Residual-currentdevice..docxVIP

Residual-current deviceA?residual-current device?(RCD), or?residual-current circuit breaker?(RCCB), is an?/wiki/Electrical_wiring \o Electrical wiringelectrical wiring?device that disconnects a circuit whenever it detects that the?/wiki/Electric_current \o Electric currentelectric current?is not balanced between the energized conductor and the return?/wiki/Ground_and_neutral \o Ground and neutralneutral?conductor. Such an imbalance may indicate current leakage through the body of a person who is grounded and accidentally touching the energized part of the circuit. A lethal?/wiki/Electric_shock \o Electric shockshock?can result from these conditions. RCCBs are designed to disconnect quickly enough to prevent injury caused by such shocks. They are not intended to provide protection against/wiki/Overcurrent \o Overcurrentovercurrent?(overload) or?/wiki/Short-circuit \o Short-circuitshort-circuit?conditions.In the?/wiki/United_States \o United StatesUnited States?and?/wiki/Canada \o CanadaCanada, a residual-current device is most commonly known as a?ground fault circuit interrupter(GFCI),?ground fault interrupter?(GFI) or an?appliance leakage current interrupter?(ALCI). In?/wiki/Australia \o AustraliaAustralia?they are sometimes known as safety switches or simply RCD and in the?/wiki/United_Kingdom \o United KingdomUnited Kingdom, along with?/wiki/Circuit_Breaker \o Circuit Breakercircuit breakers, they can be referred to as trips or trip switches.A?residual-current circuit breaker with overload protection?(RCBO) combines the functions of overcurrent protection and leakage detection. An?/wiki/Earth_leakage_circuit_breaker \o Earth leakage circuit breakerearth leakage circuit breaker?(ELCB) may be a residual-current device, although an older type of voltage-operated earth leakage circuit breaker exists.Residual-current device?is a generic term covering both RCCBs and RCBOs.Purpose and operationRCDs are designed to disconnect the circuit if there is a leakage current. By