Theme: Enhanced and Equitable Vehicle Safety for All: Toward the next 50 years
ESV conferences are unique and invaluable to the global community. They provide opportunities to share innovative advances in motor vehicle safety and encourage international cooperation. The 27th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles will be held in Yokohama, Japan from April 3-6, 2023.
Call for Abstracts will begin around February 1, 2022
The United States Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Office of Vehicle Safety Research is the official Government agency responsible for the implementation of the International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV) held every two years at a venue agreed upon by the participating Government Focal Points (GFPs).
The Conference is hosted by an ESV member country selected in advance by the GFPs representing the participating Governments' transportation organizations. ESV attendees include members of Governments, automobile manufacturers, technology companies, suppliers, academia – including safety researchers, students, safety advocates and other motor vehicle safety professionals, medical, insurance, legal and policy professionals, consumers, and media.
The ESV Program originated in 1970 under the The North Atlantic Treaty Organization(NATO) Committee on the Challenges of Modern Society, and was implemented through bilateral agreements between the Governments of the United States, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Sweden. The participating nations agreed to develop experimental safety vehicles to advance state-of-the-art technology in automotive engineering and to meet periodically to exchange information on their progress. Since its inception, the number of international partners has grown to include the Governments of Canada, Australia, The Netherlands, Hungary, Poland, the Republic of Korea, and two international organizations - the European Commission, and the European Enhanced Vehicle-Safety Committee.
In 1971 the Conference was known as the International Technical Conference on Experimental Safety Vehicles. Over time, the focus of the conference shifted from concentration on the development of experimental safety vehicles to broader issues of safety and international cooperation seeking reductions in motor vehicle fatalities and injuries. These issues include program advances in areas such as Pedestrian Safety, Frontal and Side Impact Protection, Biomechanics, Intelligent Transportation Systems, and Vehicle Compatibility.
In 1991, the participating governments agreed to change the name of the Conference to "The International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles" to reflect the current focus. The 14th ESV Conference, held in Munich, Germany, in May 1994, was the first conference in which the new name was used, and "25 Years of ESV Development" was celebrated.
The 21st ESV Conference in June 2009 hosted by Germany had a record-breaking array of participants as more than 1000 people gathered in Stuttgart, Germany over the 4-day program. The organizers arranged a historic retrospective of early experimental safety vehicles developed in the 1970s through bilateral agreements.
The 22nd ESV Conference held in Washington, D.C., June 13-16, 2011, showcased emerging real-world technologies to advance vehicle safety. For the first time, conference attendees, could experience the potential benefits of these technologies through actual vehicle "Ride and Drive" demonstrations by the manufacturers. Over 40 technical exhibitors provided attendees a firsthand experience of current and future safety innovations.
At the most recent ESV Conference held in Eindhoven, Netherlands, June 10-14, 2019, participants experienced numerous highpoints. Our host provided a unique opportunity and forum for the exchange of ideas and the strengthening of global collaboration in improving vehicle safety technologies and standards. Growth of the automotive industry worldwide has brought new partners in pursuit of enhancing global vehicle safety. A scientific peer-review papers process recognized outstanding technical papers, giving further prestige to world class authors.
After more than 50 years, ESV continues to keep pace with technical innovation to find new opportunities to further enhance and advance vehicle safety. A hallmark of the ESV Program continues to be the technical agenda where presentations that are shared are at the leading edge of vehicle safety exploration currently in the area of vehicle automation. The organizers continue to strive to present participants with the latest achievements in the field of motor vehicle safety.
The 27th ESV Conference will be held at the Pacifico in Yokohama, Japan, April 3-6, 2023. The host is preparing to welcome your participation and offer you an informative and inspiring vehicle safety experience. We look forward to your participation at this event.
Cem Hatipoglu
ESV 2023 Government Focal Point Chair
Associate Administrator for Vehicle Safety Research
Stephen Summers
ESV 2023 General Chair
Director
Office of Vehicle Crashworthiness Research
Watch Student Promo Video
The collegiate Student Safety Technology Design Competition (SSTDC) is hosted by the International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV) the only government-sponsored vehicle safety conference that brings together leading engineering experts from governments, automobile manufacturers, suppliers, safety researchers and other motor vehicle safety professionals. Conceived in 2004 at the 19th ESV Conference in Washington, D.C., the competition began as a way of getting more students involved in vehicle safety. It was an instant success, and the program has grown over the years addressing emerging vehicle safety priorities worldwide, such as distraction mitigation and autonomous vehicle issues.
The mission of the SSTDC is to foster personal growth, leadership, and opportunities in vehicle safety research technology, innovation, design, and engineering. Students have the opportunity to apply and integrate science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) concepts as they compete for first-place winner in this competition. Recognition as an award winner at the ESV Conference is a great achievement and honor.
Teams consisting of university-level seniors and/or graduate students, guided by one faculty advisor, submit a written abstract related to a global vehicle safety research priority. Entries are judged in each of the three geographic regions, with up to six teams selected to participate in their regional competition.
Teams selected to participate in the regional competition will develop a functional scale or life-size model of the vehicle-based technology, and present the results via a report and regional demonstration. A panel of safety experts evaluates the designs and selects three finalist teams per region.
The three finalist teams from each region compete for top honors at the 27th ESV Conference in Japan, April 3-6, 2023, where their prototype devices will be on display in the exhibition hall. An international panel of judges, made up of vehicle safety engineering experts from around the world, will select one first-place team winner and one runner-up team, both of whom will receive an award and international recognition for their achievements.
The SSTDC gives young scholars from Asia-Pacific, Europe, and North America an exciting opportunity to design, build, and demonstrate a cost-effective conceptual scale model of a vehicle safety technology. This competition is not only a great opportunity for collegiate students to compete in, but an achievement in a student's academic journey - one they can be proud of long after the conference is over. Students also have an opportunity to network with fellow students and industry experts from around the world during four days of informative presentations and rich program content during the 27th ESV Conference.
The call for abstracts will open on February 1, 2022. We encourage your participation in the 9th Bi-Annual Student Safety Technology Design Competition and look forward to receiving your abstract.
The Student Safety Technology Design Competition (SSTDC) is open to all teams consisting of university-level seniors and/or graduate students, guided by one faculty advisor within our ESV member countries. Teams may consist of a maximum of 6 students.
Each team must meet these requirements to participate in the competition. All entries* must be written in English and:
Abstracts must be written in English and:
*Only one entry per team: Multiple entries under different competition categories from the same team will not be accepted.
Based on the competition criteria, a maximum of six teams will be invited to participate in their regional competitions.
Each team selected to compete in the North American regional competition from the United States will be awarded up to US$3,000 from NHTSA to help offset the costs involved in its design efforts.
Each team selected to compete in the European and Asia-Pacific regional competition should contact their regional coordinators to determine if financial assistance is available. If available, this assistance should not exceed the equivalent of US$3,000/team.
All teams are encouraged to seek corporate sponsors. Corporate sponsorship, to include funds to offset the costs of the design efforts is limited to the equivalent of US$3,000 per team. All teams are limited to the equivalent of US$6,000 (US$3,000 for design effort, US$3,000 for travel) but corporate sponsorship is not a requirement. Total project costs must not exceed the equivalent of US$6,000 funding ceiling that includes any contributions from sponsors. Teams will be expected to include a summary of project cost and funding from all sources in their final report. International finalist teams are permitted to seek additional funding beyond the US$3,000 limit to offset travel costs to and from the conference. European and Asia-Pacific teams can seek travel support from their regional coordinators.
Conference registration fees will be waived for a maximum of two team members from each of the nine international finalists.
With 12 competition categories to select from, students have a broad range of technical topics that span current vehicle safety priorities throughout the world. Each student design must address a real-world vehicle safety problem from one of the following competition categories:
New concepts associated with the introduction of Automated Driving Systems (SAE Automation Levels 3-5) – for example: driver interface concepts to maintain situational awareness; strategies for the engagement/disengagement of automation; vehicle-to-vehicle communications; external vehicle signaling; and automated detection and management of conditions that require driver decision, e.g. 4 way stop, highway ingress/egress, and traffic flow.
New technologies for driver assistance in critical situations (SAE Automation Levels 0-2) – for example: crash warning systems, crash mitigation systems, crash prevention systems or new sensors which could provide inputs to such warning/mitigation or prevention systems.
Innovations in electronics systems safety – for example: novel approaches to system software test and validation; diagnostics and prognostics for intelligent vehicle health management; fail-safe and fail-operational mechanisms; detection and prevention of unauthorized access or malicious attacks; capturing data from unauthorized access or malicious attacks to enable forensic examination; and alerting the driver to vehicle limitations due to attacks, etc.
New system concepts in electric vehicles – for example: preventing and detecting thermal runaway in lithium ion batteries; communicating safety information unique to electric vehicles, etc.
Innovative vision systems to improve visibility and conspicuity to detect other vehicles, people, objects and other hazards in the traffic environment, etc. Vision systems that look at the occupant compartment to detect and understand the driver and passengers (e.g. driver monitoring, restraints optimization, unattended child detection, out of position airbag suppression, etc.).
New technologies to lessen driver distraction and minimize workload – for example: methods to detect distracted drivers; interfaces to influence drivers distracting behaviors; methods to adjust displays based on workload; novel in-vehicle systems that can detect cell phone use and provide a countermeasure, etc.
Innovative systems to reduce impaired driving – for example: ignition interlocks, passive drug, alcohol sensors, etc.
Improved protection for occupants in vehicle-to-vehicle collisions – for example: use of new energy-absorbing structures; improving geometric alignment; optimizing the energy absorption during crash; improvement in intrusion caused by override or underride; adaptive and active bumper heights, etc.
Systems minimizing injuries to vehicle occupants during a crash – for example: vehicle interior design enhancements to seatbelts, airbags, and head restraints; integration of pre-crash sensors to optimize restraint performance; occupant position sensors, etc.
Innovation in crash test dummy development or application – for example: improvements in dummy biofidelity, durability, instrumentation and/or analytical techniques to address future safety needs for vehicle design, testing, and restraint system development, etc.
Innovation in technologies to sense and/or avoid pedestrians, pedal cyclists, or other vulnerable road users in the vehicle's travel path. Redesign of passenger vehicle structures or deployable devices to minimize pedestrian/pedal cyclist's injuries.
Vehicle and triage enhancements that improve post-crash injury prevention and treatment – for example: automated crash notification, crash severity prediction, minimizing fuel leakage, fire mitigation, advanced bystander care, automated crash scene measurement and reporting etc.
Judging of each team's project will take place at each team's respective college or university, or via web conference, in November 2022. Judges will view a presentation of the functional models and review the written reports*. Team reports must be submitted in English and no more than 3,000 words (approximately six pages) in length. Team reports must also include a budget summary as an Appendix, containing a categorical summary of all design and prototype costs and a breakdown of overall funding from all sources.
For both the regional and final competitions, judges will award points based on five criteria:
1) Potential impact on safety problem being addressed (40 points)Winning teams will be presented with a plaque by representatives from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), U.S. Department of Transportation and the 27th ESV Conference Organizing Committee in Yokohama, Japan
There are three competition regions based on the ESV member countries participation: Asia Pacific (including Japan, Korea, and Australia), Europe, and North America (including Canada and the United States). The list of the Regional Coordinators and their addresses are given below:
Masashi Yukawa
Manager, Global Development / Exposition
Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan, Inc.
10-2 Gobancho, Chiyoda-ku,
Tokyo 102-0076, Japan
E-mail: sstdc@jsae.or.jp
Younghan Youn
Korea University of Technology and Education
Engineering Professor
307 Gajun-ri, Byungchum-myun, Cheonan, Chungnam, Korea 330-807
Phone + 82 415-601-136 Fax +82 415-601-360
Email: yhyoun@koreatech.ac.kr
Bernd Lorenz
Head of Section F2 - Passive Vehicle Safety, Biomechanics
Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt)
Bruederstraße 53, D-51427 Bergisch Gladbach
Phone +49 2204 43-5200, Fax +49 2204 43-5250
Email: lorenz@bast.de
Peter Striekwold
Special Advisor to the Board, RDW
P.O. Box 777, 2700 AT Zoetermeer
The Netherlands
Phone +31 61 505 44 65, Fax +31 79 345 80 411
Email: pstriekwold@rdw.nl
Whitney Tatum
Coordinator for the United States, NHTSA
ESV Student Competition Organizer
1200 New Jersey Ave. SE
Washington, DC 20590 USA
Email: sstdc@dot.gov
The 9th Bi-Annual Student Safety Technology Design Competition now showcases the extraordinary talents of college students from ESV member countries.
The competition is organized as a three-tiered approach:
The final competitors at the ESV Conference in Yokohama, Japan, will consist of the winners from each regional jurisdiction, not to exceed three teams per region. On April 6, 2023, an international panel of judges will announce a first-place winner team and a runner-up team, both of whom will receive an award and international recognition for their achievements. The international panel will consist of judges from each geographical region (Asia-Pacific, Europe, and North America).
The U.S. Government Awards is sponsored by the United States Department of Transportation - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the 2023 Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV) Government Focal Points (GFPs), participating country representatives. The bi-annual awards will be managed by NHTSA, with nominations from the GFPs. The selection panel will be comprised of members of NHTSA leadership. An award will be given to an individual from any GFP participating country. To nominate an individual, the GFP must complete the form and submit with supporting documentation, appropriate references, letter of support and photocopies of news articles. Nominations for the U.S. Government Safety Engineering Excellence and Special Awards of Appreciation must be submitted to:
Dee Williams
Deputy Associate Administrator for Vehicle Safety Research
ESV Operations Manager
U.S. Government Awards Coordinator
Email: dee.williams@dot.gov
General Information
+81-45-221-2155
(9:00 to 18:00)
As one of the world's largest convention complexes, PACIFICO Yokohama is designed to include all necessary functions to organize meetings, conventions, exhibitions, and events, such as theater style halls, conference rooms, exhibition halls and a hotel. The building, whose exterior is beautiful and unique, has become one of the landmarks in Yokohama.
The National Convention Hall of Yokohama is reminiscent of a seashell, with the Convention Center as light, the Exhibition Hall as waves, and the hotel as a sail. On the edge of the ocean side of the hotel is Michibiki-no-zo (a statue of navigation) that prays for the safety of navigation. The hotel, managed by InterContinental Yokohama Grand, which is an internationally established hotel brand, has received a great number of guests since its opening.
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