting their manuscript. Any authors who wish to make changes to the author list before acceptance of their paper (e.g., at the revision stage) must notify the editorial office and provide a clear explanation for the change using the JCDE Authorship Agreement form.

Plagiarism

Manuscripts submitted to JCDE may be screened with iThenticate anti-plagiarism software in an attempt to detect and prevent plagiarism. Any manuscript may be screened, especially if there is a reason to suppose part or all of the text has been previously published. Prior to final acceptance, any manuscript that has not already been screened may be put through iThenticate. More information about iThenticate.

Disclosure

Any financial interests or connections, direct or indirect, or other situations that might raise the question of bias in the work reported or the conclusions, implications, or opinions stated—including pertinent commercial or other sources of funding for the individual author(s) or for the associated department(s) or organization(s), personal relationships, or direct academic competition—should be disclosed. For further information, see the FAQ.

If there are none, please declare no conflicts of interest.

If one or a few authors have a conflict to disclose, further to that statement, there should be an additional statement for those remaining authors who do not have any conflicts of interest.

Availability of Data and Materials 

Where ethically feasible, JCDE strongly encourages authors to make all data and software code on which the conclusions of the paper are available to readers. We suggest that data be presented in the main manuscript or additional supporting files or deposited in a public repository whenever possible. Information on general repositories for all data types and a list of recommended repositories by subject area are available here. 

Data and Software Citation 

JCDE supports the Force 11 Data Citation Principles and requires that all publicly available datasets be fully referenced in the reference list with an accession number or unique identifier such as a digital object identifier (DOI). Data citations should include the minimum information recommended by DataCite:  
 
[dataset]* Authors, Year, Title, Publisher (repository or archive name), Identifier 
 
*The inclusion of the [dataset] tag at the beginning of the citation helps us to correctly identify and tag the citation. This tag will be removed from the citation published in the reference list. 
 
Software citations should include the minimum information recommended by the FORCE11 Software Citation Implementation Group: 
 
Author/Developer, Release date, Title, Publisher (repository or archive name), Identifier 
 
If there is an article describing the software, it is recommended to cite both the software and the article.

Third-party permissions

To reproduce any third-party material, including tables, figures, or images, in a manuscript, authors must obtain permission from the copyright holder and be compliant with any requirements the copyright holder may have about this re-use. When seeking to reproduce any kind of third-party material, authors should request the following:

Non-exclusive rights to reproduce the material in the specified manuscript and journal.

The right to use the material for the life of the work, and

Worldwide English-language rights.

It is particularly important to clear permission for use in online versions of the journal, and we are not able to accept permissions that carry a time limit because we retain journal manuscripts as part of our online journal archive. Further guidelines on clearing permissions.

Self-archiving policy

Upon publication of an article, the author must replace any previously posted electronic versions of the article with either (1) the full citation to the JCDE paper with a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) or (2) the OUP-published version. For more details, please refer to the journal’s self-archiving policy.

Permissions regarding the re-use of OUP material

Guidelines on permissions for the re-use of OUP material.

Funder policies

Information about compliance with funder requirements, including PubMed/PMC deposits.