Reiner Wilhelms-Tricarico, D.Sc.

Email: reiner@speech.mit.edu.  URL : http://webpages.charter.net/reinerwt

Qualifications

Strong mathematical and scientific (physics) background. Many years of independent research experience in computational modeling and scientific programming. Teaching experience at academic level.

Areas of expertise: 

General acoustics, vocal tract acoustics, signal processing, image processing, stochastic modeling, Kalman filtering, spectral estimation techniques, numerical methods and algorithms, dynamic systems modeling, robot mechanics, discrete mathematics, neural networks, continuum mechanics, biomechanics, speech production, speech physiology, speech synthesis, text to speech systems, language morphology, articulatory phonology and phonetics.

Technical skills:

Solid practical experience with C/C++ (e.g., Visual C++) excellent practical knowledge of Matlab/Simulink. OS's:  Linux, Unix, Windows. Parsers, Yacc Lex and Bison. Old vast experience with programming of signal processor TMS320 series. Working knowledge of phonology and solid exposure to linguistics. Other programming experience using Mathematica, csh, sh, bash, Fortran, various assemblers. Practical knowledge of HTML, PHP.

Education 

Univ. Göttingen, W. Germany:   D. Sc. Physics 1987.

Languages:

German (mother language + work and living experience),

English (12 years of work and living experience),

French (two years of work and living experience).

Personal Status: German Nationality. American Green Card. Married, two children.
 

Research and professional experience - chronological

• 1982-83: University library in Göttingen. (System programming and administration) 

• 1983-87: Graduate Research Associate in a research project on speech analysis and synthesis in the III. Physikalisches Institut in Göttingen (Research for my dissertation on real-time quasi-articulatory speech synthesis and parameter estimation for an articulatory model from real speech) 

• 1987-89: Distec Inc. Göttingen. (Development of digital signal processing software for real-time processing, research on automatic programming of periodic signal data flowgraphs) 

• 1989-91: Assistant Professor in the Speech and Hearing Division, The Ohio State University. (Research on articulatory modeling, teaching, Unix computer system administration, service in Undergrad. Comm.)  1992-93: Senior Research Associate at the Speech and Hearing Division, The Ohio State University. (Research on articulatory modeling) 

• 1992-93: Visiting researcher at ATR Human Information Processing, Kyoto, Japan. 

• 1994-95: Postdoctoral Associate at R.L.E., M.I.T. 

• 1995-2002:  Research Scientist at R.L.E., M.I.T. (Research on biomechanical and physiological modeling of  vocal tract structures) 

• 1998, Apr-Jul Visiting Researcher at ATR-HIP, Kyoto, Japan 

• 1998-2000: Visiting Researcher at Institut de Communication Parlée, INPG, Grenoble, France 

Currently : Scientist at Haskins Laboratories, New Haven, CT: Use of robotics tools for motor control research applied to speech production and limb control.

Consulting: (1) Contract to CReSS LLC, Lexington MA: Vocal tract acoustics and signal processing. (2) Contract with RestoreMedical, Inc. Roseville MN: Biomechanics of the human tongue.

Developer and language specialist at Fonix Corporation, Sandi UT and Maynard MA

References available upon request

Selected Publications

• Wilhelms, R. and Strube, H.W., Vergleich zweier Interpolationsverfahren zur Sprachsynthese, Fortschritte der Akustik - DAGA'81 Berlin. pp 673-676. VDE-Verlag GmbH Berlin 1981.

• Meyer, P., Strube, H.W. and Wilhelms, R., Dynamische Anpassung eines artikulatorischen Modells an Lautübergänge, Fortschritte der Akustik - DAGA'85. pp 825-828, Bad Honnef, DPG-GmbH 1985.

• Strube, H. W. and Wilhelms, R., Synthesis of Unrestricted German Speechfrom interpolated Log-Area-Ratio Coded Transitions Speech Communication 1 (1982) pp 93-102

• Strube, H. W., Wilhelms, R. and Meyer, P., Towards Quasi-Articulatory Speech Synthesis in Real Time, Signal Processing II. Theories and Applications, H.W. Schüssler (editor). Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. (North Holland) EURASIP (1983). pp 339-342

• Wilhelms, R., Meyer, P. and Strube H.W., Estimation of Articulatory Traje ctories by Kalman Filtering, Signal Processing III Theories and Applications, I.T. Young et al. (editors) Elsevier Science Publishers B. W. (North Holland) EURASIP (1986). pp 477-480

• Meyer, P. Wilhelms and R. Strube, H.W., An Efficient Vocal Tract Model Run ning in Real Time, Signal Processing III. Theories and Applications, I.T. Young et al. (editors) Elsevier Science Publishers B. W. (North Holland) EURASIP (1986). pp 377-380

• Wilhelms, R., Schätzung von artikulatorischen Bewegungen eines stilisierten Artikulatormodells aus dem Sprachsignal, Dissertation, Göttingen 1987

• Meyer, P. Wilhelms, R. and Strube, H.W., A quasiarticulatory speech synthesizer for German language running in real time. J. Acoust. Soc. Am., Vol 86, No 2, August 1989, pp 523-539

• Wilhelms, R. , Construction of a three-dimensional tongue model. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Suppl. 1, Vol. 86, Fall 1989 (presented at the 118th Meeting of the ASA in St. Louis, Missouri).

• Fujimura, O.,Erickson, D. and Wilhelms, R., Prosodic Effects on Articulatory Gestures - A Model of Temporal Organization International Congress of Phonetic Science, Aix-en-Provence, France, 1991.

• Wilhelms-Tricarico, R., Physiological modeling of speech production: Methods for modeling soft-tissue articulators J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 97 (5), 1995, pp. 3085-3098

• Wilhelms-Tricarico, R., A biomechanical and physiologically-based vocal tract model and its control. Journal of Phonetics 24, 1996, pp. 23-28.

• Wilhelms-Tricarico, R. and Perkell, J.S., Biomechanical and physiologically based speech modeling Conference Proceedings of the 2nd ESCA/IEEE Workshop on Speech Synthesis, Mohonk Mountain House, New Paltz, New York, Sept., 1994, pp. 17-20.

• Wilhelms-Tricarico, R. and Perkell, J.S., Towards a physiological model of speech production Proceedings of the XIII-th International Congress of Phonetic Sciences ICPhS 95 Stockholm",

• Wilhelms-Tricarico, R. and Perkell, J.S., Biomechanical and physiologically-based speech modeling in Progress in Speech Synthesis, J.P.H. van Santen, R.W. Sproat, J.P. Olive and J. Hirshberg (eds.), Springer, New York, 1996, pp. 221-234.

• Wilhelms-Tricarico, R. and Wu, C.-M., A biomechanical model of the tongue, in Proceedings of the 1997 Bioengineering Conference, Chandran, K.B., Vanderby Jr., R., Hefzy, M.S. (eds.), ASME, New York, 1997, BED-Vol. 35, pp. 69-70.

• Wilhelms-Tricarico, R. Develeopment of a tongue and mouth-floor model for normalization and biomechanical modeling, Proceedings of the 5th Seminar on Speech Production, May 2000 CREST Workshop on Models of Speech Production, Kloster Seeon near Munich, Germany.

• Wilhelms-Tricarico, R. and Mc Gowan, R. S., Rational approximations of viscous losses in vocal tract acoustic modeling, J. Acoustic Soc. Am. , June 2004, Vol 115, Issue 6, pp. 3195-3201