The invention provides a device and method for measuring phonation threshold pressure. The method and device are useful for diagnosing and evaluating voice disorders and pathologies affecting the vocal tract and for evaluating treatments of such disorders and pathologies.

A speaker apparatus is a bass-reflex type woofer used in a speaker system, and includes a body portion for housing a speaker unit and a bass-reflex port mounted and fixed in the body portion. Further, in the speaker apparatus, a protrusion for temporarily fastening the bass-reflex port in the case of mounting and fixing the bass-reflex port is provided in the body portion.

A intubation stylet having a cylindrical guide member is disclosed wherein the guide member has a proximal end, a distal end, and an intermediate section therebetween. The distal end may include a microphone operatively coupled to a sound processing device having a speaker or earphone. The stylet may be passed through an endotracheal tube and into the mouth or nose of a breathing patient. As the distal end is passed into the mouth, the microphone detects audible sounds produced by air movement within the upper airway and generates a raw sound signal based on the audible sounds. The sound processing device generates an amplified sound output signal based on the raw signal and transmits the amplified signal through a speaker. The amplified sounds may then be used as audio cues to assist in guiding the stylet through the larynx and into the trachea. The endotracheal tube may be advanced over the stylet guide member after which the stylet may be removed. In one embodiment, the guide member includes a channel for delivering medicinal substances such as oxygen or anesthetic. The guide member may also include an angulation wire for angulating the distal end relative to the intermediate section to assist in positioning the distal end.

An improved electro-larynx includes a linear transducer and/or an improved waveform generator. The improved electro-larynx sets up a sound wave within the pharynx of the user which closely approximates a normal glottal excitation. The linear transducer preserves the harmonic structure of a glottal source wave generated by the waveform generator and translates it into a vibration. The transducer includes an armature assembly, suspension assembly, and coupler disk coupled together to move in concert. The armature assembly vibrates as a function of the desired and input glottal source wave, which in turn causes an immediate and corresponding vibration of the coupler disk. The suspension assembly constrains armature movement to one dimension and provides additional compliance. The coupler disk includes a substantially flat surface suitable for engaging the surface of a user's throat and vibrates as a linear function of the input glottal source wave. The improved waveform generator produces a relatively good approximation of an actual glottal source waveform by preferably deriving it from actual voice data and having the effects of the modulation of the vocal tract removed. As a result, the harmonic structure of the glottal source waveform has overtones which drift in frequency, similar to normal glottal excitations. The waveform generator also allows user adjustment of the pitch and amplitude of the glottal source wave and smoothes out any distortions caused by the process of obtaining the glottal data used to generate the glottal source wave. The waveform generator bolsters the frequency response at the high end of the spectrum to compensate for any roll-off, yielding a frequency response spectrum of about 20 5 Khz. The responsiveness of the linear transducer allows the glottal source wave's pitch, amplitude, and harmonic structure to be communicated through the coupler disk and realistic glottal source waves to be transduced into the user's pharynx, resulting in the production of substantially normal speech.