Vocal Demand Response to the Educational Setting Based Communication Scenarios: A Single Subject Study

Objectives: This was a single-subject study, aimed to demonstrate different vocal demand situations that are typical for primary school and teacher's vocal demand response under two acoustical conditions, with and without voice amplification, during five working days. Methods: The long-term voice dosimetry with Vocal Holter Med (PR.O. Voice Srl) was carried out on a 49-year-old female teacher with voice disorders during daily teaching activities. A sound field amplification system (SFAS) PentaClass Runa was installed in the classroom. Voice dosimetry was provided under two different acoustical conditions: without SFAS (2 days) and with SFAS (3 days). Results: Phonation time percentage, sound pressure level (SPL), SPL SD, fundamental frequency (F0), F0 SD, cycle, and distance doses were investigated in seven communication scenarios (lessons, group/individual classes, sports lessons in the gym and schoolyard, breaks, lunch breaks, and other activities). The median scores of all voice parameters differed significantly between different vocal demand contexts. The significant statistical difference in the vocal demand response was in the communication situations with and without SFAS. In addition, the number of children, reverberation time, and ambient air relative humidity impacted voice SPL and the cycle dose. Conclusions: Lessons, sports lessons held in the gym or schoolyard, breaks, and lunch breaks were considered as high vocal demand communication situations requiring higher voice intensity and fundamental frequency, higher phonation time percentage, cycle, and distance doses. Group/individual work and other teacher activities during the day, unrelated to direct work with students, were categorized as low vocal demand communication scenarios.

Objetivos: Este fue un estudio de sujeto único, cuyo objetivo fue demostrar diferentes situaciones de demanda vocal típicas de la escuela primaria y la respuesta vocal de los docentes bajo dos condiciones acústicas, con y sin amplificación de voz, durante cinco días laborables. Métodos: Se llevó a cabo dosimetría vocal a largo plazo con Vocal Holter Med (PR.O. Voice Srl) durante las actividades diarias de enseñanza en una docente de 49 años con trastornos de la voz. Se instaló un sistema de amplificación de campo sonoro (SFAS) PentaClass Runa en el aula. La dosimetría vocal se realizó bajo dos condiciones acústicas diferentes: sin SFAS (2 días) y con SFAS (3 días). Resultados: Se investigaron el porcentaje de tiempo de fonación, el nivel de presión sonora (SPL), SPL SD, la frecuencia fundamental (F0), F0 SD, ciclos y dosis de distancia en siete escenarios de comunicación diferentes (clases, clases grupales/individuales, clases de educación física en el gimnasio y el patio de la escuela, recreos, almuerzos y otras actividades). Las puntuaciones medias de todos los parámetros vocales diferían significativamente entre los diferentes contextos de demanda vocal. La diferencia estadísticamente significativa en la respuesta a la demanda vocal se observó en las situaciones de comunicación con y sin SFAS. Además, el número de niños, el tiempo de reverberación y la humedad relativa del aire ambiente afectaron al SPL de la voz y la dosis de ciclo. Conclusiones: Las lecciones, las clases de educación física en el gimnasio o el patio de la escuela, los recreos y los almuerzos se consideraron situaciones de comunicación de alta demanda vocal, que requerían una mayor intensidad y frecuencia fundamental de la voz, un mayor porcentaje de tiempo de fonación y dosis de ciclo y distancia más altas. El trabajo grupal/individual y otras actividades del profesor durante el día no relacionadas con el trabajo directo con los estudiantes se categorizaron como escenarios de comunicación de baja demanda vocal.

Effects of Age on Speech-in-Noise Identification: Subjective Ratings of Hearing Difficulties and Encoding of Fundamental Frequency in Older Adults

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Numerous studies have indicated deterioration of speech perception in noisy conditions among the elderly even those with normal hearing capabilities. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of age on the speech-in-noise identification by speech-in-noise (SIN) test, subjective ratings of hearing difficulties by speech, spatial, and qualities of hearing scale (SSQ) questionnaire and encoding of fundamental frequency (F0) by Speech auditory brainstem response (ABR) in the elderly and comparing the results with young people. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The present study was conducted on 32 elderly people aged over 60 years old (17 male and 15 female) with the mean age of 68.9 (standard deviation=6.33) possessing normal peripheral hearing and 32 young subjects (16 male and 16 female) aged 18-25 years old. RESULTS: Findings showed that the score of SIN test is lower among the elderly people as compared with young people in signal-to-noise ratios of 0 and -10 based on Iranian version of SSQ questionnaire (p < 0.001). The range of F0 amplitude in the elderly people is also lower than young people (p < 0.001) in Speech ABR. CONCLUSIONS: It seems that speech processing in older people is deteriorated comparing with young people regardless of their normal peripheral auditory thresholds. This decrease will result in weaker perception and improper segregation of speech from other competing sources.

The Study of the Fundamental Frequencies of Different Speech Materials for Normal Adults / 听力学及言语疾病杂志

Objective This study is to analyze the fundamental frequencies of different speech materials . Methods 60 normal subjects (22 males ,38 females) were studied .When pronouncing /a/,/i/,/u/and the short paragraphs ,the fundamental frequencies were measured using Praat software .Results The analysis of the funda‐mental frequencies for different materials indicates that /i/and /u/were the highest while /a/was the next and the paragraphs were the lowest .For males ,the fundamental frequencies from high to low were:148 .47 Hz ,146 .77 Hz ,136 .33 Hz ,and 132 .85 Hz ;for females ,they were:257 .39 Hz ,250 .52 Hz ,239 .43 Hz and 222 .16 Hz .The experimental results showed that there was no significant difference between the fundamental frequencies of vowels between the two genders but there were significant differences when pronouncing different vowels among the female subjects .Conclusion When measuring fundamental frequencies ,reading short paragraphs can be more accurate and the vowel /a/is more useful in this purpose .

Age-Related Deficits in the Processing of Fundamental Frequency Differences for the Intelligibility of Competing Voices

A common complaint of older listeners is that they can hear speech, yet cannot understand it, especially when listening to speech in a background noise. When target and competing speech signals are concurrently presented, a difference in the fundamental frequency (DeltaF0) between competing speech signals, which determines the pitch of voice, can be an important and commonly occurring cue to facilitate the separation of the target message from the interfering message, consequently improving intelligibility of the target message. To address the question of whether the older listeners have reduced ability to use DeltaF0 and how the age-related deficits in the processing of DeltaF0 are theoretically explained, this paper is divided into three parts. The first part of this article summarizes how the speech-communication difficulties that older listeners have are theoretically explained. In the second part, literatures on the perceptual benefits from DeltaF0 and the age-related deficits on the use of DeltaF0 are reviewed. As a final part, three theoretical models explaining the general processing of DeltaF0 are compared to discuss which better explains the age-related deficits in the processing of DeltaF0.

Sistemas de análisis acústico y de reconocimiento automático en habla espontánea / Acoustic analysis and automatic recognition systems in spontaneous spech

En este trabajo se presentan dos sistemas de análisis acústico del habla con aplicaciones a la descripción de segmentos de discurso espontáneo y un sistema de reconocimiento automático de habla espontánea orientado a la detección de palabras. El primer sistema de análisis presenta detalladamente todos los rasgos instintivos segmentales y suprasegmentales del habla en forma simultánea asociados a la frecuencia, energía y duración. El segundo presenta automáticamente los parámetros físicos asociados a la entonación en una superficie que cuantifica el campo vocal del hablante y mide el rango vocal y dinámico en el discurso hablado. Se presenta un histograma de la frecuencia fundamental útil para comparar las tendencias entonativas de sesión a sesión. Finalmente se ha desarrollado una herramienta de reconocimiento con modelos acústicos para el español hablado en la Argentina. El mismo transcribe los sonidos grabados a texto y posibilita la aplicación de otras herramientas para el procesamiento de lenguaje natural.

In this paper two acoustic speech analysis systems are presented with applications to the description of spontaneous speech segments and a system of automatic spontaneousspeech recognition oriented to word detection. The first analysis system presents in detail all segment and supra-segment instinct speech features simultaneously and associated frequency, power and duration. The second automatically displays thephysical parameters associated to intonation in a surface that quantifies the vocal field of the speaker and measures the vocal and dynamic range in spoken discourse. A histogram of the fundamental frequency proves useful to compare intonation tendencies from session to session. Finally a recognition tool with acoustic models was developed for Spanish spoken in Argentina. It transcribes the recorded text sounds and enables the application of other tools for natural language processing.

A Study for Changes of Acoustic Parameters between Pre and Postoperative Voice in Laryngeal Nodule and Polyp / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND: Laryngeal nodule and laryngeal polyp are the most common diseases that cause hoarseness and their incidences are increased currently. Since the invention of computerized voice analysis, it became possible to display voice quantitatively and visibly. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To evaluate the voice of 30 patients with laryngeal nodule and polyp before and after laryngomicrosurgery, the sound spectrogram of the Korean vowel /e/ were analyzed. RESULTS: 1) The valuable parameters for measuring the voice improvement were the range of fundamental frequency fluctuation, jitter and shimmer before and after surgery of laryngeal nodule and polyp. 2) On the first postoperative day, the change of the acoustic parameters of laryngeal nodule and polyp on postoperative showed statistically significant improvements. 3) The acoustic parameters of laryngeal nodule and polyp came within the normal range by the 7th postoperative day. 4) The extent of change in the acoustic parameters of laryngeal polyp was greater than in laryngeal nodule. CONCLUSION: We concluded that the valuable parameters for measuring the voice improvement were the range of fundamental frequency fluctuation, jitter and shimmer. The normalization of this parameter occurred at the first operative week.

Speech Methods of Laryngectomees Who Speak Cantonese / 听力学及言语疾病杂志

Forty laryngectomees were divided into 4 groups. Each group had 10 patients, who speech with Esophageal, Tracheo- esophageal, Electrolaryngeal and Pneumatic artificial laryngeal respectively. Ten normal speakers were included as control group. The average fundamental frequencies (F0) were included as calculated after speaking a sentense. The result showed that it was similar between normal speakers and Tracheo-esophageal speech,the average F0 of Esophageal and Pneumatic artifcial Laryngeal speech were highest, and that of Electrolaryngeal speech was lowest.