A short length of easily fusible wire that is used to protect electric circuits or devices by melting (‘blowing’) at a specific current and thus breaking the circuit. The fuse current rating is the maximum value of current that the fuse will conduct without melting. The frequency and voltage at which a fuse is designed to operate are specified by the fuse frequency rating and fuse voltage rating. The fuse characteristic is the relation between the current through the fuse and the time taken for the fuse to operate.