Articulatory/Resonating System

CSD 2230

THE ARTICULATORY/RESONATING SYSTEM SYSTEM

Articulation
- Anatomy Definition - Movement of structures to produce speech sounds
- CD Definition - Movement of joined anatomic parts and production of speech sounds by such movements
- Process of Speech Production
  - Tone generated by larynx is modified, through resonating structures, and is shaped into speech sounds by several structures (tongue and lips). The shaping of speech sounds is know as Articulation
  - Pharynx - sounds travels through the nasal, throat and mouth cavities known as the pharynx
    - laryngopharynx - starts above the larynx
    - oropharynx - laryngopharynx connected oropharynx
    - nasopharynx - oropharynx connected to nasoharynx, ends where 2 nasal cavities begin
  - Laryngopharynx and oropharynx add resonance to the sounds from the larynx.
  - Nasopharynx adds resonance to nasal sound s(m, n, ng). Nasal cavity normally is closed.
  - Movement of the tongue, lips, and the larynx will change the shape of the vocal tract and in turn modify the sound emanating from the larynx. During consonant production, the tongue is sometimes used to momentarily occlude the vocal tract for the production of stop sounds like /t/, /d/, /k/, and /g/. Production of sounds like /s/ and /sh/ require the tongue to form a constriction in the vocal tract that will produce noise when air is passed through the constriction.
Major Articulators or Parts that is involved in Articulation
- Soft Palate
  - Velum - known as soft palate, flexible muscular structure that hangs from hard palate
  - Uvula - small cone shaped structure, tip of velum
- Hard Palate - roof of mouth, floor of nose
  - Premaxilla - front part of maxillary bone
  - Incisors - premaxilla houses 4 teeth known as incisors
  - Palatine Process - part of maxillary bone that forms hard palate
  - Aleveolar Process - outer edges of maxillary bone
- Jaw
  - Mandible - anatomic name for jaw
    - houses lower set teeth
    - forms floor of mouth
  - Alveolar Arch - part of mandible that houses the upper teeth
  - Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) - mandible is attached to temporal bone
- Teeth
  - Mastication - major function is chewing
  - Deciduous Teeth - temporary teeth
    - Babies have 20 decidous teeth, 10 in each arch
      - 4 incisors
      - 2 canine
      - 4 molars
    - Adults have 32 teeth, 16 in each arch
      - 4 incisors
      - 2 canine
      - 4 premolars
      - 6 molars
  - Occlusion - the way the 2 dental arches meet each other
  - Malocclusions - deviations in positioning of arches and individual teeth
    - Class I Malocclusion - some individual teeth are misaligned
    - Class II Malocclusion - Upper arch is protruded, lower arch retracted
    - Class III Malocclusion - Upper arch is receded and lower arch is protruded
- Tongue
  - Biological function is to sense taste and to move food around in oral cavity for chewing and swallowing
  - Anatomy
    - Tip - important role in articulation
    - Blade - adjacent to tip
    - Dorsum - large area of tongue, contacts hard and soft palate
    - Root - back of tongue
  - Major Articulator
    - Stop airflow and release it in plosive manner (t, k, d, g)
    - Constrict air passage, creating friction noises (s, z)
    - Stop airflow and release with fricative noise (ch-chalk, j-job)
- Lips and Cheeks
  - Anatomy
    - Orbicularis Oris - make up lips
    - Buccinator - makes up cheeks
  - Articulators
    - Speech sounds can be articulated with minimal movement of lips
    - Lips are involved with labial sounds (p, b)
    - Lip closure builds intraoral air pressure, and released in a plosive manner
      - Both muscles are involved in above process.
Life-Span Issues for the Articulatory/Resonating System
- The bones of the skull grow rapidly during the first years of life and reach the size of an adult at about 8 years of age.
  - At birth, the newborn has 45 separate skull bones which ultimately fuse into 22 bones by adulthood.
  - When fused together as in adulthood, the cranium appears as one solid bone.
  - The bones of the lower portion of the face grow at a much slower rate than the bones of the skull.
  - These lower facial bones do not reach their maximum adult size until about 18 years of age.
  - Because of the different growth patterns between the skull bones and the facial bones, the face is allowed to grow downward and forward relative to the cranium.
- The tongue of the newborn is large enough to occupy most of the oral cavity.
  - As the infant grows during the first several years, the posterior portion of the tongue descends into the pharyngeal cavity and the tongue reaches its mature size at about 16 years of age.
- The lips experience two major growth spurts during the second year of life and the during the early and middle teenage years. During these grow spurts, the lips increase in width, height,- and convexity.