All paper categories undergo full peer review.

• A research paper is a full-length, technically original research document that reports results of major and archival value to the specific community of engineers that comprise the journal audience (recommended length of 12,000 words).
• A technical brief reports results that are of significant and archival value to the engineering community, but with more limited scope and length than a research paper; it may contain a preliminary report of a result not yet fully developed or interpreted, or a commentary on a previous result (recommended length of 4,000 words).
• A design innovation paper presents scholarly innovation in design that has technological implications; the archival value of such papers is in the innovation part of a design and not necessarily in the theory (recommended length 7,000 words). This type of paper is intended for outstanding work in mechanical design that is concept oriented and does not necessarily require detailed theoretical or experimental development and analysis. Actual impact on design practice and a working device are important considerations for acceptance. 

Since 2002 the overall paper acceptance rate (number of papers accepted or published to number of papers submitted) is about 30%

You should first look at its status in the Journal Tool. Depending on what stage it is in, you can look at the estimated time periods in the review process, and if the upper bounds are exceeded you may contact the Associate Editor or Editor-in-Chief.

It is a critical consideration. Poor language text will not be sent for review. Tentatively accepted papers must adhere to high quality language text standards prior to final acceptance. Professional editorial help may be necessary for final publication, as the JMD editorial staff cannot provide such a service.

Not directly. In fact a plurality of JMD papers comes from the international community. Indirectly, however, authors familiar and competent in the prevailing scholarly standards will have a much higher chance of publishing at JMD. Studying and referencing previous articles from JMD is very helpful in this respect. For more discussion on this topic see the JMD September 2008 Editorial: Globalization and Internationalism.

The Journal of Mechanisms and Robotics (JMR) evolved in part from the JMD community, see the JMD January 2008 Editorial: A New Year, a New Editor, and a New Journal. In general, research work in mechanisms and robotics aimed at design synthesis would belong to JMD, while theoretical analysis work would fit better in JMR. The respective Technical Editors are re-routing submissions using this main criterion. For a commentary on analysis vs. synthesis, see the JMD March 2008 Editorial: Design analysis and synthesis.

Yes. There was a special issue published in July 2007 with an accompanying editorial explaining its rationale, see JMD July 2007 Editorial: Design engineering education. Since 2009 there has been a JMD Associate Editor appointed specifically for design education papers.

Building a device that demonstrates a theory is the essence of engineering. While this is often not practical for many design studies published in JMD, it is frequently a requirement for design innovation submissions or submissions detailing a device. In such cases, a “paper design study” without experimental data and testing to back it up is unlikely to be reviewed favorably.

Proofs are usually sent within 5-7 days after all copyright forms are approved and any required invoices are paid. Please plan to review and return any corrections within 48 hours to ensure your paper is published as soon as possible. 

ASME imposes a 12-typeset page limit for research papers and mandatory page charges are assessed for longer papers. If this limit is exceeded, authors should consult with the editors about shortening the paper. If accepted for publication, a page charge is assessed for each page over 12 typeset pages (approx. 10,000 words plus 5-8 figures or tables).  An invoice for any excess pages will be sent when the paper is typeset.  Upon request, the Editor of the journal may waive excess page charges on a case-by-case basis.

Yes. JMD publishes reviews for recent books or software within the JMD topics of interest. The ASME official guidelines for these reviews are: “A book review is a brief, critical and unbiased evaluation of a current book determined to be of interest to the journal audience. A technology review is a brief, critical and unbiased evaluation of a current technology, application, or product determined to be of interest to the journal audience. Publication of a submitted book or technology review is at the discretion of the Editor. The suggested length for this type of submittal is 1 to 4 pages.” Clearly, authors of such reviews must have no conflict of interest (e.g., financial or other vested interest in the book or product), to ascertain unbiased evaluation. The Editor will make a decision within 3-4 weeks, possibly after seeking advice from topical associate editors or other subject matter experts.

Not directly. Occasionally, authors, publishers and vendors send JMD a free copy of a particular book or product and ask JMD’s Editor to conduct or obtain reviews of that book or product. This is NOT an effective way to have a review conducted. Instead, if authors, publishers or vendors wish a review to appear in JMD, they should contact an expert in the field and request that the expert undertake and submit the review (without compensation). 

Supplemental text and images should be included as a separate section at the end of the PDF submitted for review. 

1. Insert placeholders for each mention of Supplementary Material within the paper. For example, “[See Supplemental Material]” or “[See Supplemental Figure 1].”  The exact language will be updated by ASME before the final proof.
2. Supplemental Material in table or text form should appear as a separately labeled section at the end of the manuscript PDF file and either at the end of the manuscript .docx file or as a separate LaTex file, clearly labeled with some variation of “Supplemental.”
3. All supplemental figures and tables must be numbered separately from the manuscript figures and tables beginning with “1” (e.g. Supp. Fig. 1, Supp. Fig. 2).
4. All supplemental figure files must be uploaded as individual tiff or eps files with the filename including some variation of the label “Supplemental.”
5. Please note that Supplemental Material is not edited or formatted by ASME and will appear exactly as it is submitted.

Supplemental Material refers to files related to, but not essential to, a specific paper. Supplemental Material is only considered for a Research Paper or a Review Article.  A Paper or Article must be complete and stand-alone without the Supplementary Material.

Supplementary Material typically includes relevant material that does not form part of the main paper, which may include additional data such as computer code, tables, figures, text, and even videos. Supplementary Material is hosted on the ASME Digital Collection only, and does not print. Any Supplemental Material provided goes online “as is” and is neither typeset nor edited.  Supplemental Material will not appear in the print version. It will appear as a link within the body of the paper in the online version. 


Appendices will appear at the end of the paper in the print and online versions. All Appendices are included within the body of the paper. Appendices are reviewed, edited, and typeset.