Guidelines for Authors prior to submitting to "Komunikácie"

Before initiating the submission process, authors must review the 'Focus and Scope' section to verify that the manuscript aligns with the journal’s core thematic areas.

We exclusively evaluate pioneering, peer-reviewed research papers centred on transport systems and infrastructure.
Submitted manuscripts must report on robust, scientifically sound experimentation, deliver substantial novel insights, and incorporate contemporary, high-impact literature from the respective discipline.

Authors are required to format their work using either the official LaTeX or Microsoft Word templates.

Comprehensive instructions are accessible within the Author guidelines segment.

The manuscript layout must conform to the following sequence:

Preliminary information: title, list of authors, affiliations, abstract, keywords.
Core scientific content: introduction, methodology and materials, experimental results, discussion, and conclusions (optional).
End matter: Acknowledgments and funding, conflict of interest, generative AI disclosure, author contributions, data availability statement, references, supplementary materials (if applicable).

Formulate a distinctive and succinct title.

The title serves as the primary tool for driving reader engagement and maximising study metrics.
Construct a precise, compact title embedded with strategic metadata terms to enhance indexation and discoverability across academic databases.

Ensure precise reporting of authorship and institutional settings.

Provide full legal first and last names, with the option to include middle initials.
Every contributor must indicate their active professional affiliation.
Precision in these details is paramount, as discrepancies frequently result in citation tracking errors and misattributed metrics.
In the absence of an institutional backing, both currently and during the research phase, the designation "Independent Researcher" must be selected.

Draft a compelling, self-contained abstract.

The abstract operates as a condensed summary designed to outline the study’s framework and key outcomes.
It enables target audiences to quickly determine the relevance of the paper to their own work.
Ensure it effectively communicates the core breakthrough and broader impact of your study.

Incorporate strategic keywords to optimise database indexing.

Properly selected keywords guarantee that the manuscript is easily indexed by global search engines, abstracting networks, and our repository.
Select technical phrases that accurately route target readers to your publication.

Formulate a concise introductory segment.

The introduction must position the investigation within the current academic landscape and justify its execution.
Clearly delineate the core objectives, research questions, and the underlying hypotheses under evaluation.
It is mandatory to critique existing foundational literature and credit milestone publications.
Where applicable, address competing theories or scientific debates.
Conclude by summarising the primary goal and overarching breakthroughs, ensuring the text remains comprehensible to interdisciplinary researchers.

Detail the materials and methods section rigorously.

Methodological frameworks and experimental setups must be documented with absolute transparency to permit independent replication and subsequent verification by external peers.
Novel techniques require exhaustive descriptions, whereas conventional approaches may be summarised briefly alongside appropriate citations.
Specify the exact software versions utilised and clarify whether proprietary or open-source code is publicly accessible.
Register all relevant pre-registration identifiers.
Furthermore, authors must explicitly detail any integration of novel AI/ML methodological frameworks in executing the study.

Present an objective and clear results narrative.

Deliver a transparent, factual reporting of the experimental data, accompanied by data interpretations and immediate logical deductions derived from the testing.

Construct an analytical discussion.

Interpret the outcomes by directly contrasting them with historical data and the original hypotheses.
Situate the insights within the broadest academic paradigm possible, openly address the boundaries (limitations) of the study design, and outline prospective pathways for subsequent investigations.

Incorporate a conclusions section (optional).

Though non-mandatory, this section can be integrated to synthesise the final takeaways of the project.

Disclose acknowledgments and financial backing.

This segment is designated for recognising institutional, technical, or administrative aid, as well as material contributions.
Listing all financial sponsors and funding streams is compulsory.
Explicitly specify any grants that financed the research or subsidised the processing charges of the publication.

Declare conflict of interest.

Authors must formally state any financial relations, personal dynamics, or professional obligations that could be viewed as compromising the objectivity of the reported data.
Authors must explicitly define what control, if any, the funding bodies exerted over the experimental design, data management, manuscript drafting, or editorial choices.
If the sponsors had no involvement, a formal statement declaring this neutrality is mandatory.

Disclose the use of generative AI.

Mandatorily report any application of generative artificial intelligence tools for tasks such as text composition, data synthesis, algorithmic design, or data analytics.
If applicable, the following verbatim declaration must be embedded: “During the preparation of this manuscript, the author(s) used [NAME OF TOOL/SERVICE] for the purpose of [REASON]. After using this tool/service, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content of the manuscript and take full responsibility for the final content.”
Disclosures are not required for standard text-editing software functions (e.g., spelling rectifications, stylistic polishing, or basic grammar adjustment tools).

Compile the bibliography.

Dedicate sufficient oversight to studying the "Author guidelines" to ensure full compliance with the journal’s specific citation mechanics and bibliography styling.

Define author contributions section.

Every individual credited as an author must have delivered a substantial impact on the conceptualisation, execution, data processing, software engineering, or drafting of the study.
Furthermore, all participants must review and approve the submitted draft, consenting to hold mutual accountability for the integrity and validity of the entire work.

Formulate a data availability statement section.

Specify where the underlying data corroborating the published findings are hosted, providing permanent hyperlinks to public repositories or generated datasets where applicable.

Inventory supplemental files (Appendices).

Catalog all auxiliary materials hosted alongside the main paper (such as raw data tables, complex charts, or nomenclature lists), ensuring each item is paired with a distinct identifier.

Prioritise linguistic precision and editorial quality.

Manuscripts must be free of grammatical flaws. Authors may utilise professional academic editing services or engage peer colleagues to evaluate the manuscript prior to final submission.

Standardise figures, diagrams, and tables.

Every visual asset must feature an independent, descriptive caption. Integrate all visual elements directly into the text narrative immediately following their initial mention, adhering to a strict numerical sequence.
All integrated text within graphics must be in English and follow standard mathematical notation (e.g., proper minus signs '−' instead of hyphens, and decimal points '.' instead of commas).
The graphical output must be clean, legible, and completely unobstructed.
Every table and chart requires a concise, informative heading. Decipher any symbolic notation or flags (e.g., *, **, †, ‡, #) in the immediate caption area.
Be cautious of intellectual property infringements when repurposing graphics from external publications. Secure explicit reproduction licensing from the respective copyright holders before submission. Authors are responsible for any clearance fees. All approved items must include an explicit credit line in the caption.

Final compliance validation

Verify that comprehensive oversight has been dedicated to legal and ethical matters, including publication ethics, copyright clearance, author credits, graphical layouts, citation metrics, and artificial intelligence integration.
Submission is contingent upon all co-authors validating the finalised manuscript and confirming they have read the Author guidelines.