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:

TSG	tbid	FTP Root URL
RAN	373	https://www.3gpp.org/ftp/tsg_ran/
SA	375	https://www.3gpp.org/ftp/tsg_sa/
CT	649	https://www.3gpp.org/ftp/tsg_ct/

SubTB (Sub-Technical Body ID)

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

TSG	WG	SubTB	Focus Area
RAN	RAN Plenary	373	TSG RAN overview
RAN	RAN1	379	Radio Layer 1 (Physical layer)
RAN	RAN2	380	Radio Layer 2/3 (Radio Resource Control)
RAN	RAN3	381	UTRAN/E-UTRAN/NG-RAN architecture
RAN	RAN4	382	Radio Performance and Protocol Aspects
RAN	RAN5	657	Mobile terminal conformance testing
RAN	RAN6	843	Radio Access Network (Legacy/Closed)
SA	SA Plenary	375	TSG SA overview
SA	SA1	384	Services
SA	SA2	385	System Architecture and Services
SA	SA3	386	Security and Privacy
SA	SA4	387	Multimedia Codecs, Systems and Services
SA	SA5	388	Management, Orchestration and Charging
SA	SA6	825	Application Enablement and Critical Communication Applications
CT	CT Plenary	649	TSG CT overview
CT	CT1	651	User Equipment to Core Network protocols
CT	CT2	652	Interworking with External Networks & Policy and Charging Control
CT	CT3	653	Closed Group (was GERAN coordination)
CT	CT4	654	Core Network Protocols
CT	CT5	655	Core Network and Terminals (Architecture)
CT	CT6	656	Smart Card Application Aspects

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:

Plenary Aliases (short codes):
- RP → RAN Plenary
- SP → SA Plenary
- CP → CT Plenary
Subgroup Codes:
- Use canonical codes: R1, S4, C1, etc. (not RAN1, SA4, C1)
- For CLI parameters, normalize SA4 → S4, RAN1 → R1, CT1 → C1
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:

Try exact match (case-insensitive)
Try normalized name match
Try prefix/suffix matching (handle "3GPPSA4" vs "SA4")
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/

About this skill

Overview

TSG Structure

Working Group Identifiers

TBID (Technical Body ID)

SubTB (Sub-Technical Body ID)

Meeting Code Convention

Meeting URL Pattern

Meeting Name Formats

TSG Working Groups Details

RAN (Radio Access Network) - tbid 373

SA (Service and System Aspects) - tbid 375

CT (Core Network and Terminals) - tbid 649

Meeting Table Structure

Usage in Code

Normalizing Working Groups

Code Example

Common Patterns

Meeting ID Resolution

FTP Directory Names

Cross-References

Resources