Model-Based Reproduction of Articulatory Trajectories for Consonant–Vowel Sequences

We present a novel quantitative model for the generation of articulatory trajectories based on the concept of sequential target approximation. The model was applied for the detailed reproduction of movements in repeated consonant-vowel syllables measured by electromagnetic articulography (EMA). The trajectories for the constrictor (lower lip, tongue tip, or tongue dorsum) and the jaw were reproduced. Thereby, we tested the following hypotheses about invariant properties of articulatory commands: (1) The target of the primary articulator for a consonant is invariant with respect to phonetic context, stress, and speaking rate. (2) Vowel targets are invariant with respect to speaking rate and stress. (3) The onsets of articulatory commands for the jaw and the constrictor are synchronized. Our results in terms of high-quality matches between observed and model-generated trajectories support these hypotheses. The findings of this study can be applied to the development of control models for articulatory speech synthesis.