FILIPINO INVENTORS AND THEIR INVENTIONS

Karaoke: Invented in 1975 by Roberto del Rosario. I really thought this was a Japanese invention, despite
its’ popularity here, and I was completely wrong. A brilliant guy, he invented many other musical devices,
but Karaoke will always be remembered as his greatest triumph (or bane to humankind, depending on
your point of view.)

Medical Incubator: Invented in 1941 by Fe del Mundo. She was the first Asian student in Harvard’s
School of medicine. Countless young lives were saved by her invention and genius.

Moon Buggy: Invented in 1968 by Eduardo San Juan. He was the project leader for NASA in the buggy
development: An underfunded and underappreciated engineering success. This one has special
significance to me, due to my Grandfather working at the Cape in the early space program. The moon
buggy allowed greater exploration of the Moon, yet Eduardo San Juan’s contribution has been relegated
largely to status as a footnote.

Erythromycin: Invented (Discovered) by Dr. Abelardo Aguilar in 1949. He sent a sample to Eli Lilly, who
promptly stole the idea and patented it, and later marketed it successfully. Remember kids, this is why
the great inventors always go to attorneys first… He never received a single peso from his product, that
saved millions of lives (Thank him if you are allergic to penicillin!).

Yoyo: Invented as a hunting weapon by the ancient Filipinos, probably in the Visayas. “Discovered” when
Magellan landed.

Video Phone: Invented by Gregorio Zara, in 1955 no less! When James Bond was using one in Dr. No, it
had already been in existence a number of years. This is the predecessor of the camera in your mobile!

Computer Microchips: Many types were invented by Diosdado Banatao, beginning with the world’s first
16-bit chip in 1972, which he invented while working at Commodore. This led to the development of GUI
(The thing that makes the graphics on this page…). Why should you care? Without GUI, you would now
be looking at a page filled with nothing but a bunch of ones and zeroes.

Isolated Rice Breeds: In 1966, Dr. Rodolfo Aquino isolated nine specific breeds of rice for the
International Rice Research Institute. His discoveries helped prevent famine in much of Asia, and were
nearly solely responsible for Thailand and Vietnam becoming the world’s leading rice producers (A spot
once solely occupied by the Philippines.).

Drug Detection: Dr. Enrique Ostrea developed the method for detecting drug use by pregnant females by
detecting traces in the baby’s stools. His method is used by doctors worldwide in diagnosing drug
dependency in infants.

Jeepney: Immediate post-war, and the most common form of transportation in the country today. A
Filipino invention, though born from necessity, ingenuity, and thrift.

Karaoke Inventor

Roberto del Rosario, a Filipino is claiming the right for the invention of the Sing-Along-System (SAS) that
eventually led to the development of Karaoke, a Japanese term for “singing without accompaniment”.
Among del Rosario’s other inventions were the Trebel Voice Color Code (VCC), the piano tuner’s guide,
the piano keyboard stressing device, the voice color tape, and the one-man-band (OMB). The OMB was
later developed as the Sing-Along-System (SAS).

Inventor of Incubator

Fe del Mundo, the first Asian to have entered the prestigious Harvard University’s School of Medicine, is
also credited for her studies that led to the invention of incubator and jaundice relieving device. Del
Mundo, an International Pediatric Association (IPA) awardee, is an alumna of the University of the
Philippines (UP) College of Medicine. Since 1941, she has contributed more than 100 articles to medical
journals in the U.S., Philippines and India. In 1966, she received the Elizabeth Blackwell Award, for her
“outstanding service to mankind”. In 1977, she was bestowed the Ramon Magsaysay Award for
outstanding public service.

Water-Powered Car

For more than three decades now, Daniel Dingel has been claiming that his car can run with water as
fuel. An article from the Philippine Daily Inquirer said that Dingle built his engine as early as 1969. Dingel
built a car reactor that uses electricity from a 12-volt car battery to split the ordinary tap water into
hydrogen and oxygen components. The hydrogen can then be used to power the car engine.

Dingel said that a number of foreign car companies have expressed interest in his invention. The officials
of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) have dismissed Dingel’s water-powered car as a
hoax. In return, Dingel accused them of conspiring with oil producing countries. Dingel, however, was the
not the only man on earth who is testing water as an alternative fuel. American inventors Rudolf
Gunnerman and Stanley Meyer and the researchers of the U.S. Department of Energy’s National
Renewable Energy Laboratory have been pursuing similar experiments.

Moon Buggy Inventor

Filipinos consider Eduardo San Juan as the inventor of the Lunar Rover, or more popularly known as the
Moon Buggy. The Moon Buggy was the car used by Neil Armstrong and other astronauts when they first
explored the moon in 1969. Eduardo San Juan, a graduate of Mapua Institute of Technology (MIT),
worked for Lockheed Corporation and conceptualized the design of the Moon Buggy that the Apollo
astronauts used while in the moon. As a NASA engineer, San Juan reportedly used his Filipino ingenuity
to build a vehicle that would run outside the Earth’s atmosphere. He constructed his model using
homemade materials. In 1978, San Juan received one of the Ten Outstanding Men (TOM) awards in
science and technology.
San Juan, however, was not listed as the inventor of the Moon Buggy in American scientific journals. It
said the vehicle was designed and constructed by a group of space engineers. In Poland, the Moon Buggy
is attributed to a Polish inventor. Worse, the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) does
not recognize Flores in its roster of outstanding Filipino scientists.

Space Engineer

On June 25, 2002, the provincial government of Cavite awarded Edward Caro a plaque of recognition for
his 42 years of service at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States
where he helped launch the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission or the Explorer. Caro, 70 and a native of
Cavite retired from NASA in 2001. In return, NASA during the same year conferred Caro the Distinguished
Science medal, reportedly the highest honor it gives to its employees. (Source: Philippine Star)

Fluorescent Lamp Inventor

Many Filipinos acknowledge Agapito Flores as the inventor of the fluorescent lamp, which is the most
widely used source of lighting in the world today. The fluorescent lamp reportedly got its name from
Flores. Written articles about Flores said he was born in Bantayan Island in Cebu. The fluorescent lamp,
however, was not invented in a particular year. It was the product of 79 years of the development of the
lighting method that began with the invention of the electric light bulb by Thomas Edison.

Among the other inventors who claimed credit for developing the fluorescent lamp were French
physicist A. E. Becquerel (1867), Nikola Tesla, Albert Hall (1927), Mark Winsor and Edmund Germer.
French inventor Andre Claude was recognized for developing the fluorescent tubular lighting systems.
Yet, he was not officially recognized as the inventor of fluorescent lamp. It was reported that the General
Electric and Westinghouse obtained Claude’s patent rights and developed the fluorescent lamp that we
know today.

According to Filipino scientists, fluorescent lamp was not named after Flores. The term fluorescence first
cropped up as early as 1852 when English mathematician-physicist George Gabriel Stokes discovered a
luminous material called “fluorspar”, which he coined with “escence”. The National Academy of Science
and Technology also dismissed Flores being the inventor of fluorescent lamp as a myth. “No scientific
report, no valid statement, no rigorous documents can be used to credit Flores for the discovery of the
fluorescent lamp. We have tried to correct this misconception, but the media (for one) and our
textbooks (for another) keep using the Flores example,” a Filipino scientist wrote in her column at the
Philippine Daily Inquirer.

The fluorescent lamps were introduced into the U.S. market in 1938. Still, Filipinos recognize Agapito
Flores as the inventor of the product that illuminated the world.
Videophone Inventor

Gregorio Zara of Lipa City and a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology invented the
videophone and developed the Zara Effect or Electrical Kinetic Resistance.

He Discovered Erythromycin

A Filipino scientist reportedly discovered erythromycin in 1949. He was Dr. Abelardo Aguilar who died in
1993 without being recognized and rewarded for his discovery. Reports said Aguilar discovered the
antibiotic from the Aspergillus species of fungi in 1949 and sent samples to Indiana-based
pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly Co. The drug firm allegedly registered the propriety name Iloson for the
antibiotic in honor of Iloilo province where Aguilar discovered it. In 1952, Eli Lilly Co. began the
commercial distribution of Iloson, which was sold as an alternative to penicillin. Erythromycin, the
generic name of Iloson, was reportedly the first successful macrolide antibiotic introduced in the US.

Computer Guru

Diosdado Banatao, a native of Iguig, Cagayan and an electrical engineering graduate from Mapua
Institute of Technology in Manila is credited for eight major contributions to the Information Technology.
Banatao is most known for introducing the first single-chip graphical user interface accelerator that
made computers work a lot faster and for helping develop the Ethernet controller chip that made
Internet possible. In 1989, he pioneered the local bus concept for personal computers and in the
following year developed the First Windows accelerator chip. Intel is now using the chips and
technologies developed by Banatao. He now runs his own semiconductor company, Mostron and Chips
& Technology, which is based in California’s Silicon Valley. (Source: Filipinas Magazine)

Modular Housing Inventor

Edgardo Vazquez won a World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) gold medal in 1995 for
developing a modular housing system. Such a system called Vazbuilt is reportedly capable of building
within weeks a house with prefabricated materials that can withstand typhoons and earthquakes.
Ironically, Vasquez is not getting enough support from the Philippine government to propagate his
technology, which could help provide shelter to some five million Filipino families without their own
homes. Vazquez is the national president of the Filipino Inventors Society.

Inventor of Fuel Products

In 1996, Rudy Lantano Sr., a scientist from the Philippine Department of Science and Technology (DOST),
won the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) gold medal for developing Super Bunker
Formula-L, a revolutionary fuel half-composed of water. The mix burns faster and emits pollutants, 95
percent less than those released to the air by traditional fuel products. The inventor said his invention is
a result of blending new ingredients and additives with ordinary oil products through agitation and
mixing, which is a very safe process. The initial plan was to commercially produce two million liters of
Alco-Diesel, two million liters of Lan-Gas and an unlimited quantity of Super Bunker Formula-L each day
for customers in Luzon.

Natural Gas Vehicle

The Department of Energy (DOE) has developed a vehicle that runs on natural gas, whose rich deposits
remain untapped under the Philippine seabed. The project’s main objective is to look into the potential
of natural gas as an alternative fuel to conventional petrol and diesel for the transport sector. The natural
gas vehicle (NVG) has been road-tested in Isabela where an existing natural gas supply from the PNOC
Gas Plant is located. Test runs have also been made in Cagayan, Ifugao and Mountain Province. The test
vehicle used was the Isuzu Hi-Lander 4JA-1, direct injected diesel engine. The use of natural gas as a fuel
is cheaper. On a gallon-equivalent basis, natural gas costs an average of 15 to 40 percent less than
gasoline and diesel. There are over one million NVGs in the world today, according to the International
Association for Natural Gas Vehicles.

Lamp Fixing Invention

A Filipino inventor has developed a technology, which could revive a busted lamp (pundido) and give it
more years of functional life than those of new ones. Acclaimed by the Filipino Inventors Society as
timely and revolutionary, the Nutec system can prolong the life of fluorescent lamps up to seven years.
Nutec was developed by New World Technology, headed by president Eric Ngo and chosen as the
“Product of the Year” at the Worldbex 2000 Building and Construction Exposition held at the Manila
Hotel. Engineer Benjamin S. Santos, national president of the Inventors Society, called Nutec a timely
invention.

“Tubig Talino”

The Department of Science and Technology claimed that it has developed “Tubig Talino”, an iodine-rich
drinking water that treats micronutrient deficiencies responsible for goiter, mental and physical
retardation, and birth defects. “Tubig Talino” is actually a mixture of 20 liters of water and 15 ml of
“Water Plus + I2”. Consumption of five glasses a day of this iodine fortification in drinking water is
expected to provide 120 micrograms of iodine, which meets 100 percent of the recommended dietary
allowance (RDA) of a male adult.

Mole Remover

In 2000, Rolando dela Cruz developed an ingenuous formula that could easily remove deeply grown
moles or warts from the skin without leaving marks or hurting the patient. His formula was extracted
from cashew nut (Annacardium occidentale), which is common in the Philippines. The formula won for
dela Cruz a gold medal in International Invention, Innovation, Industrial Design and Technology
Exhibition in Kuala Lumpur in September 2000. In March 1997, dela Cruz established RCC Amazing Touch
International Inc., which runs clinics engaged “in a non-surgical removal of warts, moles and other skin
growths, giving the skin renewed energy and vitality without painful and costly surgery.”

Feminine Hygiene Product Inventor

Dr. Virgilio Malang won a gold medal for his invention “Psidium Guajava Effervescing Gynecological
Insert”, a silver medal for his “Patient Side-Turning Hospital Bed”, and three bonze medals for his
inventions “external vaginal cleanser”, “light refracting earpick”, and “broom’s way of hanging” at the
Seoul International Fair in held South Korea in December 2002. There were 385 inventions from 30
countries that joined the competitions.

1) Agapito Flores :

he is the inventor of florescent lamp.. because of him our World has been more brighter..:)

2) Pedro Flores :

inventor of YO-YO one of the most popular toy in the world

The word yo-yo is a Tagalog word, the native language of the Philippines, and means ‘come back.’ In the
Philippines, the yo-yo was a weapon for over 400 hundred years. Their version was large with sharp
edges and studs and attached to thick twenty-foot ropes for flinging at enemies or prey. People in the
United States started playing with the British bandalore or yo-yo in the 1860s.

It was not until the 1920s that Americans first heard the word yo-yo. Pedro Flores, a Philippine
immigrant, began manufacturing a toy labeled with that name. Flores became the first person to mass-
produce yo-yos, at his small toy factory located in California.

Duncan saw the toy, liked it, bought the rights from Flores in 1929 and then trademarked the name Yo-
Yo.

3) Roberto del Rosario :

Roberto del Rosario is the president of the Trebel Music Corporation and the inventor of the Karaoke
Sing Along System in 1975. Roberto del Rosario has patented more than twenty inventions making him
one of the most prolific Filipino inventor. Besides his famous Karaoke Sing Along System Roberto del
Rosario has also invented:

Trebel Voice Color Code (VCC)

piano tuner’s guide

piano keyboard stressing device

voice color tape.

4) Fe del Mundo :

Inventor of Incubator=Fe del Mundo, the first Asian to have entered the prestigious Harvard University’s
School of Medicine, is also credited for her studies that led to the invention of incubator and jaundice
relieving device. Del Mundo, an International Pediatric Association (IPA) awardee, is an alumna of the
University of the Philippines (UP) College of Medicine. Since 1941, she has contributed more than 100
articles to medical journals in the U.S., Philippines and India. In 1966, she received the Elizabeth
Blackwell Award, for her “outstanding service to mankind”. In 1977, she was bestowed the Ramon
Magsaysay Award for outstanding public service.

5) Eduardo San Juan :

Moon Buggy Inventor=Filipinos consider Eduardo San Juan as the inventor of the Lunar Rover, or more
popularly known as the Moon Buggy. The Moon Buggy was the car used by Neil Armstrong and other
astronauts when they first explored the moon in 1969. Eduardo San Juan, a graduate of Mapua Institute
of Technology (MIT), worked for Lockheed Corporation and conceptualized the design of the Moon
Buggy that the Apollo astronauts used while in the moon. As a NASA engineer, San Juan reportedly used
his Filipino ingenuity to build a vehicle that would run outside the Earth’s atmosphere. He constructed
his model using homemade materials. In 1978, San Juan received one of the Ten Outstanding Men
(TOM) awards in science and technology.

San Juan, however, was not listed as the inventor of the Moon Buggy in American scientific journals. It
said the vehicle was designed and constructed by a group of space engineers. In Poland, the Moon Buggy
is attributed to a Polish inventor. Worse, the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) does
not recognize San Juan in its roster of outstanding Filipino scientists.

6) Gregorio Zara :

Videophone Inventor=Dr. Gregorio Zara of Lipa City and a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology invented the videophone and developed the Zara Effect or Electrical Kinetic Resistance.

7) Abelardo Aguilar :

Erythromycin (Iloson brand antibiotic)=A Filipino scientist reportedly discovered erythromycin in 1949.
He was Dr. Abelardo Aguilar who died in 1993 without being recognized and rewarded for his discovery.
Reports said Aguilar discovered the antibiotic from the Aspergillus species of fungi in 1949 and sent
samples to Indiana-based pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly Co. The drug firm allegedly registered the
propriety name Iloson for the antibiotic in honor of Iloilo province where Aguilar discovered it. In 1952,
Eli Lilly Co. began the commercial distribution of Iloson, which was sold as an alternative to penicillin.
Erythromycin, the generic name of Iloson, was reportedly the first successful macrolide antibiotic
introduced in the US.

8) Diosdado Banatao :

Single-chip graphical user interface accelerator= Diosdado Banatao, a native of Iguig, Cagayan and an
electrical engineering graduate from Mapua Institute of Technology in Manila is credited for eight major
contributions to the Information Technology. Banatao is most known for introducing the first single-chip
graphical user interface accelerator that made computers work a lot faster and for helping develop the
Ethernet controller chip that made Internet possible. In 1989, he pioneered the local bus concept for
personal computers and in the following year developed the First Windows accelerator chip. Intel is now
using the chips and technologies developed by Banatao. He now runs his own semiconductor company,
Mostron and Chips & Technology, which is based in California’s Silicon Valley. (Source: Filipinas Magazine)

9) Edgardo Vazquez :

Modular Housing Inventor= Edgardo Vazquez won a World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
gold medal in 1995 for developing a modular housing system. Such a system called Vazbuilt is reportedly
capable of building within weeks a house with prefabricated materials that can withstand typhoons and
earthquakes. Ironically, Vasquez is not getting enough support from the Philippine government to
propagate his technology, which could help provide shelter to some five million Filipino families without
their own homes. Vazquez is the national president of the Filipino Inventors Society.

10) Rudy Lantano Sr :

Inventor of Fuel Products=In 1996, Rudy Lantano Sr., a scientist from the Philippine Department of
Science and Technology (DOST), won the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) gold medal for
developing Super Bunker Formula-L, a revolutionary fuel half-composed of water. The mix burns faster
and emits pollutants, 95 percent less than those released to the air by traditional fuel products. The
inventor said his invention is a result of blending new ingredients and additives with ordinary oil
products through agitation and mixing, which is a very safe process. The initial plan was to commercially
produce two million liters of Alco-Diesel, two million liters of Lan-Gas and an unlimited quantity of Super
Bunker Formula-L each day for customers in Luzon.

11) Rolando dela Cruz :

Mole Remover=In 2000, Rolando dela Cruz developed an ingenuous formula that could easily remove
deeply grown moles or warts from the skin without leaving marks or hurting the patient. His formula was
extracted from cashew nut (Annacardium occidentale), which is common in the Philippines. The formula
won for dela Cruz a gold medal in International Invention, Innovation, Industrial Design and Technology
Exhibition in Kuala Lumpur in September 2000. In March 1997, dela Cruz established RCC Amazing Touch
International Inc., which runs clinics engaged “in a non-surgical removal of warts, moles and other skin
growths, giving the skin renewed energy and vitality without painful and costly surgery.”

12) Dr. Virgilio Malang :

Feminine Hygiene Product Inventor= Dr. Virgilio Malang won a gold medal for his invention “Psidium
Guajava Effervescing Gynecological Insert”, a silver medal for his “Patient Side-Turning Hospital Bed”, and
three bonze medals for his inventions “external vaginal cleanser”, “light refracting earpick”, and “broom’s
way of hanging” at the Seoul International Fair in held South Korea in December 2002. There were 385
inventions from 30 countries that joined the competitions.