Filipino ingenuity celebrated at the Regional Inventors Competition and Exhibit

Students, hobbyists and professional inventors from all over Mindanao gathered at SM Davao last November 19 to participate and compete at the Regional Inventors Competition and Exhibit.

Organized by the DOST (Department of Science and Technology) of Region XI, the competition serves as a qualifying leg for the National Inventors Competition and Exhibit—to be held during the 2014 National Science and Technology Week—while the exhibit and forums featuring inventors and winners from the previous RICE and NICE, served to inspire students and guests to invest and participate more in science.

Inventions that were ingenious either by their simplicity or complexity to theoretical ideas with significant implications in science to straightforward, easily implementable solutions were on display. As widely varied as the participants and their inventors were, they had one thing in common: the passion to create something life-changing.

The winners

The inventors competed in six categories. Out of 54 entries, only four winners emerged from four categories:

• The Utility Model Category is for inventions already in use or ready for implementation. This category was won by Engr. Emiliano Quitol for his Thermal Used Lubricating Oil Redistiller.
• The Creative Research (Sibol) College Category, which is for emerging technologies invented by college students, was won Doc Banana—an app that can be used to detect early signs of a banana’s black sigatoka disease. Doc Banana’s proponents, University of SouthEastern Philippines ICT students Nikko Comidoy, Jhun Rey Cubelo, and Jesmael Galindo, were also finalists in last year’s IdeaSpace start up competition.
• The Creative Research (Sibol) High School Category was won by Nabunturan National Comprehensive High School for their entry, the Noncyanidation using Tubli (Derris elliptica) root extracts and bioxidation in retrieving valuable materials. Simply put, it’s the use of Tubli root extracts as a way to remove cyanide and other valuable materials in solution. Proponents are high school seniors Earl Jann L. Lanaja, Germmila Sofia S. Alonsabe, Janice Eve Ardepuela, and Valeore Glorianne Duterte
• Last but not the least, the Creative Research (Tuklas) Category for inventions that aid discovery and learning went to Ceasar Bravo of Bravo Institute of Technology.

The muse strikes

Inspiration for these different inventions came from different experiences. The Speed Evaluator and Transmitter, a cheaper and more straightforward system for detecting speeding cars, was invented by high school physics teacher Renier John Cagurol and Kristine Hope Cagurol after witnessing a tragic accident involving one of their students.

Kristine Hope Cagurol, a teacher at Pablo Lorenzo National High School, lost one of her students to a speeding vehicle passing by her school. Both Renier John (of Tagalupan National High School) and Kristine Hope felt it was practically impossible asking their local government to allocate a policeman with a speed gun to watch the highways close to their school. What they did was to devise a system composed of a CCTV camera, a computer program, and pressure sensors to detect speeding cars without the need of a speed gun or a police officer watching the road.

Another inspiring invention came from Panabo National High School students Bruce Sevilla, Val Mangrobang, and Jan Jaime Paquinol. These aspiring engineers were able to invent a device that collects radiofrequency waves emitted by household devices like TVs and convert these into a direct current, using only electronic store-bought materials. The students believe, given more time and resources (they are busy preparing for their graduation) they might be able to invent a bigger device that can collect more radiofrequency waves and store all that energy in a battery.

'We just can't help ourselves'

Engr. Emiliano Quitol, winner of the Utility Model Category, summed up perfectly the reason that, despite the lack of support, scientists and inventors like himself continue to invent.

“We see the problems in the world and we just can’t help ourselves,” he said. “We know we have the capacity and the skills to help. So even without this competition, I will continue to invent. I have been doing it for years and will continue to do so in the future.” — VC, GMA News