O objetivo desta pesquisa é identificar efeitos imediatos dos exercícios de vibração sonorizada e som basal em vozes saudáveis por meio de ferramentas de avaliação vocal. Participaram do estudo trinta adultos saudáveis de ambos os gêneros (12 homens e 18 mulheres), com idade entre 19 a 45 anos, sem queixa vocal. Foram gravadas as vogais sustentadas /a/ e /E/ em dois momentos. A primeira gravação foi realizada antes de exercícios vocais, a segunda gravação foi realizada após os participantes emitirem de 3 a 5 minutos de vibrações sonorizadas ou um minuto de som basal. As gravações de vogais sustentada /a/ e /E/ foram submetidas às análises perceptivo-auditiva e acústica. Também foram gravadas videolaringoscopias em alta velocidade entre os momentos pré e pós-exercícios vocais para a avaliação quimográfica destas imagens. Resultados: a análise perceptivo-auditiva da impressão global da voz apresentou diferença estatística para ambos exercícios para a vogal sustentada /a/ (p = 0,016 para vibração sonorizada e p = 0,046 para som basal). Após a técnica de vibração sonorizada, a análise acústica apresentou diminuição significativa aos parâmetros: nivelamento espectral do filtro (SFF) e mobilidade glótica (GM), em vogais sustentadas /a/ de vozes femininas (p = 0,01 para SFF e p = 0,04 para GM); no coeficiente de perturbação do período (Jitter) em ambos os gêneros, para vogais sustentadas /E/ (p = 0,018 para homens e p < 0,01 para mulheres); e na perturbação da amplitude (Shimmer) e SFF para vogais sustentadas /E/ em vozes femininas (p < 0,01 para Shimmer e p = 0,048 para SFF). Após o exercício de som basal houve diminuição nos parâmetros: Jitter (p < 0,01) em vozes femininas e presença de ruído no espectrograma (p = 0,02). A avaliação das quimografias extraídas de videolaringoscopias em alta velocidade após o exercício de vibração sonorizada apresentou decréscimo do parâmetro fase fechada (p = 0,046); aumento de fase de fechamento (p = 0,026) e aumento na vibração de amplitude (p < 0,01), em pregas vocais femininas. Após o exercício de som basal foi observado aumento significativo ao parâmetro fase de fechamento (p = 0,026) em pregas vocais masculinas. Conclusão: O exercício de vibração sonorizada apresentou efeitos imediatos positivos na qualidade vocal e pregas vocais, principalmente de mulheres. No entanto, são necessárias pesquisas com maior número de amostras masculinas; assim como é necessário pesquisas do tempo adequado do exercício de som basal para melhor investigação e corroboração dos resultados desta pesquisa. / The aim is to detect the immediate effect of vocal exercises in normal voices. Thirty healthy subjects from 19 to 45 year old with no vocal complains participated in the study. The sustained vowels /a/ and /E/ were recorded in two moments: the first, we recorded the habitual voice, before any exercises; and the second, after from 1 to 5 minutes of continuous voiced vibration or vocal fry exercises. Considering the two moments, recordings were submitted to perceptual examination, acoustic and high speed videolaryngoscopy evaluation. We analyzed perceptual, acoustic and spectrographic parameters of sustained vowels /a/ and /E/; as well as, videokymography parameters of high speed laryngeal images. Results: for perceptual analyses there were differences for both exercises (p = 0.016 for vibration and p = 0.046 for vocal fry of sustained vowels /a/). Jitter presented difference after voiced vibration exercises for female and male voices. Shimmer and Spectral Flatness Filter (SFF) showed difference only for female voices. After vocal fry exercises Jitter was lower only for female voices for sustained vowels /E/ (<0.01). Spectrum noise level presented difference after vocal fry exercises for sustained vowels /E/ (p = 0.02). For vibration voiced technique high-speed videolaryngoscopy showed difference for closed phase and closing phase only for female (p = 0.046 and p = 0.026, respectively). After vocal fry exercise we found difference for closing phase only for male (p = 0.026). Vibration amplitude of vocal folds increased only for women after vibration voice exercises (p < 0.01). Vibration voiced technique seems to cause positive immediate effects in voice quality, especially for women voices.

A disfunção da deglutição (disfagia) é muito comum em indivíduos com alterações neurológicas. Muitos estudos examinaram a presença de tosse após a deglutição e/ou desordens na fonação como a rouquidão que tem mostrado que a alteração na voz e desordens laríngeas podem estar relacionadas com penetração/aspiração. Embora a Análise Acústica tenha sido utilizada para avaliar vozes patológicas, este uso pode não estar sendo apropriado para vozes com desordens severas. Nos últimos anos, técnicas de dinâmica não-linear têm se mostrado como um valioso meio para a análise de sinais com segmentos aperiódicos. O objetivo deste estudo foi caracterizar a amostra vocal de pacientes disfágicos, antes e após a deglutição de 3ml e 7ml das consistências pastosa e líquida, utilizando as técnicas de análise perceptivo-auditiva, análise acústica tradicional e do padrão visual da dinâmica vocal (PDVD). Cinco indivíduos sem alteração neurológica e vinte e seis pacientes, com alterações neurológicas de diferentes etiologias, foram submetidos à videofluoroscopia da deglutição, no Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (HCFMRP). Cinco gravações de amostras vocais foram realizadas em cada sujeito, sendo uma antes da videofluoroscopia e quatro durante o procedimento. Estas quatro últimas aquisições foram realizadas imediatamente após a primeira deglutição de pastoso (3ml e de 7ml) e para a deglutição de líquido, respectivamente. Os pacientes produziram a vogal /a/ sustentada, sendo caracterizada pela Análise Perceptivo-auditiva, Análise Acústica Tradicional e pelos Padrões Visuais de Dinâmica Vocal. Na análise perceptivo-auditiva, tensão e instabilidade foram mais sensíveis a resíduo e penetração laríngea; e para aspiração a rugosidade. Utilizando a Análise Acústica Tradicional, nenhuma diferença significativa nos valores médios dos parâmetros acústicos foi observada entre os grupos. Para o PVDV, pode-se verificar o comportamento de toda a amostra, através da presença de irregularidades no traçado, alteração no número de loops e também pelo espalhamento das órbitas. O PVDV mostrou-se como uma técnica apropriada para a visualização ponto a ponto do sinal de voz, fornecendo informações mais precisas do comportamento vocal. / Swallowing dysfunction (dysphagia) is very common in individuals with neurological impairment. Most studies examining the presence of coughing after swallowing, and/or disorders of phonation such as hoarseness have shown that a variety of voice and laryngeal disorders can be positively related to penetration or aspiration. Although, acoustic analysis has been used to assess pathologic voices, it may be unsuitable for severely disordered voices. Over the last years, nonlinear dynamic techniques have shown to be a valuable way to analyze signals with aperiodic segments. The objective of this study is to characterize dysphagic patient voice samples, before and after swallowing solutions with different consistencies, with traditional acoustic analysis, perceptual analysis and Vocal Dynamic Visual Patterns (VDVP). Five volunteer without neurological disorders and twenty six patients, with neurological disorders of different etiologies, were subjected to a video-fluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS), in the Speech Pathology Service at Clinics Hospital of Ribeirão Preto USP (HCFMRP). Five voice samples of each patient were recorded, one sample before the videofluoroscopic, and the other four during the procedure. The last four acquisitions were performed immediately after the first pasty (3ml and 7ml) and liquid solutions swallowing, respectively. Patients were asked to produce a sustained vowel /a/, which were characterized using traditional acoustic analysis, perceptual analysis and Vocal Dynamic Visual Patterns. For perceptual analysis, strained and instability qualities were more susceptible to residue and laryngeal penetration; roughness quality was more susceptible to aspiration. Acoustic Analysis showed none significance differences for mean values of the acoustic parameters among the five groups. For VDVP, all samples presented irregular trajectories, different numbers of loops, and divergent trajectory lines. Results demonstrate that PVDV seems to be a suitable technique for characterizing voice signals with neurological disturbance.

Orientador: Eleonora Cavalcante Albano / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Estudos da Linguagem / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-20T10:09:47Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Freitas_MariaClaudiaCamargode_D.pdf: 3059031 bytes, checksum: 301295b9ca3857f0476a41e7c53ac37a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 / Resumo: A proposta deste trabalho consistiu em resgatar marcas da reorganização fônica em crianças com diagnóstico de transtorno fonológico, à luz da Fonologia Gestual. Em especial, marcas que evidenciassem uma relação especial entre fluência oral e processos fônicos. A fim de obter uma amostra significativa de momentos de reorganização fônica, foram coletados longitudinalmente dados de produção e, também, de percepção de fala. Para compor o grupo alvo (GA), selecionaram-se quatro crianças com dificuldades nas obstruintes surdas - classe de sons escolhida para uniformizar a amostra - e, para o grupo controle (GC), quatro crianças sem alterações fônicas - com idade e gênero compatíveis aos do GA. O corpus de produção foi composto por realizações de palavras-alvo iniciadas pelos fones obstruintes desvozeados seguidos das vogais [a], [i] ou [u] inseridas em uma frase-veículo. Gravações realizadas em cabine acústica por meio de equipamento digital de alta fidelidade. Utilizouse para analisá-los, as análises de outiva e acústica - momentos espectrais e medidas de duração. Sobre a percepção de fala, foi realizada uma tarefa XAB composta por estímulos naturais que continham sílabas iniciadas por obstruintes desvozeadas seguidas de [a]. Foram realizadas quatro coletas, com intervalo médio de 40 dias. O uso de estatística paramétrica foi inviabilizado pela impossibilidade de obter sujeitos com quadros idênticos. Recorreu-se, então, à contagem de tipos de respostas, analisada por meio do teste quiquadrado. O desempenho do GA, em comparação ao GC, se mostrou singular em aspectos relativos tanto à produção quanto à percepção de fala. Como marcas da reorganização fônica, observaram-se: (a) flutuação nas tentativas de marcar um contraste em aquisição pelo GA; (b) maior incidência de alterações na fluência nos dados do GA, em comparação ao GC, especialmente, em momentos de aproximação em relação ao padrão na língua; (c) forte distanciamento nos valores de momentos espectrais entre os dados do GA e do GC, mesmo em coletas em que a outiva classificou a maior parte das realizações do GA como de acordo com o padrão; (d) aumento, em relação às coletas iniciais, dos valores de medidas de duração absoluta e relativa do GA em comparação ao GC; (e) vínculos entre mudanças no padrão de discriminação auditiva e de percepção e; por fim, (f) tempos de reação mais longos no experimento de percepção pelo GA, em comparação ao GC. A não separação entre a tarefa motora e sua representação, bem como a existência de uma estreita relação entre produção e percepção, premissas da Fonologia Gestual, permitem atribuir às diferentes marcas identificadas o estatuto de causa e efeito da reorganização fônica. Chamar a atenção para a reorganização fônica pode fornecer importantes subsídios para o entendimento da aquisição desviante e, consequentemente, para intervenções terapêuticas mais eficazes / Abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate phonological reorganization indices in children diagnosed with phonological disorder. The theoretical frame of reference adopted was Gestural Phonology. In particular, we looked for indices that could reveal relationships between fluency and phonological aspects. Speech production and perception data were collected in order to obtain a representative sample of phonological reorganization instances. Four children with difficulties in voiceless obstruents were selected for the experimental group (EG); and four children with normal phonological acquisition, of the same gender and similar ages as the EG, were selected for the control group (CG). Only voiceless obstruents were used. The speech production corpus consisted of target words, with initial voiceless obstruents followed by the vowels [a], [i] or [u], inserted in carrier phrases. Speech recordings were made in a soundproof booth using digital equipment. The data were analyzed impressionistically as well as acoustically, using measurements of spectral moments and duration. For the speech perception data, we performed an XAB task composed of natural stimuli containing syllables beginning with voiceless obstruent followed by [a]. Four data collection sessions were conducted, at intervals of about 40 days. The impossibility of finding children with the same difficulty precluded the use of parametric statistic tests. The performance of GA proved unique in both production and perception. The phonological reorganization indices observed were: (a) coexistence of different attempts at marking a sound contrast in the EG group; (b) more incidences of disfluencies in EG as compared with CG, at moments of phonological reorganization; (c) As compared to CG, EG showed strong variability in spectral moments, even when impressionistic analysis judged the phones standard. (d) Increase in the absolute and relative duration values for EG as compared with CG as well as with the initial data collection sessions; (e) links between discrimination pattern and production change; and (f) longer reaction times in the perception experiment for EG, as compared to GC. The absence of a gap between the motor task and its representation, in addition to a close link between production and perception, assumed by Gestural Phonology, permit to treat the observed indices as both cause and effect of phonogical reorganization. The investigation of phonological reorganization provides important insights into deviant acquisition, as well as support for therapeutic interventions / Doutorado / Linguistica / Doutor em Linguística

The feeding behavior of an animal is based on adaptations to the environment and the animal’s body condition. The Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) is an example of a marine mammal that may alter its feeding pattern based on diel and tidal cycles. The increased presence of boats during the day could potentially cause manatees to alter their feeding rates, or the time spent feeding per hour, over the diel cycle. Tide levels may cause manatees to be restricted from areas of preferred vegetation. In addition, the differential reproductive investment between males and females may cause differential time dedicated to feeding between the sexes. This study analyzed sound recordings (lasting up to 24 hr) from manatees tagged in southwest Florida with a digital acoustic recording tag (DTAG) between April and September. Distinctive chewing sounds were indicative of feeding activity. Variation in time spent feeding was analyzed in relation to time of day, sex, female reproductive status, and water level as affected by tides. Manatees dedicated 26% of the time (6 hours) to feeding, on average. During the first year of the study, manatees spent 39% of the time feeding (9 hours), on average, over the course of a 24-hour period; during the second year they spent 15% (2 hours) over the course of a 13-hour daytime period. Adult females fed significantly more, on average, than adult males. Females in late-term pregnancy appeared to spend more time foraging than other non-lactating females, but the sample size was too small to be definitive. Manatee time spent feeding was not correlated with time of day. Increases in feeding activity occurred at mid to high tide levels. This may indicate that manatees had greater access to preferred food sources at this time. An understanding of when manatees 5 are most likely to be feeding and which environmental factors influence this activity may suggest ways to reduce impacts on the endangered population.

The goal of this study was to investigate the methodology in designing a vowel intelligibility model that can objectively predict the outcome of a vowel confusion test performed with normal hearing individuals listening to a cochlear implant acoustic model. The model attempts to mimic vowel perception of a cochlear implantee mathematically. The output of the model is the calculated probability of correct identification of vowel tokens and the probability of specific vowel confusions in a subjective vowel confusion test. In such a manner, the model can be used to aid cochlear implant research by complementing subjective listening tests. The model may also be used to test hypotheses concerning the use and relationship of acoustic cues in vowel identification. The objective vowel intelligibility model consists of two parts: the speech processing component (used to extract the acoustic cues which allow vowels to be identified) and the decision component (simulation of the decision making that takes place in the brain). Acoustic cues were extracted from the vowel sounds and used to calculate probabilities of identifying or confusing specific vowels. The confusion matrices produces by the objective vowel perception model were compared with results from subjective tests performed with normal hearing listeners listening to an acoustic cochlear implant model. The most frequent confusions could be predicted using the first two formant frequencies and the vowel duration as acoustic cues. The model could predict the deterioration of vowel recognition when noise was added to the speech being evaluated. The model provided a first approximation of vowel intelligibility and requires further4 development to completely predict speech perception of cochlear implantees. / Dissertation (ME)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering / unrestricted

This thesis deals with the vibration and noise of the gearbox for an electric vehicle. The gearbox itself acts as an emitter of unwanted noise caused by vibration excitation of the internal components of the gearbox. It is therefore necessary to deal with a complex unit such as the gearbox at system level as soon as it is being designed. This can be achieved using analytical tools and software. In this thesis, in order to evaluate the validity of the designed gearbox, a procedure is developed using both technical experiment and numerical simulations. The effect of the bolt preload is not overlooked for the following computational modelling dealing with the radiated noise of the gearbox. The results obtained from the performed technical experiments were then evaluated and compared with the results of the computational models. In this way, it is possible to compare the different approaches, their limitations and weaknesses. Furthermore, the thesis deals with design modifications that are analyzed using computational modeling. The thesis is concluded with a brief description of the application of each approach and an evaluation of the gearbox design modifications.

This study investigated the possibility of pitch and tone register differences between native speakers of Taiwan and Beijing Mandarin by means of an acoustic analysis of three speech styles. Speech styles included spontaneous interview, spontaneous descriptive, and controlled read sentential speech. Data analysis included long segments of recorded speech in order to discern any statistically significant pitch register differences between the two dialects. Speech style and read tones were also analyzed. Results suggest that tones produced in Taiwan Mandarin are in a slightly lower register than those produced in Beijing Mandarin. Surprisingly, speech style was not a significant predictor of pitch register in long segments of recorded speech. Despite a limited sample size, this research effectively promotes the inclusion of sociolinguistic variables such as dialect in the field of tone research.

No description available.

Le XXème siècle marque le début de l’étude musicologique sur le chant basque, concept apparu dans le courant du XIXème siècle. La plupart des recherches insistent sur les spécificités de cette pratique. A cette même époque, l’enregistrement de ce répertoire permet la constitution d’archives sonores. Pourtant, musicologues et collecteurs de sources sonores ne se rencontrent pas. Or, l’examen approfondi des études musicologiques publiées sur le chant basque amène à penser que les caractéristiques musicales attribuées à cette pratique tout au long du XXème siècle ne sont pas toutes pertinentes, que ce soit dans les termes employés ou dans la conception même de la musique. Elles renseignent parfois plus sur les auteurs et le contexte d’écriture de l’ouvrage/ article que sur la musique elle-même. Ces descriptionspeuvent de ce fait être nuancées à la lumière de nouvelles analyses. Une comparaison diachronique et synchronique de sources écrites et musicales de la fin du XIXème siècle à la fin du XXème siècle permet d’une part d’observer le lien entre ce qui est « dit » sur le sujet du point de vue musicologique et ce que nous pouvons en entendre, et d’autre part de repérer les caractéristiques musicales communes qui se dégagent de l’ensemble. Nous formulons l’hypothèse qu’il existe dans le chant basque monodique, non des caractéristiques musicales intrinsèques, mais des éléments musicaux mobiles, variés, des « indices », notamment du point de vue de la hauteur, qui peuvent être observés grâce à des outils d’analyse modernes. / The XXth century marks the beginning of the musicological study of the Basque singing, a concept appeared during the course of the XIXth century. Most of these researchs insist on the specificities of such a practice. At the same time, the recording of this repertory allows the setting up of sound archives. Nevertheless, musicologists and collectors of the sound sources do not meet. However, a thorough examination of the musicology studies published about the Basque singing leads to think that the musical characteristics ascribed to this practice throughout the XXth century are not all relevant whether concerning the terms being used or the conception of the very music. They often inform more on the authors and the context of the writing of the work/article than on the music itself. These descriptions may then be qualified in the light of new analyses. A diachronic and synchronic comparison of the written and musical sources from the late XIXth century to the end of the XXth allows us, on the one hand, to observe the link between what is “said” on the topic from the musicology point of view and what we can hear, and on the other hand to spot the common musical characteristics emerging from the whole.We formulate the hypothesis that the monodic Basque singing does not present any intrinsic musical characteristics. Rather, we observe mobile and diverse musical elements, kinds of “clues”, especially as far as pitch is concerned, that can be observed thanks to modern analysis tools.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-27T18:12:07Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Natalia Eugenia Sanchez Escamez.pdf: 2199536 bytes, checksum: 518a61f9f5e99f75e0bfe3afd992bb20 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-02-26 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / In the study of a song, it is common that singers come across technical difficulties related to breathing, resonance and sonority. Some of these difficulties can be related to the artist him or herself or to the musical genre. This research sought to investigate aspects that differentiate the singing voice both in classical and popular genres, associating the genre and type of emission with the singer and his or her singing. Objective: to compare acoustic singing emission characteristics of classical and popular female singers in a passage of the song Melodia Sentimental of the composer Heitor Villa-Lobos. Method: ten professional singers, five classical (GE) and five popular (GP) recorded the first strophe of the song Melodia Sentimental (Sentimental Melody) by Villa-Lobos and a passage the six first verses was extracted for the acoustic analysis. Two analyses were made: long-term average spectra (LTAS) and voice onset time (VOT) for two consonants /d/ of the passage. Results: in the LTAS analysis, the classical singers had a prominence within the 2.5kHz and 3.5kHz frequency region, not found in the most part of the popular singers. Regarding the spectral slope, the GE reached flatter curves in comparison to the GP, and the decline numeric value was lower for the classical singers compared to the popular singers. As for VOT analysis classical singers had a lower VOT value when confronted to the popular singers, denoting longer glottal closure time among the popular singers. Conclusion: When comparing the classical and popular singers group regarding acoustic aspects, it was verified that classical singers have both higher energy and lower time on glottal closure compared to the popular singers / No estudo de uma canção, é comum que cantores se deparem com dificuldades técnicas relacionadas à respiração, ressonância e sonoridade. Algumas dessas dificuldades podem estar relacionadas ao próprio artista ou ao gênero musical. A pesquisa realizada buscou averiguar aspectos que diferenciem a voz cantada nos gêneros erudito e popular, associando o gênero e o tipo de emissão com o cantor e sua forma de cantar. Objetivo: comparar características acústicas da emissão cantada de cantoras eruditas e populares em um trecho da canção Melodia Sentimental do compositor Heitor Villa-Lobos. Método: dez cantoras profissionais, cinco eruditas (GE) e cinco populares (GP) gravaram a primeira estrofe da canção Melodia Sentimental de Villa-Lobos, da qual um trecho - os seis primeiros versos - foram extraídos para a análise acústica. Duas análises foram feitas: espectro médio de longo termo (ELT) e voice onset time (VOT) para duas consoantes /d/ do trecho. Resultados: na análise de ELT, as cantoras eruditas tiveram uma proeminência na região de frequências entre 2.5kHz e 3.5kHz, não encontrado na maioria das populares. Em relação à curva do declínio espectral, o GE obteve curvas mais planas comparadas ao GP, e o valor numérico do declínio foi menor nas cantoras eruditas em relação às populares. Na análise de VOT as cantoras eruditas tiveram um menor valor quando comparadas com as populares, o que denota maior tempo de fechamento glótico nas populares. Conclusão: Ao comparar o grupo de cantoras eruditas e o grupo de cantoras populares no que se refere aos aspectos acústicos verificamos que as cantoras eruditas têm maior energia no fechamento glótico e menor tempo de coaptação glótica na comparação com as cantoras populares