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3GPP Specifications for UMTS
Description
The 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) maintains several hundred specifications that define the operation of UMTS and GSM. This section of the website is a summary of the UMTS specifications and a visual interface to them.
A typical 3GPP specification number looks like this:
TS 25.331 v5.17.0
Here:
| TS | stands for technical specification. Other documents are known as technical reports, and denoted TR. |
| 25 | is the series number. The specifications are organised into series that cover different parts of the system. Series 21 to 36 are used by UMTS, while other series are only used by GSM. |
| 25.331 | is the specification number. (This particular specification defines a protocol known as radio resource control (RRC)). |
| 5 | is the release number. Each release is a version of the system with a particular set of features. 3GPP maintains specifications for all the releases in parallel, so that they can add new features to the system while still giving manufacturers a stable implementation platform. |
| 17 | is the technical version number. This is incremented after technical changes to a specification. The latest technical version is usually the only one of interest. |
| 0 | is the editorial version number. This is usually 0, but is sometimes incremented after editorial changes. |
(A few specifications are divided into parts or even subparts. For example, TS 29.198-04-1 is TS 29.198 part 4 subpart 1.)
You can navigate the website by following the links shown in blue above. The site currently includes links to the technical specifications from release 99 up to release 7 in the indicated series, together with a few of the most useful technical reports. Other series and releases will be added in due course. You can select the release of interest using the pull-down menu on the left: the website will find the latest technical and editorial version automatically.
3GPP produces revised versions of the specifications four times a year, after its quarterly TSG plenary meetings. The material here was last updated after the TSG plenary meeting in December 2006.
Abbreviations
| 3GPP | 3rd generation partnership project |
| GSM | Global system for mobile communications |
| ME | Mobile equipment |
| MT | Mobile termination |
| TE | Terminal equipment |
| TR | Technical report |
| TS | Technical specification |
| TSG | Technical specification group |
| UE | User equipment |
| UICC | Universal integrated circuit card |
| UMTS | Universal mobile telecommunication system |
| UTRAN | UMTS terrestrial radio access network |
| USIM | Universal subscriber identity module |
Enquiries
If you require advice or training on any of the technical issues covered here, please get in contact with Chris Cox Communications using the enquiry form.