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Utilization of temperature distribution in expiratory speaking flow as a new parameter for speech production analysis

A new instrument with potential use for speech production analysis is utilized in this study to measure the temperature and velocity of the expiratory speaking flow outside the oral cavity. From a physical point of view, the temperature patterns of individuals with healthy voices are expected to be different from individuals with breathy voices, since their air flow patterns are different: during breathy speech production, the glottis does not close completely, and the leakage of warm air through the glottis increases the extent of the hotter-than-ambient temperature field outside the oral cavity. The instrument is a pipe through which the tested individual breathes out while producing a sustained vowel. A tap water heat exchanger keeps the pipe wall at a temperature level considerably lower than the body temperature. The temperature gradient along the pipe centreline is measured and related to the average air velocity at the oral cavity. The measurements were performed in 30 male and 30 female subjects without vocal complaints. The objective of this initial investigation was to evaluate the possibility of establishing patterns of normality for the temperature distribution outside the oral cavity in expiratory speaking flow. In the experiments, all the temperature measurements increased as the expiratory air flow of the individual increased during speech production, therefore the instrument results agree with the physical behavior predicted by fluid mechanics and heat transfer principles. The collected data allowed for the construction of charts with two distinct normalized temperature distributions outside the oral cavity, for male and female individuals, respectively. These charts have the potential for future utilization in a follow-up study for comparison with similar measurements obtained with individuals with vocal fold pathologies, aiming to eventually produce a reliable new instrument for early detection of vocal problems through a non-invasive procedure.