Animal–Computer Interaction: New Horizons in Animal Welfare

Dear Colleagues,

Improving animal welfare through animal-centered technologies, designed from the perspective and for the benefit of animals, is a fundamental aim for the field of animal–computer interaction (ACI). Particularly with the rise of technologies such as artificial intelligence and the internet of things, technological interventions have the potential to radically transform welfare provisioning by:

• monitoring and processing objectively behavioural and physiological data to improve our understanding of the immediate and long-term psychological and physical needs of animals;
• providing dynamic settings and opportunities for animals to fulfill their species-specific behavioral and cognitive needs, as well as biologically appropriate levels of control over their environment and activities.

For this Special Issue, we invite contributions that exemplify how an animal-centered perspective on the design of computing technologies may inform novel approaches for improving the welfare of animals in different contexts, whether in managed or wild settings. We also invite contributions that discuss what limitations such approaches might suffer from, what risks they might pose and how these might be addressed. We particularly welcome transdisciplinary contributions among researchers and practitioners with expertise in interaction design, ergonomics, software engineering, artificial intelligence, ubiquitous computing, animal cognition, behavior, welfare and management and other relevant fields.

Prof. Dr. Clara Mancini
Dr. Jake Veasey
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• animal–computer interaction
• interaction design
• animal-centered research
• animal-centered design
• animal-centered computing
• animal-centered technology
• animal welfare
• animal behavior
• animal cognition
• animal management
• animal welfare approaches
• animal ethics