Characteristics of articulatory coordination during Japanese VCV sequences: Observations using optical and marker-tracking systems.

Abstract

We examined the influence of context on the articulatory positions of the tongue, lips, and mandible using optical and marker-tracking systems and speculated articulatory coordination during the production of Japanese VCV sequence from the standpoint of current theories of speech production. The primary articulator for the consonant was comparatively invariant in the context. The secondary articulator was variant in the context. Influence of the preceding vowel on the secondary articulators for the con-sonant decreased monotonically and the influence of the following vowel increased in the same way. Thus, movements during the Japanese VCV sequence seem to consist of basic vowel-to-vowel gestures and comparatively invariant movement for the relevant consonant articulator.