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COMPUTERS AND ELECTRONICS IN AGRICULTURE
An International Journal

Guide for Authors



Computers and Electronics in Agriculture provides international coverage of advances in the application of computer hardware, software and electronic instrumentation and control systems to agriculture, forestry and related industries. The latter include horticulture (in both its food and amenity aspects), forest products, aquaculture, animal/livestock science, veterinary medicine and food processing.

The journal publishes original papers, reviews, applications notes and book reviews on topics including computerized decision-support aids (e.g., expert systems and simulation models) pertaining to any aspect of the aforementioned industries; electronic monitoring or control of any aspect of livestock/crop production (e.g. soil and water, environment, growth, health, waste products) and post-harvest operations (such as drying, storage, production assessment, trimming and dissection of plant and animal material). Relevant areas of technology include artificial intelligence, sensors, machine vision, robotics and simulation modelling.

Submission of manuscripts
Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture or academic thesis), that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, that its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities where the work was carried out, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in English or in any other language, without the written consent of the Publisher.

Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to transfer copyright (for more information on copyright see External link http://authors.elsevier.com). This transfer will ensure the widest possible dissemination of information. A letter will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript. A form facilitating transfer of copyright will be provided. If excerpts from other copyrighted works are included, the author(s) must obtain written permission from the copyright owners and credit the source(s) in the article. Elsevier has preprinted forms for use by authors in these cases: contact ELSEVIER, Rights Department, P.O. Box 800, Oxford, OX5 1DX, UK; phone: (+44) 1865 843830, fax: (+44) 1865 853333, e-mail: permissions@elsevier.com. Requests may also be completed online via the Elsevier homepage (External link http://www.elsevier.com/locate/permissions). Papers for consideration should be submitted to: Elsevier Editorial System

Types of contribution
1. Original research papers
2. Review articles
3. Application notes
4. Book reviews

Original research papers should report the results of original research. The material should not have been previously published elsewhere, except in a preliminary form.
Review articles should cover subjects falling within the scope of the journal which are of active current interest. They may be submitted or invited.
An Application note is a short but complete description of a specific application, which will not be included in a later paper. It should not occupy more than 4 printed pages (about 8 manuscript pages, including figures, tables and references).
Book reviews will be included in the journal on a range of relevant books which are no more than 2 years old. Unsolicited reviews will not usually be accepted, but suggestions for appropriate books for review may be sent to one of the Editors-in-Chief.

Electronic manuscripts

Submission to this journal proceeds totally on-line. Use the following guidelines to prepare your article. Via the Author Gateway page of this journal, you will be guided stepwise through the creation and uploading of the various files. Once the uploading is done, our system automatically generates an electronic (PDF) proof, which is then used for reviewing. It is crucial that all graphical elements be uploaded in separate files, so that the PDF is suitable for reviewing. Authors can upload their article as a LaTex, Microsoft (MS) Word, WordPerfect, PostScript or Adobe Acrobat PDF document. All correspondence, including notification of the Editor's decision and requests for revisions, will be by e-mail.

Electronic format requirements for accepted articles

We accept most wordprocessing formats, but Word, WordPerfect or LaTeX is preferred. Always keep a backup copy of the electronic file for reference and safety. Save your files using the default extension of the program used.

Wordprocessor documents

It is important that the file be saved in the native format of the wordprocessor used. The text should be in single-column format. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible. Most formatting codes will be removed and replaced on processing the article. In particular, do not use the wordprocessor's options to justify text or to hyphenate words. However, do use bold face, italics, subscripts, superscripts etc. Do not embed 'graphically designed' equations or tables, but prepare these using the wordprocessor's facility. When preparing tables, if you are using a table grid, use only one grid for each individual table and not a grid for each row. If no grid is used, use tabs, not spaces, to align columns. The electronic text should be prepared in a way very similar to that of conventional manuscripts (see also the Author Gateway's Quickguide. Do not import the figures into the text file but, instead, indicate their approximate locations directly in the electronic text and on the manuscript. See also the section on Preparation of electronic illustrations.

To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the 'spellchecker' function of your wordprocessor.

Preparation of manuscripts
1. Manuscripts should be written in English. Authors whose native language is not English are strongly advised to have their manuscripts checked by an English-speaking colleague prior to submission. English language help service: Upon request, Elsevier will direct Authors to an agent who can check and improve the English of their paper (before submission). Please contact authorsupport@elsevier.com for further information.

2. Authors are requested to submit, with their manuscripts, the names and addresses of four potential referees.

3. Manuscripts should be prepared with numbered lines, with wide margins and double spacing throughout, i.e. also for abstracts, footnotes and references. Every page of the manuscript, including the title page, references, tables, etc. should be numbered. However, in the text no reference should be made to page numbers; if necessary, one may refer to sections. Avoid excessive use of italics to emphasize part of the text.

4. Manuscripts in general should be organized in the following order:
Title (should be clear, descriptive and not too long)
Name(s) of author(s)
Complete postal address(es) of affiliations
Full telephone, E-mail and Fax No. of the corresponding author
Present address(es) of author(s) if applicable
Complete correspondence address and e-mail address to which the proofs should be sent
Abstract
Keywords, normally 3-6 items.
Introduction
Material studied, area descriptions, methods, techniques
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
Acknowledgements and any additional information concerning research grants, etc.
References
Tables
Figure captions


5. In typing the manuscript, titles and subtitles should not be run within the text. They should be typed on a separate line, without indentation. Use lower-case letter type.

6. SI units should be used.

7. Elsevier reserves the privilege of returning to the author for revision accepted manuscripts and illustrations which are not in the proper form given in this guide.

Abstracts
The abstract should be clear, descriptive and not longer than 400 words.

Tables
1. Authors should take notice of the limitations set by the size and lay-out of the journal. Large tables should be avoided. Reversing columns and rows will often reduce the dimensions of a table.

2. If many data are to be presented, an attempt should be made to divide them over two or more tables.

3. Tables should be numbered according to their sequence in the text. The text should include references to all tables.

4. Each table should be typewritten on a separate page of the manuscript. Tables should never be included in the text.

5. Each table should have a brief and self-explanatory title.

6. Column headings should be brief, but sufficiently explanatory. Standard abbreviations of units of measurement should be added between parentheses.

7. Vertical lines should not be used to separate columns. Leave some extra space between the columns instead.

8. Any explanation essential to the understanding of the table should be given as a footnote at the bottom of the table.

Electronic Illustrations

Submitting your artwork in an electronic format helps us to produce your work to the best possible standards, ensuring accuracy, clarity and a high level of detail.
1. Always supply high-quality printouts of your artwork, in case conversion of the electronic artwork is problematic.
2. Make sure you use uniform lettering and sizing of your original artwork.
3. Save text in illustrations as "graphics" or enclose the font.
4. Only use the following fonts in your illustrations: Arial, Courier, Helvetica, Times, Symbol.
5. Number the illustrations according to their sequence in the text.
6. Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files, and supply a separate listing of the files and the software used.
7. Provide all illustrations as separate files.
8. Provide captions to illustrations separately.
9. Produce images near to the desired size of the printed version.
A detailed guide on electronic artwork is available on our website: External link http://authors.elsevier.com/artwork

You are urged to visit this site; some excerpts from the detailed information are given here.

Formats

Regardless of the application used, when your electronic artwork is finalised, please "save as" or convert the images to one of the following formats (Note the resolution requirements for line drawings, halftones, and line/halftone combinations given below.):
EPS: Vector drawings. Embed the font or save the text as "graphics".
TIFF: Colour or greyscale photographs (halftones): always use a minimum of 300 dpi
TIFF: Bitmapped line drawings: use a minimum of 1000 dpi.
TIFF: Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (colour or greyscale): a minimum of 500 dpi is required.
DOC, XLS or PPT: If your electronic artwork is created in any of these Microsoft Office applications please supply "as is".

Please do not:
• Supply embedded graphics in your wordprocessor (spreadsheet, presentation) document;
• Supply files that are optimised for screen use (like GIF, BMP, PICT, WPG); the resolution is too low;
• Supply files that are too low in resolution;
• Submit graphics that are disproportionately large for the content.

Colour illustrations

Please make sure that artwork files are in an acceptable format (TIFF, EPS or MS Office files) and with the correct resolution. Polaroid colour prints are not suitable. If, together with your accepted article, you submit usable colour figures then Elsevier will ensure, at no additional charge, that these figures will appear in colour on the web (e.g., ScienceDirect and other sites) regardless of whether or not these illustrations are reproduced in colour in the printed version. Please indicate your preference for colour on the web (free of charge) or in print and on the web (charged) when submitting your article.
For colour reproduction in print, you will receive information regarding the costs from Elsevier after receipt of your accepted article. For further information on the preparation of electronic artwork, please see External link http://authors.elsevier.com/artwork. Please note: Because of technical complications which can arise by converting colour figures to grey scale (for the printed version should you opt to not pay for colour in print) please submit in addition usable black and white prints corresponding to all the colour illustrations.
As only one figure caption may be used for both colour and black and white versions of figures, please ensure that the figure captions are meaningful for both versions, if applicable.

References
1. All publications cited in the text should be presented in a list of references following the text of the manuscript. The manuscript should be carefully checked to ensure that the spelling of author's names and dates are exactly the same in the text as in the reference list.
2. In the text refer to the author's name (without initial) and year of publication, followed - if necessary - by a short reference to appropriate pages. Examples: "Since Peterson (1993) has shown that ...." "This is in agreement with results obtained later (Peterson and Kramer, 1993, pp. 12-16)".
3. If reference is made in the text to a publication written by more than two authors the name of the first author should be used followed by "et al." This indication, however, should never be used in the list of references. In this list names of first author and co-authors should be mentioned.
4. References cited together in the text should be arranged chronologically. The list of references should be arranged alphabetically on authors' names, and chronologically per author. If an author's name in the list is also mentioned with co-authors the following order should be used: publications of the single author, arranged according to publication dates - publications of the same author with one co-author - publications of the author with more than one co-author. Publications by the same author(s) in the same year should be listed as 1994a, 1994b, etc.
5. Use the following system for arranging your references:
5.1 For periodicals
Yang, Q., 1993. Classification of apple surface features using machine vision and neural networks. Comput. Electron. Agric. 9, 1-12.
5.2 For entire (special) issue of journal
Glaser, R., Bond, L. (Eds). 1981. Testing: Concepts and Research (special issue). American Psychologist 36 (10).
5.3 For books
Peart, R.M., Brooks, R.C. (Eds.), 1992. Analysis of Agricultural Energy Systems. Energy in World agriculture, 5. Elsevier, Amsterdam.
5.4 For multi-author books
Price, D.R., Chen, T.H., Peart, R.M. 1992. Acknowledge-based decision system for control of waste heat for a greenhouse-aquaculture complex. In: Peart, R.M., Brooks, R.C. (Eds.), Analysis of Agricultural Energy Systems. Energy in World Agriculture, 5. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 33-46.
5.5 For unpublished reports, departmental notes, etc.
Deshazer, J.A., Moran, P., Onyango, C.M., Schofield, C.P., 1988. Imaging systems to improve stockmanship in pig production. Div. Note 1549, AFRC Institute of Engineering Research, Silsoe, UK.
6. Do not abbreviate the titles of periodicals mentioned in the list of references; alternatively use the International List of Periodical Title Word Abbreviations.
7. In the case of publications in any language other than English, the original title is to be retained. However, the titles of publications in non-Latin alphabets should be transliterated, and a notation such as "(in Russian)" or "(in Greek with English abstract)" should be added.
8. Work accepted for publication but not yet published should be referred to as "in press".
9. References concerning unpublished data and "personal communications" should not be cited in the reference list buy may be mentioned in the text.

Formulae

1. All formulae should be presented consistently and clearly with regard to the meaning of each symbol and its correct location. Formulae must be typed throughout.

2. All unusual symbols must be collected in a separate list in the appendix, giving a clear explanation of each symbol.

3. Please try to keep the notation as simple as possible, and avoid ambiguities. Do not use special typefonts if there is no urgent need to do so.

4. Different formulae should be clearly separated in the manuscript, at least by punctuation marks, if not by words. Avoid breaking formulae if breaking is not strictly necessary (i.e., if the equation is less than one typed line). Never let a sentence consist of formulae alone (i.e., without any connection with the preceding text).

5. Do not use complicated juxtapositions of symbols. Also, try to avoid complicated subscripts and superscripts; third-order indices especially present difficulties as to their size and position, and fourth-order indices are taboo.

6. The manuscript must show a clear distinction between similar symbols, (e.g., between zero (0) and the letter O, between one (1) and the letter l, and between multiplication (×) and the letter x).

7. Important formulae (e.g. definitions) must be displayed. All formulae which are to be referred to later on must be displayed and numbered consecutively throughout the paper; the number should appear on the right-hand side of the page.

8. In chemical formulae the valence of ions must be given as, for example, Ca2+ and CO32 rather than as Ca++ and CO3--.

9. Isotope numbers should precede the symbols (e.g., 18O).

Footnotes

1. Footnotes should only be used if absolutely essential. In most cases it will be possible to incorporate them in the main text.

2. If used, footnotes should be numbered consecutively throughout the manuscript, indicated by superscript arabic numbers, and kept as short as possible.

Nomenclature
1. Authors and Editor(s) are, by general agreement, obliged to accept the rules governing biological nomenclature, as laid down in the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature, the International Code of Nomenclature of Bacteria, and the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.

2. All biotica (crops, plants, insects, birds, mammals, etc.) should be identified by their scientific names when the English term is first used, with the exception of common domestic animals.

3. All biocides and other organic compounds must be identified by their Geneva names when first used in the text. Active ingredients of all formulations should be likewise identified.

4. For chemical nomenclature, the conventions of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry and the official recommendations of the IUPAC-IUB Combined Commission on Biochemical Nomenclature should be followed.

Supplementary data

Elsevier now accepts electronic supplementary material to support and enhance your scientific research. Supplementary files offer the author additional possibilities to publish supporting applications, movies, animation sequences, high-resolution images, background datasets, sound clips and more. Supplementary files supplied will be published online alongside the electronic version of your article in Elsevier web products, including ScienceDirect: http://www.sciencedirect.com. In order to ensure that your submitted material is directly usable, please ensure that data is provided in one of our recommended file formats. Authors should submit the material in electronic format together with the article and supply a concise and descriptive caption for each file. For more detailed instructions please visit External link http://www.elsevier.com/authors.

Copyright

1. An author, when quoting from someone else's work or when considering reproducing an illustration or table from a book or journal article, should make sure that he is not infringing a copyright.
2. Although in general an author may quote from other published works, he should obtain permission from the holder of the copyright if he wishes to make substantial extracts or to reproduce tables, plates, or other illustrations. If the copyright-holder is not the author of the quoted or reproduced material, it is recommended that the permission of the author should also be sought.
3. Material in unpublished letters and manuscripts is also protected and must not be published unless permission has been obtained.
4. A suitable acknowledgement of any borrowed material must always be made.

Proofs

When your manuscript is received at the Publisher it is considered to be in its final form. Proofs are not to be regarded as 'drafts'.

One set of page proofs in PDF format will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author, to be checked for typesetting/editing. No changes in, or additions to, the accepted (and subsequently edited) manuscript will be allowed at this stage. Proofreading is solely your responsibility.

A form with queries from the copy editor may accompany your proofs. Please answer all queries and make any corrections or additions required.

The Publisher reserves the right to proceed with publication if corrections are not communicated. Return corrections within two working days of receipt of the proofs. Should there be no corrections, please confirm this.

Elsevier will do everything possible to get your article corrected and published as quickly and accurately as possible. In order to do this we need your help. When you receive the (PDF) proof of your article for correction, it is important to ensure that all of your corrections are sent back to us in one communication. Subsequent corrections will not be possible, so please ensure your first sending is complete. Note that this does not mean you have any less time to make your corrections, just that only one set of corrections will be accepted.

Offprints

1. The corresponding author, at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail or, alternatively, 25 free offprints of any paper supplied. The PDF file is a watermarked version of the published article and includes a cover sheet with the journal cover image and a disclaimer outlining the terms and conditions of use.

Formulae
1. Formulae should be typewritten, if possible. Leave ample space around the formulae.
2. Subscripts and superscripts should be clear and not too small.
3. Greek letters and other non-Latin or handwritten symbols should be explained in the margin where they are first used. Take special care to show clearly the difference between zero (0) and the letter O, and between one (1) and the letter l.
4. Give the meaning of all symbols immediately after the equation in which they are first used.
5. For simple fractions use the solidus (/) instead of a horizontal line.
6. Equations should be numbered serially at the right-hand side in parentheses. In general only equations explicitly referred to in the text need be numbered.
7. The use of fractional powers instead of root signs is recommended. Also powers of e are often more conveniently denoted by exp.
8. Levels of statistical significance which can be mentioned without further explanation are *P< 0.05, **P< 0.01 and ***P<0.001.
9. In chemical formulae, valence of ions should be given as, e.g., Ca2+ not as Ca++.
10. Isotope numbers should precede the symbols, e.g., 18O.
11. The repeated writing of chemical formulae in the text is to be avoided where reasonably possible; instead, the name of the compound should be given in full. Exceptions may be made in the case of a very long name occurring very frequently or in the case of a compound being described as the end product of a gravimetric determination (e.g., phosphate as P2O5).

Footnotes
1. Footnotes should only be used if absolutely essential. In most cases it will be possible to incorporate the information in normal text.
2. If used, they should be numbered in the text, indicated by superscript numbers, and kept as short as possible.

Nomenclature
1. Authors and editors are, by general agreement, obliged to accept the rules governing biological nomenclature, as laid down in the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature, the International Code of Nomenclature of Bacteria, and the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.
2. All biotica (crops, plants, insects, birds, mammals, etc.) should be identified by their scientific names when the English term is first used, with the exception of common domestic animals.
3. All biocides and other organic compounds must be identified by their Geneva names when first used in the text. Active ingredients of all formulations should be likewise identified.
4. For chemical nomenclature, the conventions of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry and the official recommendations of the IUPAC-IUB Combined Commission on Biochemical Nomenclature should be followed.

Supplementary data

Elsevier now accepts electronic supplementary material to support and enhance your scientific research. Supplementary files offer the author additional possibilities to publish supporting applications, movies, animation sequences, high-resolution images, background datasets, sound clips and more. Supplementary files supplied will be published online alongside the electronic version of your article in Elsevier web products, including ScienceDirect: http://www.sciencedirect.com. In order to ensure that your submitted material is directly usable, please ensure that data is provided in one of our recommended file formats. Authors should submit the material in electronic format together with the article and supply a concise and descriptive caption for each file. For more detailed instructions please visit our artwork instruction pages at External link http://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions.

Proofs

When your manuscript is received at the Publisher it is considered to be in its final form. Proofs are not to be regarded as 'drafts'.

One set of page proofs in PDF format will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author, to be checked for typesetting/editing. No changes in, or additions to, the accepted (and subsequently edited) manuscript will be allowed at this stage. Proofreading is solely your responsibility.

A form with queries from the copy editor may accompany your proofs. Please answer all queries and make any corrections or additions required.

The Publisher reserves the right to proceed with publication if corrections are not communicated. Return corrections within two working days of receipt of the proofs. Should there be no corrections, please confirm this.

Elsevier will do everything possible to get your article corrected and published as quickly and accurately as possible. In order to do this we need your help. When you receive the (PDF) proof of your article for correction, it is important to ensure that all of your corrections are sent back to us in one communication. Subsequent corrections will not be possible, so please ensure your first sending is complete. Note that this does not mean you have any less time to make your corrections, just that only one set of corrections will be accepted.

Offprints
1. The corresponding author, at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail or, alternatively, 25 free offprints of any paper supplied. 100 free offprints will be given to authors of a Review article. The PDF file is a watermarked version of the published article and includes a cover sheet with the journal cover image and a disclaimer outlining the terms and conditions of use.
Last updated on May 31, 2005.
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