Synchronization of Cineflourography and Speech Observations

Abstract

In recent years, the utilization of cinefluorography has provided use— ful information for the study of speech mechanism. There is a need, however, to develop suitable methods for synchronous observation of ar-ticulation skills and of the velopharyngeal mechanism. Synchronization systems may be divided into two groups: a) direct methods, by which the sound being produced is recorded on the cinefilm as the sound track, and b) indirect methods, in which the sound is recorded separately on other recording apparatus. M011 (3) has applied a direct method by using the Auricon cine— camera and obtained the synchronization between articulatory movements and sound. In an indirect method, such as when the speed of the cinecamera and that of the recording apparatus (tape—recorder or electromyograph recorder) are different, exact synchronization cannot be expected without any correlated time axis, particularly if the speed of each of them may vary slightly. To solve this problem, Lubker and M011 (2) have reported the use of a spike signal generator for synchroni— zation between articulatory movements and the oral-nasal air flow measurements. In their work, one spike signal per second is the correlated time axis between the cinefluorographic film and the air flow records. Bjork (I) and Nylén (4) have reported a. synchronization device which delivers marking pulses on both the cinefilm and the sound tape for the synchronization between articulatory movements and the sound which is produced. This pulse is generated at every tenth frame by the frame signals derived from the driving shaft of cinecamera. This method is one of the most suitable ways in synchronizing the cinefluorogram with sound. There have been attempts at measuring time, notably that by Umeno (5), but in all the attempts there is the methodological difficulty in the measurement of correct time. The present study was designed for the purposes of a) synchronizing the articulatory movements With sounds being produced and b) obtaining correct time relationships between the movements and the sounds for evaluating the articulatory mechanism in a quantitative form. 291