Syllables intelligibility in relation to the autocorrelation and cepstrum model: the case of Chinese in Taiwan

Abstract

The articulation of some special pronunciations of vowel inconsistently raises with the rapid speech transmission index (RASTI) tested using mono-syllables for Chinese phonics. In the researching of speech intelligibility in room, the factors being considered have to include not only the qualities of sound field but the pronunciation characteristics of syllables as well. Therefore, with regard to the defect of RASTI measurements, we utilized the autocorrelation and the cepstrum of mono-syllables recorded in rooms to compare the articulation with the physical phenomena of intelligibilities. Thus, we found that the minimum effective duration of autocorrelation function ({lower case tau}e) of all testing syllables signals recorded at same surveyed position in rooms, associated well with the articulation for each individual room. Specially, for individual syllable signals, they are further shown significant correlation between the cepstral energy of mono-syllables and the articulation collected in all rooms. The cepstrum acts as a spatially intelligible detector for syllables, and the autocorrelation is a good response of the pronunciation characteristics of syllables.