In
discussions in 1971, IRCOBI concluded that an international
conference in Europe to review the current knowledge on
biomechanics was desirable for the following reasons.
First, the main event in this field up to that time, the
Stapp Car Crash Conference, was economically out of reach
for Europeans, especially young researchers, on an annual
basis. Second, road transport casualty problems in Europe
were similar but not identical to those in the United
States and were rapidly increasing with advancing motorisation
in Europe.
Since
1973, IRCOBI has been conducting an annual international
scientific conference in Europe to review new knowledge
on human tolerance to impact as gleaned from field accident
studies, experimental research and experience from current
occupant protection systems and devices. It has also sponsored
specialised conferences and seminars on such topics as
trauma to children, two wheel vehicle users and pedestrian
protection. The printed peer-reviewed Proceedings of these
various meetings are now recognized internationally as
an important source of current knowledge on impact biomechanics
and crash injury studies.
