Abstract: A high quality voice transformation system and method operates during a training mode to store voice signal characteristics representing target and source voices. Thereafter, during a real time transformation mode, a signal representing source speech is segmented into overlapping segments, analyzed to separate the excitation spectrum from the tone quality spectrum. A stored target tone quality spectrum is substituted for the source spectrum and then convolved with the actual source speech excitation spectrum to produce a transformed speech signal having the word and excitation content of the source, but the acoustical characteristics of a target speaker. The system may be used to enable a talking, costumed character, or in other applications where a source speaker wishes to imitate the voice characteristics of a different, target speaker.

Abstract: An impedance-based method for the controlled cryosurgery of a patient's malignant tumor consisting of the steps: placing a contact electrode electrically connected to an impedance meter in electric contact with a body site spaced away from the tumor target, inserting a needle electrode electrically connected to the impedance meter through the tumor target with the tip of the needle electrode penetrating the immediately underlying normal tissue therebelow, and monitoring during cryosurgery the impedance between the two electrodes as a reflection of the eutectic state of the tissue circumadjacent the tip of the needle electrode.