A microdevice called Human Organs-on-Chips is engineered with the astounding ability to mimic the complex structures, functions, and mechanical motions of whole human organs. Fabricated by scientists Donald Ingber and Dan Dongeun Huh at Harvard University's Wyss Institute, Human Organs-on-Chips was announced today as the 2015 Designs of the Year Award winner in the Design Museum's popular international competition.

The annual contest shows off an entertaining categorized mix of thoughtful designs whose creators range from global-brand giants to emerging entrepreneurs. Needless to say, competition is tough year after year. In 2014, Zaha Hadid's Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, Azerbaijan snatched the winning title.

The 2015 edition started out with 76 nominated Designs-of-the-Year hopefuls across six categories: Architecture, Digital, Fashion, Graphic, Product and Transport. (The Furniture category in previous editions appears to have been omitted.) Last month, the jury then selected the six Category Winners, from which the jury chose Human Organs-on-Chips as the overall winner.

As a means for developing and testing drugs, the microchip is a pioneering emblem of cross-disciplinary design and technology that possesses great potential in advancing personalized medicine, accelerating drug discovery, and decreasing development costs.

In Design Museum's brief winning announcement, Gemma Curtin -- Designs of the Year 2015 exhibition curator -- said, 'This winning design is a great example of how design is a collaborative practice embracing expertise and know how across disciplines. Its selection as Design of the Year 2015 also signifies a desire to recognise and award design that can significantly impact society now and in the future.’

The competition is over now, but visitors can check out the winning design and all of this year's nominees at a current exhibition in the Design Museum in London, which will be open until March 31, 2016.