Animal–Computer Interaction: Advances and Opportunities

Dear Colleagues,

Animal–computer interaction (ACI) is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the design of technology for, with and from the perspective of all species of animals. In some cases, interactions with technology are explicit and direct, requiring specially designed interfaces between system and user; in others, the technology may play a hidden role, monitoring and analysing an animal’s behaviour or changing their environment. The emphasis on animal welfare gives rise to philosophical considerations, as well as driving new research methods and technologies.

This Special Issue shares new ideas and developments in the field of ACI, including those that advance scientific knowledge about animals, enhance connections between species, improve the stewardship of animals in human care, and articulate the design of systems that offer greater autonomy to other species. We invite submissions including original reports, reviews, methods, perspectives or design fictions.  These may address, but are not limited to, the following themes:

• Environmental enrichment in a variety of contexts, including zoos, farms, laboratories, shelters and domestic spaces;
• Support for working animals, including service animals and those that replace human labour or work cooperatively with humans; 
• Studies in animal perception and cognition; 
• Technological methods for measuring and analysing behaviour;
• The assessment and promotion of emotional health and wellbeing;
• Techniques for interspecies communication;
• Inclusive designs aimed at enriching wildlife in urban or rural contexts;
• Techniques for supporting conservation;
• Public education and conservation awareness;  
• Training and autonomy.

Dr. Fiona French
Dr. Christopher Flynn Martin
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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-anonymized 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.