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Cited by 208Phonetics and Phonology ResearchNeurobiology of Language and BilingualismVoice and Speech Disorders

Encoding of Articulatory Kinematic Trajectories in Human Speech Sensorimotor Cortex

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Chartier, Josh, Anumanchipalli, Gopala K., Johnson, Keith, Chang, Edward F.·2018·Neuron
DOI 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.04.031PMC PMC5992088
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Abstract

Summary When speaking, we dynamically coordinate movements of our jaw, tongue, lips, and larynx. To investigate the neural mechanisms underlying articulation, we used direct cortical recordings from human sensorimotor cortex while participants spoke natural sentences that included sounds spanning the entire English phonetic inventory. We used deep neural networks to infer speakers’ articulator movements from produced speech acoustics. Individual electrodes encoded a diversity of articulatory kinematic trajectories (AKTs), each revealing coordinated articulator movements toward specific vocal tract shapes. AKTs captured a wide range of movement types, yet they could be differentiated by the place of vocal tract constriction. Additionally, AKTs manifested out-and-back trajectories with harmonic oscillator dynamics. While AKTs were functionally stereotyped across different sentences, context-dependent encoding of preceding and following movements during production of the same phoneme demonstrated the cortical representation of coarticulation. Articulatory movements encoded in sensorimotor cortex give rise to the complex kinematics underlying continuous speech production.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.04.031

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  • In healthy speakers, neural representations in the sensorimotor cortex encode articulatory movements of the orofacial musculature.

    “In healthy speakers, neural representations in the SMC (comprising the precentral and postcentral gyri) encode articulatory movements of the orofacial musculature22,24,30.”

    From A high-performance neuroprosthesis for speech decoding and avatar control (2023) · cites this paper as [22]

    The Discussion reports that sensorimotor cortical activity encodes movements of the vocal-tract articulators, and the STAR Methods locate the analyzed electrodes on the precentral and postcentral gyri. However, the Participants section says the five speakers were undergoing clinical treatment for epilepsy. The study therefore does not establish the claim specifically for healthy speakers. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Chartier et al. discovered that the SMC encodes a large variety of low-dimensional movement trajectories of the vocal tract (gestures) that could be directly related to all consonants and vowels.

    “Chartier et al.24 discovered that the SMC encodes a large variety of low-dimensional movement trajectories of the vocal tract (also called gestures), which could be directly related to all consonants and vowels.”

    From The speech neuroprosthesis (2024) · cites this paper as [24]

    The Results (Kinematic organization of vSMC; page unavailable) report distinct articulatory trajectories associated with broad consonant groupings and vowel clusters, supporting the central claim that vSMC encodes vocal-tract movements related to speech sounds. The paper says the consonant groupings broadly cover English consonants, but its analysis excludes liquids and does not establish a direct correspondence to every consonant and vowel. The Methods describe concise seven-value representations of the trajectories, though they do not characterize the full trajectories as low-dimensional. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Animating a facial avatar to accompany synthesized speech is a promising route to naturalistic communication and may be achievable by decoding articulatory and orofacial representations in speech-motor cortex.

    “Therefore, animation of a facial avatar to accompany synthesized speech and further embody the user is a promising means towards naturalistic communication, and it may be possible via decoding of articulatory and orofacial representations in the speech-motor cortex22–25.”

    From A high-performance neuroprosthesis for speech decoding and avatar control (2023) · cites this paper as [22]

  • Subsequent work discovered that SMC populations encode articulatory kinematic trajectories and vocal-tract configurations during continuous speech.

    “Subsequent work discovered that SMC populations encode articulatory kinematic trajectories and vocal-tract configurations43 during continuous speech24,39,44,45 (Fig. 1; Mugler et al. 2018, Chartier et al. 2018 and Dichter et al. 2018).”

    From The speech neuroprosthesis (2024) · cites this paper as [24]

  • Recent studies using direct intracranial recordings have been instrumental to define the functional organization of the SMC and the precise cortical dynamics for speech movements.

    “Recent studies using direct intracranial recordings have been instrumental to define a functional organization of the SMC and the precise cortical dynamics for speech movements17,24,43,44 (Fig. 1; Bouchard et al. 2013, Mugler et al. 2018, Chartier et al. 2018 and Dichter et al. 2018).”

    From The speech neuroprosthesis (2024) · cites this paper as [24]

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Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Fowler CA Rubin PE Remez RE Turvey MT 1980 Implications for speech production of a general theory of action Butterworth B Language Production, Vol. I: Speech and Talk 373 420 New York Academic Press

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Authors
Chartier, J., Anumanchipalli, G. K., Johnson, K., & Chang, E. F.
Affiliations
  • University of California, San Francisco (US)
  • University of California, Berkeley (US)
Corresponding author
Chang, Edward F.
ORCID
Venue
Neuron
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2018-06
Volume
98
Issue
5
Pages
1042-1054.e4
ISSN
0896-6273 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.neuron.2018.04.031
PMC
PMC5992088
OpenAlex
W2804300206
Semantic Scholar
d77041595ca878338f1d506b92929a819b6ac32f
Cited by
208
References
52
Citations by year
2026: 13 · 2025: 45 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 35 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 22 · 2020: 19 · 2019: 21 · 2018: 3
FWCI
21.28
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Neuron (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute
  • New York Stem Cell Foundation
  • National Institutes of Health (U01 NS098971-01, DP2 OD008627)
  • McKnight Foundation
  • Nvidia
  • William K. Bowes, Jr. Foundation
  • Shurl and Kay Curci Foundation
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Phonetics and Phonology Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Voice and Speech Disorders
Keywords
speech articulation, vocal tract shape, coarticulation, phoneme production, speech motor control
MeSH terms
Electrocorticography, Adult, Biomechanical Phenomena, Epilepsy, Female, Humans, Jaw, Larynx, Lip, Middle Aged, Models, Neurological, Phonetics, Speech, Tongue, Neural Networks, Computer, Sensorimotor Cortex

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