|
What do
the vitamin beer, patient side-turning bed, Siroca
cooking fuel, electricity-saving fluorescent lamp and
potassium nitrate application for mango trees have in
common?
Yes,
they were invented by Filipinos. But most of all, they
are award-winning innovations—not only locally but
internationally as well.
These
gold medal awardees from the World Intellectual Property
Organization (Wipo) are on exhibit at the Innovation
Area of the Intellectual Property Office of the
Philippines (IP Philippines). The event, dubbed
“Powering Creativity and Invention,” is one of the
activities organized by IP Philippines to celebrate the
11th anniversary of Intellectual Property Code.
The
event aims to stimulate public awareness on the
importance of invention patents and the inventors’
contribution to the country’s social and economic
development.
“We
should celebrate the power and importance of Filipino
inventors’ creations because their impacts benefit the
country,” said lawyer Adrian Cristobal Jr., director
general of IP Philippines, in a speech.
“Our
inventions that work very well are bridges to the
Philippine economy,” explained Dr. Virgilio Malang, the
inventor of vitamin beer and one of the exhibitors. “We
step out on our own through the help of IP Philippines.”
Together
with his nurse-pharmacist wife, Yasmin Espiritu-Malang,
Dr. Malang also invented the revolutionary “Patient
Side-Turning Bed,” Wipo’s best invention in 2005.
In an
interview with BusinessMirror, Dr. Malang said, “This
[patient side-turning bed] is very ideal for easy
garment-change of [patients], [for use especially by]
our caregivers and nurses.”
“Even if
the patient weighs 300 pounds, he or she will [not have
difficulty] when turned. The bed also lessens the
possibility of bed sore and snoring,” he added.
Dr.
Malang said the invention has been offered to New Era
General Hospital and Philippine General Hospital.
Asked on
the bed’s price and durability, Dr. Malang replied, “It
costs P35,000 and baka kahit wala na tayo buhay pa
’yan [even if we’re long gone, it will still be of
service].”
For her
invention, Ma. Carlita Doran zeroed in on recycling for
her Siroca Cooking Fuel, the alternative fuel for
cooking made of ethyl alcohol and seaweeds in gel and
rock-like solid.
“The two
[gel and rock] can be used as igniters. It’s smokeless
and has little residue because it conducts a suffocation
process. The 200 grams has a lasting flame of two
hours,” explicated Doran.
“Siroca
will not stain cooking pans even if you cook for hours.
It’s good for the household and people can improvise
stoves using empty biscuit cans.”
Doran is
also exhibiting her Bioneem insect repellant than can
last for nine hours in cream, ointment and
deodorizer-disinfectant forms.
Energy
saving, on the other hand, was the inspiration of Eric
Ngo for creating the electricity-saving fluorescent lamp
which reduces consumption by 30 percent. Called Nutec
Lighting System, the compact energy-saving electronic
device prolongs the service life of all brands of
fluorescent lamps, even the busted ones.
“Lamps
have gases inside. The device I created saturates all
the remaining gases as power, it is user-friendly
because it has insensitive holders,” Ngo said in a
demonstration.
Meanwhile, Dr. Ramon Barba’s potassium nitrate
application for mango trees to propel year-round growth
has made the country one of the top exporters of mango
in the world, Cristobal said.
At the
same time, to also celebrate Filipino winning
trademarks, Globe Telecom and Bayo by Lyncor Inc. were
given spaces in the IP event. Globe won the premier
regional recognition in the industry, the Best Global
System for Mobile Communications carrier category by the
Telecom Asia Awards in 2003, while the apparel brand was
recognized the Most Promising Filipino Franchise in 2003
by the Department of Trade and Industry and the
Philippine Retailers Association. |
