3gpp Working Groups

3GPP Working Groups

Overview

3GPP has three main Technical Specification Groups (TSGs), each with multiple Working Groups (WGs) and Sub-Working Groups (SWGs):

TSG Structure

• TSG RAN (Radio Access Network)
• TSG SA (Service and System Aspects)
• TSG CT (Core Network and Terminals)

Each TSG is responsible for:

• Preparation of detailed time frame and management of each Release
• Proposal and approval of work items
• Technical coordination
• Maintenance of TSG voting list

Working Group Identifiers

TBID (Technical Body ID)

Each TSG has a unique tbid identifier used in 3GPP systems:

SubTB (Sub-Technical Body ID)

Each Working Group within a TSG has a unique SubTB identifier:

Meeting Code Convention

Meeting URL Pattern

3GPP meeting lists use dynamic pages at:

https://www.3gpp.org/dynareport?code=Meetings-<ID>.htm

Where <ID> is a two-digit code:

• RP for RAN Plenary
• SP for SA Plenary
• CP for CT Plenary
• R1-R6 for RAN1-RAN6 (e.g., R1, R2, etc.)
• S1-S6 for SA1-SA6 (e.g., S1, S2, etc.)
• C1-C6 for CT1-CT6 (e.g., C1, C2, etc.)

Example URLs:

• RAN meetings: https://www.3gpp.org/dynareport?code=Meetings-RP.htm
• SA4 meetings: https://www.3gpp.org/dynareport?code=Meetings-S4.htm
• CT3 meetings: https://www.3gpp.org/dynareport?code=Meetings-C3.htm

Meeting Name Formats

Meeting names are inconsistent across years and groups:

• SA4#134 - Standard SA4 format
• SA4-e (AH) Audio SWG post 130 - Ad-hoc meeting
• 3GPPSA4-e (AH) Audio SWG post 130 - With 3GPP prefix
• RAN1#98 - Standard RAN1 format
• S4-133-e - Alternative SA4 format

Important: Do NOT parse information from meeting names directly. Use database with proper meeting_id integer identifiers.

TSG Working Groups Details

RAN (Radio Access Network) - tbid 373

Responsibilities: Radio access technologies like LTE and 5G NR

Working Groups:

• RAN Plenary (SubTB: 373): Overall TSG RAN coordination
• RAN1 (SubTB: 379): Radio Layer 1 (Physical layer)
• RAN2 (SubTB: 380): Radio Layer 2/3 (Radio Resource Control)
• RAN3 (SubTB: 381): UTRAN/E-UTRAN/NG-RAN architecture
• RAN4 (SubTB: 382): Radio Performance and Protocol Aspects
• RAN5 (SubTB: 657): Mobile terminal conformance testing
• RAN6 (SubTB: 843): Radio Access Network (Legacy, closed group)

FTP Structure:

tsg_ran/
├── WG1_RL1/
├── WG2_RL2/
├── WG3_RL3/
├── WG4_RL4/
├── WG5_RL5/
└── TSG_RAN/

SA (Service and System Aspects) - tbid 375

Responsibilities: Overall architecture, service requirements, system capabilities

Working Groups:

• SA Plenary (SubTB: 375): TSG SA coordination and overall technical work
• SA1 (SubTB: 384): Services
• SA2 (SubTB: 385): System Architecture and Services
• SA3 (SubTB: 386): Security and Privacy
• SA4 (SubTB: 387): Multimedia Codecs, Systems and Services
• SA5 (SubTB: 388): Management, Orchestration and Charging
• SA6 (SubTB: 825): Application Enablement and Critical Communication Applications

FTP Structure:

tsg_sa/
├── WG1_S1/
├── WG2_S2/
├── WG3_S3/
├── WG4_S4/
├── WG5_S5/
├── WG6_S6/
└── TSG_SA/

CT (Core Network and Terminals) - tbid 649

Responsibilities: Core network protocols, interfaces, and user equipment

Working Groups:

• CT Plenary (SubTB: 649): TSG CT coordination
• CT1 (SubTB: 651): User Equipment to Core Network protocols
• CT2 (SubTB: 652): Interworking with External Networks & Policy and Charging Control
• CT3 (SubTB: 653): Closed Group (was GERAN coordination)
• CT4 (SubTB: 654): Core Network Protocols
• CT5 (SubTB: 655): Core Network and Terminals (Architecture)
• CT6 (SubTB: 656): Smart Card Application Aspects

FTP Structure:

tsg_ct/
├── WG1_C1/
├── WG2_C2/
├── WG3_C3/
├── WG4_C4/
├── WG5_C5/
├── WG6_C6/
└── TSG_CT/

Meeting Table Structure

Each TSG meeting list page contains tables with:

• Meeting column: Short name (links to meeting details)
• Files column: Link to TDoc FTP directory (empty if not yet setup)
• Dates column: Start and end dates
• Location column: Physical location

Critical: If "Files" column is empty, skip that meeting for TDoc crawling.

Usage in Code

Normalizing Working Groups

When parsing CLI arguments or user input:

1. Plenary Aliases (short codes):

   • RP → RAN Plenary
   • SP → SA Plenary
   • CP → CT Plenary

2. Subgroup Codes:

   • Use canonical codes: R1, S4, C1, etc. (not RAN1, SA4, C1)
   • For CLI parameters, normalize SA4 → S4, RAN1 → R1, CT1 → C1

3. TBID Mappings (used in database):

   • RAN groups: tbid=373, SubTB: 373-389
   • SA groups: tbid=375, SubTB: 375-388
   • CT groups: tbid=649, SubTB: 649-656

Code Example

from tdoc_crawler.models import WorkingGroup


def normalize_meeting_code(code: str) -> str:
    """Normalize meeting codes to canonical format."""
    plenary_aliases = {"RP": "RAN", "SP": "SA", "CP": "CT"}
    upper = code.upper().strip()

    if upper in plenary_aliases:
        return plenary_aliases[upper]

    # Extract prefix for subgroups (R1, S4, C1, etc.)
    # Code example: "R1" → RAN group, subgroup RAN1
    return upper[0] if len(upper) > 1 else upper


def get_tbid_from_wg(wg: WorkingGroup) -> int:
    """Get TBID from WorkingGroup enum."""
    return wg.tbid

Common Patterns

Meeting ID Resolution

When resolving portal meeting names to database meeting IDs:

1. Try exact match (case-insensitive)
2. Try normalized name match
3. Try prefix/suffix matching (handle "3GPPSA4" vs "SA4")
4. Use Levenshtein distance for minor typos

Avoid: Substring matching (%SA4%) which matches fragments

FTP Directory Names

FTP directory names on server do NOT match official WG names:

• WG1_RL1 vs official "RAN1"
• WG2_RL2 vs official "RAN2"
• TSG_RAN vs official "RAN Plenary"

Use official codes (tbid/SubTB) for database lookups.

Cross-References

• 3gpp-basics - For 3GPP organization and structure
• 3gpp-meetings - For meeting pages and naming conventions
• 3gpp-tdocs - For TDoc handling and FTP structure
• 3gpp-portal-authentication - For portal access when authentication required

Resources

• 3GPP Groups: https://www.3gpp.org/3gpp-groups/
• 3GPP Portal: https://portal.3gpp.org/
• 3GPP Work Plan: https://www.3gpp.org/specifications-technologies/3gpp-work-plan/