Do fuses protect against reverse polarity?
Do fuses protect against reverse polarity? Ironically most equipment has some form of reverse polarity protection built in. Usually in the form of a diode and fuse. The 'theory' is that if a reverse polarity fault occurs, the diode will conduct, short the power supply to ground and cause the fuse to blow - thus protecting your equipment. It works. How can you protect reverse polarity? The simplest protection against reverse battery protection is a diode in series with the battery, as seen in Figure 1. In Figure 1, the diode becomes forward biased and the load's normal operating current...