This paper explores the relationship between intelligibility and comprehensibility in speech synthesizers, and it designs an appropriate comprehension task for evaluating the speech synthesizers’ comprehensibility. Previous studies have predicted that a speech synthesizer with higher intelligibility will have higher performance in comprehension. Also, since the two most popular speech synthesis...

Despite advances in engineering noise controls and the use of administrative controls, miners are still dependent on hearing protection devices for prevention of noise-induced hearing loss. However, miners often raise concerns about the audibility of spoken communication when wearing conventional hearing protectors. Electronic technologies that selectively process and restore sounds from outsid...

OBJECTIVE To examine the impact of classroom placement and mode of communication on speech intelligibility scores in children aged 8 to 9 years using multichannel cochlear implants. DESIGN Classroom placement (special education, partial mainstream, and full mainstream) and mode of communication (total communication and auditory-oral) reported via parental rating scales before and 4 times afte...

BACKGROUND Gaining a new voice is one of the major aims after total laryngectomy. The objective of this study was to describe the process and results of speech rehabilitation during the first year after surgery. METHODS Speech intelligibility was measured 6 months (n = 273) and 1 year (n = 225) after total laryngectomy. RESULTS Objective (23.4 to 47.5 points, p < .0001) and subjective (51.6...

Three experiments compared the intelligibilities of helium-speech and normal speech when both were masked by loud noise. Recordings were made of five talkers reading intelligibility word-lists. Several panels of listeners heard these recordings masked by different levels of background noise. In Experiment I, a fatigue effect seemed at first to be present differentially for the helium-speech, su...

This paper introduces a three-dimensional virtual head for use in speech tutoring applications. The system achieves audiovisual speech synthesis using viseme-driven animation and a coarticulation model, to automatically generate speech from text. The talking head was evaluated using a modified rhyme test for intelligibility. The audiovisual speech animation was found to give higher intelligibil...

In dentistry, speech evaluation is important for appropriate orofacial dysfunction rehabilitation. The speech intelligibility test is often used to assess patients’ speech, and it involves an evaluation by human listeners. However, the test has certain shortcomings, and an alternative method, without a listening procedure, is needed. The purpose of this study was to test the applicability of an...

When speech is presented through loudspeakers in a noisy environment, the background noise can significantly decrease speech intelligibility. Because the amplitude and spectrum of the background noise can vary over time (and because high loudness levels are to be avoided for listener comfort), choosing proper speech equalization and master gain settings for a public address system can be a diff...

Reduced speech intelligibility is a barrier to effective communication for many children with cerebral palsy (CP). Many variables may impact intelligibility, yet little research attention has sought to quantify these variables. This study examined the influence of sentence characteristics on intelligibility in two groups of children with CP (those with and without dysarthria) and typically-deve...

Speech utterances in a given language are known to be less intelligible to second-language (L2) listeners than to native listeners. This study is aimed at quantifying the reduction of speech intelligibility due to non-nativeness of the listener. Two types of experiments were carried out: Speech Reception Threshold (SRT) experiments for obtaining a quantitative measure of speech intelligibility,...