sections

Get Sections

Fetch the text of one clause of a 3GPP document, with its citation line and official 3GPP link.

Use this after search_text identifies a relevant section.

Excerpt limit: each call returns one clause and at most 2,000 words of spec text, shared across all versions in the response. A longer clause is cut with truncated=true, truncation_reason="word_limit", returned_words, total_words and limit_words; read the rest at official_url. Every result has a citation to quote with the text.

Section number formats supported:

  • Numeric: 5.3.5, 6.3.2, 16.14.3.2.3
  • Trailing-letter (release-introduced): 5.3.1a
  • Annexes: A.1, B.2.3 (uppercase letter prefix, dot-delimited)

Empty result, not an error: If no section matches, this returns an empty list (HTTP 200), not a 404. Common reasons for an empty result: the section number is invalid for that doc, the doc isn't indexed yet, or your spelling differs from the spec. The response then carries X-Scout-Section-Status (section_not_found or document_not_found) and X-Scout-Nearest-Sections (comma-separated existing clause numbers closest to the one asked for, e.g. 6.2K,6.2K.1,6.2J); MCP tool calls get the same suggestions as an error message. Use /sections/toc?doc_number=... to list all valid sections for a document.

prefix=true returns the requested clause with text plus its sub-clauses (5.3.1, 5.3.1.1, 5.3.2, ...) as numbers and titles only (truncation_reason="one_clause_per_call"). Call again with a sub-clause number to read it.

Dates for prior art: every result has provenance: when that version was uploaded to the 3GPP archive (UTC) and the TSG plenary it was approved at, with source links. The dates are per version, not per clause. available_before keeps only versions uploaded before a date; with latest=true it returns the newest such version, e.g. what the spec said before a patent's priority date among the indexed versions.

get/sections

Request

  • Base URL: https://api.3gppscout.com (the document declares no server; this is the origin it was published from)
  • URL: https://api.3gppscout.com/sections
  • Auth: none declared

Query parameters

section_numberstring required

Section number to look up. Numeric ('5.3.5', '6.3.2'), trailing-letter ('5.3.1a'), or 3GPP annex ('A.1', 'B.2.3') identifiers are all supported. Use the same dot-delimited numbering as it appears in the spec; case-sensitive (annex letters are uppercase).

doc_numberstring required

Document number, e.g. '38.331' (NR RRC), '23.501' (system architecture), '38.300' (NR overview). Required — section numbers like '5.1' exist in hundreds of unrelated documents. Use the numeric format without the 'TS'/'TR' prefix.

versionstring nullable

Specific document version, e.g. '19.1.0'. Usually not needed — use release instead.

releasestring nullable

3GPP release, e.g. 'Rel-19'. Omit to return all indexed versions of the document.

prefixboolean

If true, also list sub-sections. E.g. '5.3' returns 5.3 with text plus 5.3.1, 5.3.1.1, 5.3.2, etc. as numbers and titles only (API and MCP return one clause of text per call). Also works for annex prefixes: 'A' with prefix=true lists A, A.1, A.2.3, etc.

latestboolean

If true, return one version only: the given version, else the newest version of the given release, else the newest indexed version. Each result then has latest_version and latest_release; an older result also has same_text_as_latest, whether the newest version's same section has the same text (null when the newest version lacks it). When the clause has a different title in another indexed version, other_version_titles names it (with that version's text when short) and other_version_note says so.

available_beforestring date nullable

Only versions uploaded to the 3GPP archive before this date (YYYY-MM-DD; before 00:00 UTC, so the day itself is excluded), e.g. a patent application's priority date. A version whose upload time is unknown is left out. Usually one version per release of each spec is indexed (the newest in that release, Rel-15 onward), so a release appears only if that version predates the cutoff; older versions are in the 3GPP archive but not searchable here. With latest=true and no version, returns the newest version uploaded before the date.

Response

Successful Response

doc_numberstring required
doc_typestring nullable

'TS' (Technical Specification) or 'TR' (Technical Report), from the stored document type.

versionstring required
releasestring required
section_numberstring required
section_titlestring nullable
heading_levelinteger nullable
full_textstring
token_countinteger nullable
fragment_countinteger nullable
parent_section_numberstring nullable
latest_versionstring nullable
latest_releasestring nullable
same_text_as_latestboolean nullable
other_version_notestring nullable

A one-sentence note when other_version_titles is present.

citationstring nullable
official_urlstring nullable
truncatedboolean
truncation_reasonstring nullable

'word_limit' (clause longer than limit_words) or 'one_clause_per_call' (a sub-clause from prefix=true, text withheld).

returned_wordsinteger nullable
total_wordsinteger nullable
limit_wordsinteger nullable
next_stepstring nullable

Changes

No recorded changes to this operation across all 1 revision of this API.