The following publishing processes apply to peer-reviewed material that is published in the Proceedings of the IEEE.

Regular Papers . A regular paper that is published in this journal always falls into one of two categories based on the circumstances the paper was submitted. Papers are classified as invited or contributed. An invited paper is initiated by an editorial board member of this journal, in the form of a suggestion of a particular topic by a particular author. Upon approval of the idea by the editor-in-chief, the managing editor issues a formal invitation to the suggested author on behalf of the editor-in-chief and the editorial board. The letter briefly describes the topic that has been proposed and solicits a brief proposal. When the author provides a proposal, it is reviewed by members of the editorial board. All comments/concerns are provided initially to the editor-in-chief and subsequently to the original author for their resolution and consideration. After receiving final editorial board approval, the author writes the paper and submits it to Manuscript Central at http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/pieee, where it will undergo the peer review process.

Contributed papers (those that have not been invited) are also always welcomed. All papers should be submitted to Manuscript Central at: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/pieee. We do encourage the submission of proposals to the Editorial Office prior to submitting a full-length paper, though, to help refine the ultimate coverage and focus of the paper. Such papers that appear to merit additional consideration and review are dispatched to an editorial board member for pre-screening and comment. Comments are provided to the author if the editorial board member determines that the paper is not ready for a formal peer-review process. If it has been determined that the paper is ready for peer review, the process moves forward. If the contributed paper does not meet our requirements, it is discouraged.

Special Issues. Special issues are usually suggested by editorial board members. Upon approval of the idea by the editor-in-chief, the managing editor issues a formal letter of invitation to the suggested author on behalf of the editor-in-chief and the editorial board. The letter briefly describes the topic that has been proposed and solicits a brief proposal. This proposal must contain sufficient details including proposed authors and topics that will be covered in the papers of the issue. When the author provides a detailed proposal, it is reviewed by members of the editorial board, and all comments/concerns are provided initially to the editor-in-chief, and subsequently to the proposing guest editor for their resolution and consideration. After the proposing guest editor receives final editorial board approval, the special issue project is begun. From this point, all paper submissions and reviews are handled on Manuscript Central. Most special issues for the Proceedings take about eighteen to twenty-four months to develop. Guest editors are contacted by the editorial office on a regular basis, regarding status and progress.

A special section is developed in the same way, but it only contains a limited number of papers.