Young innovators to unveil creations to ease daily life

Fifteen young trailblazers have conceptualized stateof-the-art devices to address concerns on child development, environment, health, safety and rescue, to be shown in a virtual exhibition titled “Hiraya,” slated today, Dec. 4.

“Through ‘Hiraya,’ we hope to transport viewers to a world where dreams and ideas are more than just abstraction but actualization through design,” reads the exhibition statement.

Hiraya is a Filipino word that means “the fruit of one’s dreams or wishes” and the budding visionaries from the Industrial Design Program of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde dedicated months of research, design thinking processes and consideration of diverse perspectives and disciplines to create human-centered design solutions to improve the daily lives of others.

Felicia Marie Cui and John Sebastian Chen utilize the power of solar energy. Cui’s SunTab is a compact high-performance equipment that makes sustainable light accessible in far-flung areas, while Chen’s Bayanihan is an alternative and sustainable grain drying method to assist small-scale farmers.

James Kristoffer Melgo aims to support rural landscapes with limited to no access to clean water through his rainwater harvesting, filtration and sterilization system dubbed as Oasis.

There are gadgets to alleviate the struggles of the residents and commuters in flood-prone areas. Andreo Eduardo Estrellado’s Beam measures flood levels in real time to inform the motorists of impassable streets and roads, while Arianne Lois Comia’s Flash (Flood Alert System and Hazard Assessment) serves as a network response system that communicates important updates to its users.

Ramon Christopher Ramos’ Our Sea is an unmanned solar-powered aquatic drone and waterside rescue unit complete with a 30,000 lumen LED light, a dual-lens camera and first-aid supplies.

With environmental wellness in mind, Bernice Supelana wishes to recycle and normalize proper waste disposal through e-Balik, a vending machine that swaps used plastic beverage bottles with transportation points.

Carl Nielsen Ramos focuses on providing comfortable, efficient, and safe loading and unloading docks with his redesigned Jeepney Bay.

During the ongoing pandemic, Patricia Mariano prioritizes the safety of the shoppers and grocery staff with SaniCart, a walkthrough tunnel equipped with UV lighting and cleaning sprays to disinfect shopping carts.

Arielle Lesaca hopes to provide ease to women suffering from dysmenorrhea pain with a portable and rechargeable heating device called Rhea. Amira Abo-Hamda and Paul Vincent Luces support the mobility of elders. Abo-hamda’s K-neesis is a sleek wearable for those who are beginning to experience knee pains, while Luces’ Stride is a walker with two adjustable legs that assist users in traversing inclines and stairs.

Child development assistance is also one of the focal points of their pieces. Kali the Caterpillar by Samantha Lumang is a stackable educational toy with integrated robotics designed to introduce basic ethics and values to children. Tiny Builders by Ma. Patricia Torres is a 79-piece puzzled block toy set that exercises the creativity as well as the cognitive and fine motor skills of children age 4 to 6.

Kiara Malonda’s Lingo desires to improve the language skills of kids age 1 to 5. It features a 10-piece puzzle box as well as a detachable educational pad that guides the child toward learning the alphabet, numbers, songs and words. It likewise connects to a mobile application dubbed as K-Dev so parents can track the progress.

These innovative creations, which may ease the lives of many, are set to be released to the public today at 6 p.m. Follow @HirayaExhibit on Facebook and Instagram.