Instructions to authors for the preparation of IFAC meeting papers

Introduction

IFAC always requires authors to present their paper at the meeting. If an accepted paper is not presented, it will be:

• omitted from the Proceedings of the meeting
• excluded from consideration in the IFAC journals and affiliated journals
• removed from the index on the Elsevier IFAC Publications website

Full responsibility for the paper rests with the author. The author must have taken the necessary steps to obtain permission to use any material that might be protected by copyright. Authors must agree to transfer copyright of their paper to IFAC, by signing the Copyright Transfer Form, before the paper can be accepted for the meeting.

Submission of papers

Manuscripts must be sent to the meeting organisers in the manner specified by them for your particular meeting. Generally, manuscripts are required either as camera-ready-copy (CRC), or in electronic format as Word, Postscript or PDF files. Authors should ensure that, whichever method of transmittal is required, the following style and layout guidelines are adhered to exactly and that completed papers do not exceed the stated page limit. Papers which do not conform to this style may be omitted from the preprints or the Proceedings.

All papers must be in English. Use of the first person ("I", "we", etc.) should be avoided throughout. Authors whose native tongue is not English are advised to obtain the help of a suitable colleague to ensure that the typescript is clear and grammatically correct.

Authors should refer to the guidelines issued by the organisers for their particular meeting, to determine whether the paper is required in either camera-ready copy or electronic format. Particular attention should then be paid to the following guidelines:

For camera-ready copy:	For electronic transmittal:
The name of the author and page number must be written on the reverse of every sheet, using light blue pencil. Sheets must not be folded.	Files should be in Word, Postscript or PDF format and should be formatted for direct printing as for camera-ready copy. Figures and tables should be embedded and not supplied separately. Large files should be compressed as zip archives before submission. Unless otherwise stated by the meeting organisers, the maximum file size for a regular paper is 1.5 MB.
Completed papers should be sent by registered mail or courier service to the address specified by the meeting organisers. Ensure that the requested number of copies is enclosed.	Detailed instructions and guidelines for the preparation of PDF and Postscript files are available here. Note in particular that for PDF files, all fonts should be embedded, to minimise the risk of compatibility problems.

Format and layout instructions

Papers should be prepared in double column format suitable for direct printing onto A4 paper (8.3in x 11.7in/210mm x 297mm) paper, justified if possible, using Times Roman 10pt typeface. Ensure that the typing area (centred) matches exactly that shown in the specimen pages. Do not number pages on the front, as page numbers will be added separately for the preprints and the Proceedings.

The first page should include: (a) title (maximum 10 words); (b) each author’s name and affiliation, including present address; (c) abstract (50-100 words), giving a brief account of the most relevant aspects of the paper; (d) 5-10 keywords taken from the official IFAC keyword list (click here for the up-to-date list).

Use single line spacing throughout. Do not indent the initial lines of paragraphs. Leave a line clear between paragraphs.

Paper structure

Papers should be prepared in the following order:

• Introduction, to explain the background work, the practical applications and the nature and purpose of the paper
• Body, to contain the primary message, with clear lines of thought and validation of the techniques described
• Conclusion
• Acknowledgements (when appropriate)
• References
• Appendices (when appropriate).

Section headings should be centred, in capital letters and numbered consecutively, starting with the Introduction. Sub-section headings should be in capital and lower-case italic letters, numbered 1.1, 1.2, etc, and left justified, with second and subsequent lines indented.

All figures and equations should be numbered with Arabic numerals (1,2,...n)

Tables

All tables should be numbered with Arabic numerals. Headings should be placed above tables, underlined and centred. Leave one line space between the heading and the table.

Only horizontal lines should be used within a table, to distinguish the column headings from the body of the table.

Illustrations

All photographs, schemas, graphs and diagrams are to be referred to as figures.

Line drawings should be original and not photocopies. In the case of electronic files, good quality scans or true electronic output are required. Low-quality scans are not acceptable. Figures and tables must be embedded into the text and not supplied separately.

Lettering and symbols should be clearly defined either in the caption or in a legend provided as part of the figure. Figures should be placed at the top or bottom of a column wherever possible, as close as possible to the first reference to them in the paper. They should be restricted to single-column width unless this would make them illegible.

Do not use coloured photographs or figures.

The figure number and caption should be typed below the illustration, left justified, with subsequent lines indented.

General considerations

Avoid hyphenation at the end of a line.

Symbols denoting vectors and matrices should be indicated in bold type. Scalar variable names should normally be expressed using italics.

Weights and measures should be expressed in SI units. All non-standard abbreviations or symbols must be defined when first mentioned, or a glossary provided.

Footnotes should be avoided if possible. Necessary footnotes should be denoted in the text by consecutive superscript numbers. The footnotes should be typed single spaced, and in smaller typesize, at the foot of the column in which they are mentioned, and separated from the main text by a line extending to just over halfway across the column (see sample pages). Leave a one-line space above and below this line.

References

In the text the surname of the author and the year of publication of the reference should be given. Two or more references by the same authors published in the same year should be differentiated by letters a,b,c etc. For references with more than two authors, text citations should be shortened to the first name followed by et al.

Jones (1965, 1968a, b, 1971b) discovered that...
Recent results (Brown and Carter, 1985; Green et al., 1986) indicate that...

Only essential references, which are directly referred to in the text, should be included in the reference list.

References must be listed in alphabetical order at the end of the paper. References to the same author(s) should be in chronological order.

Journal references should include: author’s surname and initials; initials and surnames of remaining authors; year of publication (in brackets); article title (where provided); abbreviated journal title (in italics), volume number and page numbers.

References to books should include: author’s surname and initials; initials and surnames of remaining authors; year of publication (in brackets); the book title (in italics; the name of the publisher and place of publication. References to multi-author works should include after the year of publication: the chapter title (where provided); "In:" followed by book title (in italics); initials and name(s) of editors(s) in brackets; volume number and pages; the name of the publisher and place of publication.

References should appear in the following form:

Style files and sample pages

Sample pages illustrating the application of the above instructions are available in Word and PDF formats.

For authors working in LaTeX 2ε, a class file is available. The class file takes care of the formatting details according to the above instructions, allowing authors to concentrate on the article's structure and content.

Checklist To assist authors further in preparing their papers in the correct way, a checklist is available here. The checklist covers the most important aspects of the IFAC style and should be consulted carefully before the paper is submitted.

Offprints

Offprints may be purchased at a reasonable cost if ordered when the paper is accepted for publication. An order form is available by clicking here.

Copyright

All authors are required to transfer copyright of their paper to IFAC. A forms for the transfer of copyright is available on this website by clicking here.

Important: the copyright transfer form must be returned to the meeting organisers by regular mail, irrespective of whether the paper itself is required in camera-ready or electronic format.

Please note:

• Papers may be omitted from the Preprints (by the Editor) or from the Proceedings (by the Publisher) if they do not conform to the above instructions.
• Have you consulted the checklist?

Overview | Regulations | Instructions | Samples | Keyword list | Copyright form | Offprint form | Check and submit