lingWAVES Voice Diagnostic Center (VDC)
"lingWAVES Voice Diagnostic Center was designed with the ultimate
goal to combine for the first time the quantitative (singing/speaking
profile) and qualitative (singer's formant, hoarseness – degree of dysphonia severity, roughness – irregularity, breathiness – noise) voice
analysis. The VDC voice analysis delivers reliable and clinically
relevant data, it can be performed in a short time and is optimized for
use in everyday practice. Its integral design, usability and practical
value are the key features that make the product unique. " Ingolf
Franke, WEVOSYS
Voice and Hoarseness
The lingWAVES VDC is a combined analysis tool for the
measurement of quantitative (singing/voice range profile) and
qualitative voice parameters (vocal ring/singer’s formant,
hoarseness/overall severity of dysphonia, roughness/irregularity,
breathiness/noise). The lingWAVES VDC is a time-saving analysis solution
that provides reliable, professional results. Therefore, it is
especially suitable to fulfill the requirements of frequent use in
everyday practice. The combination of an integrated analysis concept
with an easy application and a high practical value is the unique key
feature of this product.
ENT, Phoniatrics, Clinic
The lingWAVES VDC is an optimized application for
professional documentation and diagnostics of voice disorders. Besides
standard diagnostics, it offers a great variety of other well-known and
novel analysis options that are all easy-to-use, time-saving and
cross-comparable as well. The lingWAVES VDC is THE solution for voice
diagnostics and highly suitable for specialised usage in the fields of
Otorhinolaryngology, phoniatrics and clinical speech pathology.
lingWAVES offers a standardized documentation that is very important for
evidence-based-practice.
Voice Professionals
Especially for singers, actors and other voice
professionals a decrease in voice performance may have serious
consequences. Generally, a dysfunction or loss of voice may cause severe
problems for all groups of patients, as voice represents an important
“organ of expression”. The voice range profile and the hoarseness
profile analyze and illustrate the limits of a vocal performance. The
lingWAVES VDC supports you in diagnostics of functional voice disorders,
suggests starting points for a voice treatment and can be used for the
control of therapy effectiveness.
Voice Diagnostic for everyday use
New, informative, simpler than before – it takes 5 to 15 minutes to
complete a singing and speaking profile and read off information on
qualitative properties of the examined voice.
Let the pictures speak for lingWAVES VDC performance:
Cluster and Polygon Display: The phonetogram
(voice range profile) display can be switched between cluster and
polygon view mode. Histograms displaying the distribution of occurence
frequency of pitch and volume values contained in recorded data are
placed on the left and lower sides of the phonetogram template. To
the right of the phonetogram template, statistical information on the
recorded data is given. One of the new and most useful features
introduced with lingWAVES VDC is the relative voice area or norm profile
coverage. The new measure gives the quotient of the recorded
phonetogram area to gender-specific normal value. Area covered by an
individual phonetogram is a realiable measure for evaluating dysphonia
and documenting changes in vocal ability. A healthy voice is supposed to
cover at least 100 % of the normal phonetogram area.
Pitch and Volume Dynamic Display: Apart from
distribution of pitch and volume values, this display shows detailed
information on changes in pitch and volume dynamic. We recommend
comparison with other registrations to assess possible changes.
Irregularity Display (Roughness Display):
This diplay captures voice quality parameters related to vibrating
behavior of vocal folds during phonetographic registration. Irregularity
of vocal fold vibrations correlates with perceived roughness. Green
areas represent regular vocal fold behavior, irregularity is highlighted
by yellow and red colors for poor and pathological voice quality
respectively.
Noise Display (Breathiness Display): This
display captures noise energy in the recorded data. Red areas are
typical of voices with high noise ratio due to inclomplete glottal
closure, noise correlating with perceived breathiness.
Dysphonia Severity Display (Hoarseness
Display): Objective measurements of roughness and breathiness
correlatives in a singing voice add up to pitch- and volume-dependent
dysphonia severity display, overall degree of dysphonia severity
strongly relates to percieved hoarseness.
Vocal Ring/Singer's Formant Display: This
display captures the relative prominence of frequencies near 3kHz in a
voice sample. The stronger the energy, the better the voice can be heard
over other sound sources. The energy peak in this frequency band is
commonly referred to as the singer's formant. lingWAVES VDC gives
singer's formant estimates for each documented pitch and volume value
and offers herewith an overall picture of voice strength for soft,
comfortable and loud phonations depending on pitch. This display is
invaluable in singing instruction.
Speaking profile including shouting voice:
lingWAVES VDC introduces a new measure describing the rise of pitch with
increasing volume, the slope of speaking curve. The slope of speaking
curve should show a steep rise for a healthy voice.
Two-Profile Comparison: Voice parameters
extracted from one recorded profile can be cross-compared to other
profiles. Positive or negative changes are highlighted by green and red
colors respectively, the upper picture showing two slopes of speaking
curve. The change in the steepness of the slope indicates improvement
against previous voice condition.
Two-Profile Comparison: Two phonetograms overlayed: the comparison shows
an increase in phonetogram area expressed in percent.
Vospector-DSI
Vospector-DSI-calculation is an integral part of phonetography with
lingWAVES VDC. The Dysphonia Severity Index is calculated on the basis
of a combination of phonetographic data, maximal phonation time and
further voice quality measurements made on a sustained vowel. Objective
correlatives of the RBH voice quality ratings complement the DSI value.
Vospector-DSI: An objective RBH measurement
is taken on a vowel [a] that has to be sustained for at least 2-3
seconds. The analysis data is available for further measurements, eg.
for the calculation of the DSI.
Editing and Managing Data
With lingWAVES you can edit audio files as you desire by cutting,
copying and pasting, e.g. if you want to remove artifacts or pauses from
a signal or if you want to rearrange the order of signal parts. The
undo-function is helpful in stepwise undoing changes.
The Patient Manager facility accommodates recorded data and analyses.
It gives you fast access to patients' records and an advantage of
low-maintenance data management.
Vocal Loading Test
lingWAVES VDC offers a vocal loading test to facilitate expert
opinion on patients' predisposition to vocal fatigue. The test
parameters including level of vocal loading, loading tasks, test
duration and volume can be chosen freely in accordance with the
requirements of the situation.
Vocal Loading Test: The VLT display shows
test data at different levels of loading.
Continuously updating real-time volume (blue line) and pitch estimates
of the voice are measured and displayed during the test run.
Spectrography and Real-time spectrography
The spectral analysis of voice has been reliably used for years in
voice diagnostics. Using lingWAVES VDC you can perform spectrographic
analysis of recorded speech and voice samples and display the spectrum
of voice in real time.
The lingWAVES spectrogram module shows the
distribution of frequencies over time in a recorded voice signal. The
third dimension, energy, is presented by colour or darkness.
Spectrograms are visual representations of an acoustic signal and
contain cues on speech rate, duration, intonation, stress, voice onset,
noise, place and manner of articulation, etc.
Real-time spectrography: The spectrogram display shows the spectrum
of a current voice signal and gives real-time biological feedback. The
user gets the immediate visual responce to changes in the voice and
vocal parameters.
Measurements made with High-Quality Precision
Due to technical limitations, precise phonetography is not possible
with common soundcards and microphones. lingWAVES Phonetogram Plus
requires a standardized sound level meter (SPL), a device for
frequency-weighted sound pressure level measurements displayed in dB(A).
An SPL meter is a high-quality microphone, which can be easily connected
to a PC through a free COM-port and is automatically configured by the
software.
A sound level meter only can estimate the
true, real value of sound intensity needed for phonetography and other
analyses. lingWAVES phonetograms reach an optimal level of
standardization and comparability of measurements that is unattainable
by other systems.
Network-compatibility & data exchange port
lingWAVES can be set up to exchage data between work places using the
lingWAVES Viewer. This exchange is needed when an examiner makes and
evaluates phonetogram registrations on separate locations, e.g.
audiometry room and consultation room. The second location is equipped
with the lingWAVES Viewer, which is available as an optional accessory.
An optional data exchange port connects lingWAVES to your patient
data management software according to the standards of the Berlin
Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians.
At a glance
lingWAVES Phonetogram Plus Software:
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Modular extendable lingWAVES basis
with the phonetography and spectrography modules, medical
product class 1 (93/42/EEC), CE signed |
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Standardized real-time assessment
of frequency and dynamic ranges of the human voice (singing,
speaking (habitual, loud/tense, soft/relaxed) and shouting voice
modes) according to the recommendations by the Union of European
Phoniatricians (UEP), voice range profile (VRP) |
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Additional fields for irregularity
(roughness), noise (breathiness), overall severity (hoarseness)
and vocal ring/singer's formant |
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A standardized sound level meter (IEC
651 Typ2 / ANSI S1.4 Type 2) for measuring intensity in the
range between 40 - 120 dB(A), permitted tolerance +/- 1,5 dB, is
packaged with the software |
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Pitch measurement in the range
between 50 - 1.560 Hz |
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Toggle switch between polygon and
cluster view modes |
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Printing, saving and
cross-comparing phonetograms |
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Patient manager facility for
managing patients' records with an optional data exchange port
connected to a compatible patient data management software |
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Simple and intuitive handling,
user manual and graphic user interface are translated into
English |
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Built-in recorder functions:
record, save, zoom, playback, edit (cut, copy, paste), stepwise
undo-function |
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All measurements and analyses can
be printed for filing. Printed reports contain information on
patients and institutions supplying the service. |
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Spectrographic analysis of
recordings make it possible to extract voice information
relevant for treatment and therapy |
System Requirements
Windows Operating System 2000, XP, min.
Pentium IV, min. 1 GB working storage,
70 MB hard disk capacity, sound card, PC loudspeakers, CD-ROM
drive, USB-port, RS 232 port (serial port) for sound level meter
(or USB-to-Serial adapter)
lingWAVES SLP/SLT & Voice Clinic Suites
This module is part of the following
lingWAVES suites:
Web Request / Dealers
If you are interested in our products, please contact a local
WEVOSYS dealer
or use our
web request
form. |
