Benjamin Elie
Research Associate
- Linguistics and English Language
- School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences
Contact details
- Email: benjamin.elie@ed.ac.uk
Address
- Street
-
Room 2.14, Dugald Stewart Building
- City
- 3 Charles Street, Edinburgh
- Post code
- EH8 9AD
Background
I am a Research Associate at the University of Edinburgh, contributing to the ERC project PlanArt under the leadership of Prof. Alice Turk. My research focuses on developing computational models for the articulatory planning of spoken utterances.
Previously, I worked on various acoustic and articulatory models of human speech production as a member of the MULTISPEECH team at Loria in Nancy, France, and the TLP team at LISN in Orsay, France.
I have also worked on musical acoustics for assistance to instrument making during my PhD at LAUM (Le Mans, France) and as postdoctoral researcher at Ensta-Paris.
Qualifications
- PhD in Acoustics (Université du Maine, France)
- Master's degree in Acoustics, Signal Processing and Computer Science applied to Music (Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France)
Research summary
Speech production, Signal processing, Acoustics
Current research interests
Computational modeling of speech productionPast research interests
- Signal processing and inverse problems for phonetics: - Articulatory model - Acoustic-to-articulatory inversion - Compressed sensing for MRI speech reconstruction - Periodic/Aperiodic source decomposition of speech signals - Phonetics: - Strategies of production of fricatives - Articulatory models of speech production - Mechanics/Acoustics: - Musical acoustics for assistance to instrument making - Speech synthesis using acoustic models - Physical modeling of trill consonantsKnowledge exchange
Papers published in international peer-reviewed journals
[J1] Elie B., Šimko J., & Turk A. (2026). Regular updates of internal sensory predictions drive sensorimotor adaptation in optimization-based models of speech production. The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 159(3), 2706—2728. [https://www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/638887225/ElieEtalJASA2026RegularUpdates.pdf]
[J2] Elie, B., Šimko, J., & Turk, A. (2024). Optimization-based planning of speech articulation using general Tau Theory. Speech Communication, 160, 103083. [https://www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/441937859/ElieEtalSC2024OptimizationBasedPlanning.pdf]
[J3] Elie B., Šimko J., & Turk A. (2024). Optimization-based modeling of Lombard speech articulation: Supraglottal characteristics. JASA Express Letters 4(1), 015204, 1–8. [https://www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/405394830/015204_1_10.0024364.pdf]
[J4] Elie B., Lee D. N., and Turk A. "Modeling trajectories of human speech articulators using General Tau theory". Speech Communication 151 (2023) [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167639323000614]
[J5] Elie B., Cotté B., and Boutillon X. "Physically-based sound synthesis software for Computer-Aided-Design of piano soundboards". Acta Acustica 6(30) (2022) [https://acta-acustica.edpsciences.org/articles/aacus/pdf/2022/01/aacus210096.pdf]
[J6] Elie B., and Laprie Y. "Simulating alveolar trills using a two-mass model of the tongue tip". J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 142(5), pp. 3245-3256 (2017) [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/elie_trills_jasa2017.pdf]
[J7] Elie B., and Laprie Y. "Acoustic impact of the gradual glottal abduction degree on the production of fricatives: A numerical study". J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 142(3), pp. 1303-1317 (2017) [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/elie_fricatives_jasa17.pdf]
[J8] Elie B., and Laprie Y. "Extension of the single-matrix formulation of the vocal tract: consideration of bilateral channels and connection of self-oscillating models of the vocal folds with a glottal chink". Speech Comm. 82, pp. 85-96 (2016) [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/Elie2016SPECOM.pdf]
[J9] Elie B., Gautier F., and David B. "Acoustic signature of violins based on bridge mobility measurements". J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 136(3), pp. 1385-1393 (2014) [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/Elieetal_jasa2014.pdf]
[J10] Denis V., Gautier F., Pelat A., and Elie B. "Modal Overlap Factor of a beam with an Acoustic Black Hole termination". J. Sound Vib. 333(12), pp. 2475-2488 (2014) [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022460X14000972]
[J11] Elie B., Gautier F., and David B. "Estimation of mechanical properties of panels based on modal density and mean mobility measurements". Mech. Syst. Sig. Proc. 40, pp. 628-644 (2013) [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/Elieetal_mssp2013.pdf]
[J12] Elie B., Gautier F., and David B. "Macro parameters describing the mechanical behavior of classical guitars". J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 132(6), pp. 4013-4024 (2012) [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/Elieetal_jasa2012.pdf]
[J13] Daltrop S., Kotlicki A. Waltham C., Wolfe N., Gautier F., and Elie B. "Vibroacoustic characteristics of a Gothic Harp". J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 131(1), pp. 837-843 (2012) [https://asa.scitation.org/doi/full/10.1121/1.3651223]
Proceedings of international conferences
[P1] Simko, J., Elie, B., & Turk, A. (2025). Self-supervised Optimality-Guided Learning of Speech Articulation. In Proc. Interspeech 2025 (pp. 1033-1037). [https://www.isca-archive.org/interspeech_2025/simko25_interspeech.pdf]
[P2] Elie, B., Doukhan, D., Uro, R., Yang, L. O., Rilliard, A., & Devauchelle, S. (2024). Articulatory Configurations across Genders and Periods in French Radio and TV archives. In Interspeech 2024 (pp. 3085-3089). ISCA. [https://www.isca-archive.org/interspeech_2024/elie24b_interspeech.pdf]
[P3] Elie, B., Simko, J., & Turk, A. (2024). A data-driven model of acoustic speech intelligibility for optimization-based models of speech production. In Proc. Interspeech 2024 (pp. 3610-3614). [https://www.isca-archive.org/interspeech_2024/elie24_interspeech.pdf]
[P4] Elie B., and Turk A. "Estimating virtual targets for lingual stop consonants using general Tau theory". Interspeech, Dublin (2023) [https://www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/366879130/Interpseech_Tau_Theory_3_.pdf]
[P5] Elie B., Simko J., and Turk A. "Optimal control of speech with context-dependent articulatory targets". Interspeech, Dublin (2023) [https://www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/366205045/Dynamic_articulatory_planning_of_speech_articulatory_movements_based_on_Optimal_Control_Theory.pdf]
[P6] Turk A., Elie B, and Simko J. "PlanArt: A modular platform for computational modeling of articulatory planning". ICPhS, Prague (2023) [https://www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/344240289/ICPhS_PlanArt.pdf]
[P7] Elie B, Simko J., and Turk A. "Optimal control theory of speech production using probabilistic articulatory-acoustic models". ICPhS, Prague (2023) [https://www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/344241392/ICPhS_Proba_model.pdf]
[P8] Wu Y., Chen L., Elie B., Suchanek F., Vasilescu I., and Lamel L. "Who's speaking? Predicting speaker profession from speech". ICPhS, Prague (2023). [https://www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/367397320/icphs_2023.pdf]
[P9] Elie B., Gauvain J., Gauvain J.-L., and Lamel L. "Modeling the effect of military oxygen mask on speech characteristics". Interspeech, Brno, pp. 3306-3310 (2021) [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/is2021.pdf]
[P10] Laprie Y, Elie B., Tsukanova A., and Vuissoz P.-A. "Centerline articulatory models of the velum and epiglottis for articulatory synthesis of speech". EUSIPCO, Rome 2018 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/velumEusipco.pdf]
[P11] Tsukanova A., Elie B., and Laprie Y "Articulatory Speech Synthesis from Static Context-Aware Articulatory Targets". The 11th International Seminar on Speech Production, Tianjin 2017 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/ISSP2017Tsukanova.pdf]
[P12] Laprie Y, Elie B., Vuissoz P.-A., and Tsukanova A., "Articulatory model of the epiglottis". The 11th International Seminar on Speech Production, Tianjin 2017. [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/epiglottisISSP.pdf]
[P13] Elie B., and Laprie Y. "Glottal opening and strategies of production of fricatives". Interspeech, Stockholm 2017 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/elie_interspeech17.pdf]
[P14] Vuissoz P.-A, Elie B., Odille F, and Laprie Y. "High frame rate vocal tract MRI using compressed sensing on randomly Cartesian spoiled fast gradient echo". Proc. Intl. Soc. Mag. Reson. Med. 25 (2017)
[P15] Elie B., and Laprie Y. "Copy-synthesis of phrase-level utterances". EUSIPCO, Budapest 2016 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/PaperCompressed.pdf]
[P16] Elie B., Laprie Y., Vuissoz P.-A., and Odille F. "High spatiotemporal cineMRI films using compressed sensing for acquiring articulatory data". EUSIPCO, Budapest 2016 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/Elie_etal_eusipco2016.pdf]
[P17] Elie B., and Laprie Y. "A glottal chink model for the synthesis of voiced fricatives". ICASSP, Shanghai 2016 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/ElieLaprie_ICASSP16.pdf]
[P18] Laprie Y., Elie B., and Tsukanova A. "2D articulatory velum modeling applied to copy synthesis of sentences containing nasal phonemes. ICPhS, Glasgow 2015 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/ICPHS0283.pdf]
[P19] Elie B., and Laprie Y. "Audiovisual to area and length functions inversion of human vocal tract". EUSIPCO, Lisbon 2014 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/Eusipco14.pdf]
[P20] Laprie Y., Sock R., Vaxelaire B., and Elie B. "Comment faire parler les images aux rayons X du conduit vocal". Congrès mondial de Linguistique Française 2014, Berlin 2014 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/laprie_et_al.pdf]
[P21] Elie B., Gautier F., and David B. "Analysis of bridge mobility of violins", Stockholm Music Acoustics Conference, pp 54-59, Stockholm 2013 [https://perso.limsi.fr/elie/papers/elieetal_SMAC2013.pdf]