Two UP Diliman (UPD) projects to help dialysis and stroke patients with their quality of life have bagged two of the top three prizes in the 2026 James Dyson Award Philippines.
BiDaKidney by Andew Jacob Buensalido and Allyson Cabrestante and OrthoFlex by Jabez Bote and Ada Koreen Bacay emerged as the national winner and national runner-up, respectively, in the Philippine competition. These projects are creations of the UPD Department of Mechanical Engineering.
BiDaKidney is a kit that takes existing manual peritoneal dialysis (PD) sets. This relies on gravity and the skill of the person performing the dialysis. These semi-automate the process, thus reducing the risk of infection through contact with the fluid. Accurate measurements are provided through a series of pumps and load cells.
According to the competition website, BiDaKidney “was designed for patients looking for an upgrade to manual PD by offering automated therapy at a price of around $100 [PHP6,200] – roughly 1% of the cost of commercial cyclers.”
In PD, waste from the patient’s body is removed by pumping cleansing fluid through a tube into part of the stomach area, using the inner lining of the abdomen, known as peritoneum, as a filter. After a specific amount of time, the fluid with the filtered waste is drained away and new cleansing fluid is pumped back in.
There are two general types of PD. The manual type is where the cleansing fluid is hung from an intravenous pole and a person manually regulates the flow of the fluid. Another is the automated type, where an expensive machine called a cycler does it all.
BiDaKidney is “compatible with inexpensive PD sets already used by patients, eliminating the need for costly consumables. It is also designed to be lightweight and easy to carry at only 2.5 kg, allowing patients to perform PD at home, school, or work with greater flexibility.”
Buensalido said one of their guiding principles was to give more people access to dialysis care.
“We were thinking about how we could help patients spend less of their lives managing dialysis and more of their time living it. If treatment at home can become simpler, safer, and cheaper, patients may be able to continue their care with greater confidence and independence,” he said.
OrthoFlex is a “motor-driven elbow exoskeleton that delivers precise and repetitive flexion-extension therapy so stroke patients can access consistent rehabilitation even outside hospitals.”
To use the prototype, the patient’s affected arm is first secured using Velcro straps and OrthoFlex is powered on. They then use the companion smartphone application to set the type of exercise: flexion (up) or extension (down).
Stroke is a leading cause of disability in the Philippines, and recovery of arm and hand function often depends on frequent, repetitive range-of-motion therapy within six months after a stroke.
According to the competition website, “OrthoFlex can serve patients who may not necessarily afford the services of physical therapists, as it is designed to be repairable even out in the field and relatively affordable with a calculated retail price of only PHP10,000 as opposed to similar products that cost at least PHP25,000.”
BiDaKidney and OrthoFlex will join other national winners and national runners-up from other participating countries in the next stage of the James Dyson Award, where a global team of Dyson engineers will select the international Top 20 shortlist, to be announced on Oct. 14. James Dyson will then choose the global winners, that will be announced on Nov. 4.—With reports from the UPD Department of Mechanical Engineering and the James Dyson Foundation