Real-time MRI articulatory movement database and its application to articulatory phonetics

Abstract

Real-time MRI video imaging has had a significant impact on articulatory phonetics. Many new findings have been obtained using this technology that enables the objective observation of the whole vocal tract under speech production, which has long been imagined by subjective retrospection. In this paper, I introduce the specifications of the "Real-time MRI Articulatory Movement Database (rtMRIDB)" that my colleagues and I developed and its relevance to the study of diversity in Japanese phonetics. Some ongoing technological developments are also introduced.