Mechanics of human voice production and control

TLDR

Voice is the primary means of communication, conveying personal information such as social status, traits, and emotional state, and its production involves complex fluid‑structure interaction within the glottis controlled by laryngeal muscles. This paper seeks to establish a causal theory linking voice physiology and biomechanics to how speakers control voice for meaning and personal information, reviewing physiology, biomechanics, vocal‑fold vibration physics, and laryngeal control, and outlining future challenges. The authors review voice physiology and biomechanics, the physics of vocal‑fold vibration and sound production, laryngeal muscular control of fundamental frequency, intensity, and quality, and critically evaluate current mechanical and computational models of voice production. Establishing such a causal theory has important implications for clinical voice management, voice training, and speech‑technology applications.

Abstract

As the primary means of communication, voice plays an important role in daily life. Voice also conveys personal information such as social status, personal traits, and the emotional state of the speaker. Mechanically, voice production involves complex fluid-structure interaction within the glottis and its control by laryngeal muscle activation. An important goal of voice research is to establish a causal theory linking voice physiology and biomechanics to how speakers use and control voice to communicate meaning and personal information. Establishing such a causal theory has important implications for clinical voice management, voice training, and many speech technology applications. This paper provides a review of voice physiology and biomechanics, the physics of vocal fold vibration and sound production, and laryngeal muscular control of the fundamental frequency of voice, vocal intensity, and voice quality. Current efforts to develop mechanical and computational models of voice production are also critically reviewed. Finally, issues and future challenges in developing a causal theory of voice production and perception are discussed.