3G test is ready . . . and waiting

Consumers and vendors alike are hoping for a rapid deployment of third-generation (3G) cellular service. Before that can happen, however, the industry needs to test the equipment and systems to ensure they conform to regulatory and operational standards. The necessary test scripts are only now becoming available.

Bob Morely, product marketing manager at test-platform provider Anite Telecoms (Berkshire, UK; www.anite.com), says the 3G industry needs three things before the technology can become commercially viable: test equipment, test specifications, and the availability of mobile units in order to evaluate whether the tests represent real-world performance. Test equipment and mobile units are largely available; the problem comes with the second need.

The responsibility for developing standards for 3G equipment lies with the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP; http://www.3gpp.org), a collection of standards bodies from around the world. Member organizations jointly decide on the standards for 3G systems, a process undergoing frequent revision as new system capabilities are proposed and integrated into the specifications.

The 3GPP, in turn, has assigned to the GSM Certification Forum (GCF; http://gcf.gsm.org) the task of identifying the specific tests that must be passed for equipment to obtain certification. Those tests have been defined, but their description is in English prose. What the test community needs are descriptions in TTCN (tree and tabular combined notation), the industry standard test description language.

Anite has created TTCN test cases for 3G that the GCF has validated. These include several hundred tests of protocol as well as many tests of RF parameters, acoustic performance, and the like. The test cases handle the handset-to-base station link and should pave the way for handset developers. But there's a catch: The GCF validation of the Anite test cases is not enough.

GCF validation only verifies that the test cases accurately implement the underlying specifications. It does not mean that developers can use the test cases to ensure 3GPP certification for their products from the GCF. That is waiting on an additional development.

The GCF is working through the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) to develop its own TTCN test cases. The ETSI, however, does not have the ability to exercise its tests directly. Instead, it must rely on 3GPP member companies to exercise and provide comments on the tests it develops. This is hindering the development effort. Anite estimates that it is almost a year ahead of the ETSI development effort in releasing its 3G TTCN test cases.

The problem, says Anite's Morely, is that the GCF will not offer certification until the ETSI tests are available to compare other TTCN tests against. While GCF certification is not mandatory for developers, it remains an important aspect of product marketability. Morely's concern is that waiting for ETSI will simply delay the availability of 3G handsets.

Anite is not waiting, however. The company is continuing to release additional test cases for 3G, expecting to have several hundred more by mid-2003. It is also lobbying within the 3G community to relieve the ETSI bottleneck.