Journal profile · Robotics
Autonomous Robots
ISSN 0929-5593 · eISSN 1573-7527 · Springer US · NETHERLANDS · Bimonthly · Founded 1994
Autonomous Robots: CAS Zone 3 · Computer Science (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 5.93; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,990; median 232 days to acceptance (84 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 49 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Autonomous Robots is published by Springer US and is in Zone 3 of Computer Science in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Robotic Path Planning Algorithms, Robotics and Sensor-Based Localization and Robot Manipulation and Learning, together about 38.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The goal of Autonomous Robots is to report on the theory and applications of the computational aspects of robotic systems capable of some degree of self-sufficiency. Thus, the journal is aimed at the advances in robotics toward adaptation, autonomy, interaction, intelligence, manipulation, and mobility in an unstructured world. The term `robot' implies that the systems described here are capable of performing purposeful behaviors in the real world. They obtain inputs from the world through sensors and act upon the world through actuators. The connection between sensor data and actuation may result from advanced sensor data interpretation or it may involve complex decision making, goal interpretation and other aspects of reasoning. Most autonomous systems substantially change the environment they perceive, whether it be through navigation, manipulation or a combination of both. Publication preference will be given to papers which include performance data on physical robots in the real world. In order to be considered for publication, papers which include only mathematical or simulation results must describe in sufficient detail a path for the transition from theory or simulation to the real world. Papers published in these pages will report on original research in such areas as: Computational architectures for autonomous systems Human-robot interaction Learning and adaptation in robots Manipulation and locomotion Multi-robot systems Planning and navigation Studies of autonomous robot systems Sensing and perception Self-calibration and self-repair for robots
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Robotics
Editor-in-chief Gaurav S. SukhatmePublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 2%); most named United States 30, Japan 8, Germany 4, South Korea 3, Italy 2 (59 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Robotic Path Planning AlgorithmsComputer Science15%
- Robotics and Sensor-Based LocalizationEngineering14%
- Robot Manipulation and LearningEngineering9.7%
- Modular Robots and Swarm IntelligenceEngineering6.7%
- Robotic Locomotion and ControlEngineering6.4%
- Distributed Control Multi-Agent SystemsComputer Science5.2%
- Reinforcement Learning in RoboticsComputer Science3.9%
- Prosthetics and Rehabilitation RoboticsEngineering3.3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Computer Science Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Robotics | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Computer Science Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Robotics | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Computer Science Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Computer Science | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Robotics | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
EI CompendexINSPECDBLPCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, ACM Digital Library, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 5.93LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 6Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 5.1Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 13.6LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.5LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 2.27LetPub ·
- h-index
- 97LetPub ·
- h-index
- 154OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,266OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.17OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 1.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 50%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 47LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 366,100Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,739 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 34 | 22 | 23 |
| 2025 | 49 | 29 | 188 |
| 2024 | 31 | 20 | 150 |
| 2023 | 73 | 44 | 1,615 |
| 2022 | 55 | 28 | 1,216 |
| 2021 | 68 | 30 | 1,366 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
232 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 159 days – 298 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 37 days (84 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 269 days
- Sample
- 84 articles with submission and acceptance dates (93 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- 6–12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 3 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 3,990 / EUR 2,990 / GBP 2,590 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Open calls for papers3, by deadline
Publisher websiteWhat to prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Reference style
- APA
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Trial registration / reporting guidelines
- AI use Generative AI Images
Please check Springer’s policy on generative AI images and make sure your work adheres to the principles described therein. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Author Contributions
Authors are encouraged to include a statement that specifies the contribution of every author to the research and preparation of the manuscript. Example statements: “All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by [full name], [full name] and [full name]. The first draft of the manuscript was written by [full name] an…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Competing Interests
Authors are required to disclose financial or non-financial interests that are directly or indirectly related to the work submitted for publication. Interests within the last 3 years of beginning the work (conducting the research and preparing the work for submission) should be reported. Interests outside the 3-year time frame must be disclosed if they could reasonably be perceived as influencing …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data Availability
All original research must include a Data Availability Statement. Data Availability Statements should provide information on where data supporting the results reported in the article can be found. Statements should include, where applicable, hyperlinks to publicly archived datasets analysed or generated during the study. When it is not possible to share research data publicly, for instance when in…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Compliance with Ethical Standards
To ensure objectivity and transparency in research and to ensure that accepted principles of ethical and professional conduct have been followed, authors should include information regarding sources of funding, potential conflicts of interest (financial or non-financial), informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved an…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Open Choice articles do not require transfer of copyright as the copyright remains with the author. In opting for open access, the author(s) agree to publish the article under a Creative Commons license. Details of the OA licences offered to authors can be found on the individual journal website, in the journal's How to publish with us guide. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Autonomous Robots, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Single-blind peer review
This journal follows a single-blind reviewing procedure. This journal also publishes special/guest-edited issues. The peer review process for these articles is the same as the peer review process of the journal in general. Additionally, if a guest editor authors an article in their issue/collection, they will not handle the peer review process. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Trial registration / reporting guidelines Clinical Trial Registration
The World Health Organization (WHO) definition of a clinical trial is "any research study that prospectively assigns human participants or groups of humans to one or more health-related interventions to evaluate the effects on health outcomes". The WHO defines health interventions as “A health intervention is an act performed for, with or on behalf of a person or population whose purpose is to ass…
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Springer US
- Country or region
- NETHERLANDS
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1994
- ISSN
- 0929-5593
- Electronic ISSN
- 1573-7527
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Autonomous Robots
What CAS zone is Autonomous Robots in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Autonomous Robots is in Zone 3 of Computer Science, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence / Robotics. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Computer Science. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Autonomous Robots?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 5.93; CiteScore 13.6, h-index 154.
How long does peer review take at Autonomous Robots?
Based on the dates recorded on 84 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 232 days (interquartile range 159–298 days); authors report an average review time of 6–12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly easy”. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Autonomous Robots?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Reference style: APA; Suggested reviewers: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Autonomous Robots based?
Of the 59 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 2%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (30), Japan (8) and Germany (4). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Autonomous Robots?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Autonomous Robots is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists EI Compendex, INSPEC, DBLP and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Autonomous Robots open access, and what is the APC?
Autonomous Robots is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,990.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .