To promote research and development in the field of Machines and Mechanisms by theoretical and experimental methods, along with their practical application.

[1] [2] Representatives of 13 countries signed the foundation act and the International Federation for the Theory of Machines (IFToMM) came into existence.

However, the Executive Council considered that the abbreviation IFToMM was already widely used, and therefore suggested to keep it (along with the logo) as a short version of the organization's name.

A complete historical list of IFToMM officers was published in the Proceedings of the Second International Symposium on History of Machines and Mechanisms HMM2004.

The general goals for the work of the Commissions and Committees are aimed at promoting their fields of interest by attracting researchers and practitioners, including young individuals.