11
Standardization in 3GPP
In this chapter we consider the layer 1 (L1) procedures in more recent standards of 3GPP (the 3rd Generation Partnership Project). Unlike the first and second generation cellular systems oriented mostly to the voice communications, third generation systems are designed first of all for data communications. This fact reflects the common trend in communications: the shift from voice to data. This trend clearly already showed itself in wired communications. Nowadays only a small fraction of landlines traffic is used for voice transmission, and this fraction is constantly decreasing due to development of VoIP technique. We can now see the beginning of the same process in cellular wireless systems. This process needs a significant increase in data rates, which poses some challenges, taking into account the hard conditions of an air interface channel. However, the proper use of known modulation and coding schemes allows this problem to be solved.
11.1 Standardization Process and Organization
11.1.1 General
The standardization organization specifying the standards of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) and the Long Term Evolution (LTE) is Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). As a major difference to most telecommunications standardization bodies, 3GPP is not a ...
