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PatternIQ Mining (PIQM)

Published by Sahara Digital Publication  •  eISSN: 3006-8894

Guidelines

PatternIQ Mining (PIQM)

Journal Policies and Guidelines

eISSN: 3006-8894
Publisher: Sahara Digital Publication
Publication Frequency: Quarterly
Journal Website: PIQM Journal Website

PatternIQ Mining (PIQM) is committed to maintaining high standards of scholarly publishing, editorial independence, research integrity, transparency, and ethical conduct. The following policies apply to authors, reviewers, editors, editorial board members, and all other participants involved in the publication process.

1. Author Guidelines

PIQM welcomes original, high-quality research articles that contribute to the advancement of pattern intelligence, pattern mining, artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics, computational intelligence, optimization, intelligent systems, and related interdisciplinary research areas.

Authors submitting manuscripts to PIQM must ensure that:

  • The manuscript represents original and unpublished work.
  • The manuscript is not under consideration by another journal or publisher.
  • All authors have approved the submitted version.
  • The research has been conducted in accordance with applicable ethical and legal requirements.
  • All sources, datasets, software, funding, and relevant contributions are appropriately acknowledged.
  • Any potential conflict of interest is disclosed.
  • The manuscript contains accurate, reproducible, and verifiable research findings.
  • Authors respond professionally and comprehensively to editorial and reviewer comments.

PIQM may consider the following article categories:

  • Original Research Articles
  • Review Articles
  • Systematic Reviews
  • Short Communications
  • Technical Papers
  • Methodological Papers
  • Case Studies
  • Application-Oriented Research Articles

The editorial office may reject submissions that fall outside the journal's scope or do not satisfy the required standards of originality, quality, ethical compliance, or scientific rigor.

2. Manuscript Preparation Guidelines

Authors should prepare manuscripts in a clear, logical, and professional academic style.

A standard research manuscript should normally include:

  1. Title
  2. Author names and affiliations
  3. Corresponding author details
  4. Abstract
  5. Keywords
  6. Introduction
  7. Literature Review or Related Work
  8. Materials and Methods / Methodology
  9. Proposed Framework or System Architecture, where applicable
  10. Experimental Setup
  11. Results and Discussion
  12. Conclusion and Future Work
  13. Acknowledgments, where applicable
  14. Funding Statement
  15. Conflict of Interest Statement
  16. Author Contributions
  17. Data Availability Statement
  18. References

Title

The title should be concise, specific, informative, and accurately reflect the content of the manuscript.

Abstract

The abstract should normally contain approximately 150–250 words and clearly summarize:

  • Research background or problem
  • Objective
  • Methodology
  • Major results
  • Key contribution
  • Conclusion

References, unexplained abbreviations, and excessive technical detail should generally be avoided in the abstract.

Keywords

Authors should provide 3–8 relevant keywords that support indexing and discoverability.

Figures and Tables

All figures and tables must:

  • Be numbered sequentially.
  • Have clear and informative captions.
  • Be referred to in the main text.
  • Be of sufficient quality for publication.
  • Include appropriate source acknowledgment where reproduced or adapted.

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce copyrighted material.

References

References must be accurate, complete, relevant, and consistently formatted according to the journal's prescribed reference style or manuscript template.

Authors should ensure that:

  • Every in-text citation appears in the reference list.
  • Every reference is actually cited in the manuscript.
  • DOI information is included where available.
  • References are relevant and academically appropriate.
  • Excessive self-citation or citation manipulation is avoided.

3. Submission Guidelines

Authors should submit manuscripts through the journal's designated submission process or official submission channel.

A submission should normally include:

  • Complete manuscript file
  • Title and author information
  • Corresponding author details
  • Author affiliations
  • Cover letter, where requested
  • Supplementary materials, where applicable
  • Ethics approval information, where applicable
  • Conflict of interest declaration
  • Funding information
  • Data availability statement

By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that:

  1. The work is original.
  2. The manuscript is not simultaneously submitted elsewhere.
  3. All authors approve the submission.
  4. Necessary ethical approvals and permissions have been obtained.
  5. All relevant conflicts of interest have been disclosed.

PIQM may conduct an initial editorial assessment before sending a manuscript for peer review.

4. Peer Review Guidelines

PIQM follows a double-blind peer-review process, in which the identities of authors and reviewers are intended to remain confidential during the review process.

The editorial process generally includes:

  1. Initial editorial screening.
  2. Scope and format assessment.
  3. Similarity and integrity screening.
  4. Assignment to qualified reviewers.
  5. Independent peer review.
  6. Editorial assessment of reviewer reports.
  7. Author revision, where required.
  8. Final editorial decision.

Possible editorial decisions include:

  • Accept
  • Minor Revision
  • Major Revision
  • Reject

Reviewers are selected based on subject expertise, research experience, publication background, and absence of relevant conflicts of interest.

The final decision regarding publication rests with the Editor-in-Chief or an authorized editor.

Reviewer comments should be constructive, objective, respectful, and based on the scientific quality of the manuscript.

5. Publication Ethics Guidelines

PIQM is committed to maintaining integrity throughout the publication process.

The journal does not tolerate:

  • Fabrication of data
  • Falsification or manipulation of research results
  • Plagiarism
  • Duplicate publication
  • Redundant publication
  • Improper authorship practices
  • Citation manipulation
  • Peer-review manipulation
  • Undisclosed conflicts of interest
  • Misrepresentation of research findings
  • Ethical misconduct involving human or animal research

Concerns regarding research or publication misconduct may result in:

  • Editorial investigation
  • Request for clarification or original data
  • Manuscript rejection
  • Publication of a correction
  • Expression of concern
  • Retraction
  • Notification of relevant institutions or authorities when appropriate

Editors and the publisher will seek to investigate credible concerns fairly and confidentially.

6. Plagiarism Guidelines

All submitted manuscripts must represent original work.

PIQM considers the following as potential forms of plagiarism:

  • Direct copying without appropriate citation
  • Substantial unattributed paraphrasing
  • Reuse of another author's ideas, data, figures, or methods without acknowledgment
  • Duplicate publication
  • Submission of previously published work as original research
  • Excessive or undisclosed text reuse

Authors are responsible for ensuring that all borrowed material is properly cited.

Manuscripts may undergo similarity screening before or during peer review. A similarity score alone will not determine editorial action; the editorial office will consider the nature, source, context, and extent of overlapping material.

Where significant plagiarism is identified, the manuscript may be rejected or subjected to further investigation.

7. Authorship Guidelines

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made substantial scholarly contributions to the research.

Authors should normally have contributed to one or more of the following:

  • Research conception or design
  • Methodology development
  • Data collection or acquisition
  • Data analysis or interpretation
  • Software or system development
  • Drafting the manuscript
  • Critical revision of the manuscript
  • Approval of the final version

All authors must approve the final manuscript before submission.

The corresponding author is responsible for:

  • Managing communication with the journal.
  • Confirming that all authors approve submission.
  • Coordinating responses during revision.
  • Ensuring that author information is accurate.
  • Communicating publication-related information to co-authors.

Guest, honorary, or gift authorship is not permitted.

Changes to authorship after submission should be requested in writing and may require the approval of all authors and the editorial office.

8. Copyright Guidelines

Authors retain responsibility for ensuring that their submitted work does not infringe the copyright or intellectual property rights of others.

Before publication, authors may be required to complete a publishing agreement or copyright and licensing declaration.

Authors must obtain appropriate permission for:

  • Reproduced figures
  • Tables
  • Images
  • Extended quotations
  • Third-party datasets or materials
  • Other copyrighted content

Appropriate attribution must accompany all reused or adapted material.

The publisher reserves the right to remove or correct content where copyright infringement or other intellectual property concerns are identified.

9. Licensing Guidelines

Published articles are made available under the licensing terms specified by PIQM at the time of publication.

The current journal website describes a licensing approach that permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon published work for non-commercial purposes, provided appropriate credit is given to the creator.

For clarity and consistency, PIQM should explicitly state the exact license applied to each published article, such as:

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

Under this license, users may:

  • Share the published work.
  • Adapt or build upon the work.
  • Use the material for non-commercial purposes.
  • Provide appropriate attribution.
  • Indicate whether changes have been made.

The exact licensing statement should appear on each article and on the journal website.

10. Open Access Guidelines

PIQM supports open access dissemination of scholarly research.

Published articles should be made freely accessible to readers through the journal website, subject to the applicable licensing terms.

Open access enables:

  • Free access to published research.
  • Wider dissemination.
  • Increased visibility.
  • Improved knowledge sharing.
  • Reuse in accordance with the applicable license.

PIQM currently states that it does not charge article processing or publication fees for accepted manuscripts.

Any future changes to publication fees or open-access policies should be clearly announced on the journal website before they apply to new submissions.

11. Conflict of Interest Guidelines

Authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial board members must disclose any relationships or circumstances that could reasonably influence their professional judgment.

Potential conflicts may include:

  • Financial relationships
  • Employment relationships
  • Institutional affiliations
  • Research collaborations
  • Personal relationships
  • Intellectual property interests
  • Competitive interests
  • Funding relationships

Authors should include a statement such as:

Conflict of Interest: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

If conflicts exist, they must be clearly described.

Reviewers and editors should decline participation in the evaluation of a manuscript when a significant conflict of interest could compromise impartiality.

12. Research Ethics Guidelines

Research involving human participants, animals, personal information, or sensitive data must comply with applicable institutional, national, and international ethical requirements.

Human Research

Where applicable, authors must provide:

  • Name of the approving ethics committee or institutional review board.
  • Approval number or reference number, where available.
  • Confirmation that informed consent was obtained.
  • Information regarding protection of participant privacy and confidentiality.

Animal Research

Research involving animals must follow applicable welfare and ethical standards.

Authors should provide information regarding:

  • Ethical approval.
  • Institutional oversight.
  • Animal welfare procedures.
  • Methods used to minimize unnecessary suffering.

Privacy and Confidentiality

Personally identifiable information should not be published unless legally and ethically appropriate and supported by necessary consent.

13. Data Sharing Guidelines

PIQM encourages transparency, reproducibility, and responsible research data sharing.

Authors are encouraged to provide access to:

  • Research datasets
  • Source code
  • Algorithms
  • Experimental configurations
  • Supplementary materials
  • Simulation parameters

Where possible, authors should deposit data or code in an appropriate public repository.

Each manuscript should include a Data Availability Statement.

Examples include:

Data Availability: The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

or

Data Availability: The dataset and source code are publicly available at the repository identified in this manuscript.

Data may be restricted where disclosure would violate:

  • Participant privacy
  • Ethical obligations
  • Legal requirements
  • Confidentiality agreements
  • Intellectual property restrictions

14. Correction and Retraction Guidelines

PIQM is committed to maintaining the integrity and reliability of the scholarly record.

Corrections

A correction may be issued when an error:

  • Affects the clarity or interpretation of an article.
  • Involves author information.
  • Involves data, figures, or tables.
  • Requires clarification but does not invalidate the main findings.

Corrections should clearly identify the original article and describe the nature of the amendment.

Retractions

An article may be retracted when serious concerns arise regarding:

  • Fabricated or falsified data
  • Plagiarism
  • Major ethical violations
  • Duplicate publication
  • Serious methodological errors that invalidate the findings
  • Manipulation of the peer-review or publication process

A retraction notice should clearly identify the affected article and explain the reason for the retraction where appropriate.

The original article may remain accessible as part of the scholarly record but should be clearly marked as retracted.

Expressions of Concern

An expression of concern may be issued when an investigation is ongoing and substantial concerns have been identified but a final conclusion has not yet been reached.

15. Complaints and Appeals Guidelines

PIQM provides a mechanism for authors, reviewers, readers, and other stakeholders to raise complaints or appeal editorial decisions.

Complaints may relate to:

  • Editorial decisions
  • Peer-review procedures
  • Publication ethics
  • Conflicts of interest
  • Editorial conduct
  • Alleged misconduct

An appeal should:

  1. Be submitted in writing.
  2. Clearly identify the manuscript or publication.
  3. Explain the reason for the appeal.
  4. Provide relevant supporting information.

Appeals should not merely repeat disagreement with a reviewer or editorial decision. They should identify a significant procedural, factual, ethical, or scientific concern.

Appeals will be reviewed by an appropriate editor or independent party where necessary.

The outcome of the appeal process will be communicated to the complainant.

16. Advertising Guidelines

Advertising, sponsorship, and commercial activities must not influence editorial decisions.

PIQM maintains a clear separation between:

  • Editorial content
  • Peer-review decisions
  • Advertising activities
  • Commercial interests

Any advertising displayed through the journal platform should:

  • Be clearly identifiable as advertising.
  • Be independent of editorial decision-making.
  • Not influence manuscript acceptance or rejection.
  • Not contain misleading, deceptive, or inappropriate content.

Acceptance of advertising does not imply endorsement by PIQM, the editorial board, or the publisher.

17. Archiving and Preservation Guidelines

PIQM recognizes the importance of long-term preservation and accessibility of published scholarly content.

The journal supports the preservation of:

  • Published articles
  • Metadata
  • DOI information
  • Supplementary materials, where applicable

PIQM's current website lists multiple indexing and archiving or discovery services, including Google Scholar, Scilit, WorldCat (OCLC), dblp Computer Science Bibliography, and DOAJ.

The journal should continue to pursue reliable digital preservation and archiving arrangements to ensure long-term accessibility of its published content.

If an article is corrected, retracted, or updated, the publication record should be maintained in a transparent manner.

18. AI and Generative AI Guidelines

PIQM recognizes that artificial intelligence and generative AI tools may be used as research or writing-support technologies. Their use must be transparent and responsible.

Permitted Uses

AI tools may be used for activities such as:

  • Language improvement
  • Grammar checking
  • Code assistance
  • Data analysis
  • Software development
  • Literature organization
  • Image processing
  • Research workflow support

Author Responsibility

Authors remain fully responsible for:

  • The accuracy of all submitted content.
  • Verification of facts and references.
  • Originality of the manuscript.
  • Ethical use of AI-generated content.
  • Protection of confidential or sensitive information.

AI tools must not be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility for the content, approve the final manuscript, or accept accountability for research integrity.

Where AI or generative AI has made a substantial contribution to research methods, analysis, software development, or manuscript preparation, authors should disclose the nature and extent of its use.

Authors must not submit fabricated references, manipulated data, misleading AI-generated results, or synthetic content presented as genuine research findings.

Confidential manuscripts should not be uploaded to external AI systems without appropriate authorization.

Suggested Disclosure Statement

AI Disclosure: The authors used [name of AI tool] for [specific purpose]. The authors reviewed, verified, and take full responsibility for all content included in this manuscript.

19. Reviewer Guidelines

Reviewers play an essential role in maintaining the scientific quality and integrity of PIQM.

Reviewers should:

  • Accept reviews only within their area of expertise.
  • Declare potential conflicts of interest.
  • Maintain confidentiality.
  • Evaluate manuscripts objectively.
  • Provide constructive and evidence-based comments.
  • Avoid personal criticism.
  • Complete reviews within the agreed timeline.
  • Identify relevant ethical or integrity concerns.

Reviewers should evaluate:

  1. Originality
  2. Scientific significance
  3. Methodological rigor
  4. Data quality
  5. Reproducibility
  6. Validity of results
  7. Adequacy of analysis
  8. Quality of discussion
  9. Relevance of references
  10. Clarity of presentation
  11. Ethical compliance

Reviewers must not:

  • Use confidential manuscript information for personal benefit.
  • Share manuscripts without authorization.
  • Contact authors directly regarding the manuscript.
  • Allow personal, institutional, or competitive interests to influence the review.
  • Use generative AI or external tools to process confidential manuscripts where doing so could compromise confidentiality or violate journal policy.

Reviewer recommendations are advisory. Final publication decisions are made by the responsible editor.

20. Editorial Board Guidelines

Editorial board members are expected to support the academic quality, integrity, visibility, and development of PIQM.

The current journal website identifies an Editor-in-Chief and an international editorial board representing institutions and researchers from multiple countries.

Editorial board members should:

  • Promote high standards of scholarly publishing.
  • Support the journal's scope and mission.
  • Provide subject expertise.
  • Assist with manuscript evaluation when appropriate.
  • Recommend qualified reviewers.
  • Identify emerging research areas.
  • Encourage high-quality submissions.
  • Maintain confidentiality.
  • Disclose conflicts of interest.
  • Avoid discrimination or bias.
  • Protect editorial independence.

Editors must make decisions based on:

  • Scientific merit
  • Originality
  • Relevance to journal scope
  • Methodological quality
  • Ethical compliance
  • Clarity and significance

Editorial decisions must not be influenced by:

  • Author nationality
  • Gender
  • Ethnicity
  • Religion
  • Political beliefs
  • Institutional affiliation
  • Commercial interests
  • Personal relationships

Editorial board membership should be reviewed periodically to ensure that members remain active and continue to contribute appropriately to the journal's development.

General Editorial Independence

PIQM maintains editorial independence in manuscript evaluation and publication decisions.

Editorial decisions should be based solely on scholarly merit, relevance, originality, methodological quality, ethical compliance, and the outcome of the peer-review process.

The publisher, advertisers, sponsors, institutions, or other commercial entities must not improperly influence editorial decisions.

Contact and Policy Updates

PIQM may periodically review and update these policies to reflect developments in scholarly publishing, research integrity, publication ethics, technology, and applicable legal or regulatory requirements.

Authors, reviewers, editors, and readers are encouraged to consult the latest version of these guidelines before submitting, reviewing, editing, or publishing content with PIQM.

For manuscript-related matters, authors should use the journal's official submission and communication channels available through the PIQM website.

PatternIQ Mining (PIQM)
eISSN: 3006-8894
Published by Sahara Digital Publication
Publication Frequency: Quarterly