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.