Analysis of children’s high front vowel area function using three-dimensional ultrasound imaging

Understanding children’s speech production can follow from an analysis of children’s vocal tract area functions. While some studies have used imaging techniques on children to measure tongue contours, to our knowledge, no vocal tract area functions of children have been examined. We attempt to measure the oral cavity vocal tract area functions of children’s vowels using three-dimensional ultrasound imaging recordings of the tongue and palate. In this investigation, we model the oral cavity area function of the vowel [i] of children and compare it to that of an adult oral cavity area function measured using the same ultrasound technique. We show evidence that the tongue positioning and articulation of the vowel [i] is dramatically different for children and adults. Specifically, we focus on how the different tongue positioning of children and adults affects the vocal tract transfer function of [i]. Some theories of children’s speech, either mechanically or perceptually based, can be inferred from these findings and will be compared to previous studies. [Work supported in part by NSF Grant 1551113, NSF Grant 1551131, NSF Grant 1514544, and NIH Grant R01DC007124.]