thermoelectric cooler + db105g?

I noticed that one of these (Bridge Rectifier?) chips is being used inline for the power to my cooler's fans. The reason I noticed is because I broke the leads off it while separating the wire bundle when replacing the fan. By the time I saw the chip was embedded in the shrink tube, it was too late. This chip is supposed to do AC/DC conversion, but I'm wondering if I even really need it? I'm pretty sure the cooler is getting 12v DC while plugged into the vehicle power and also when it's plugged into a 120v outlet using the supplied Coleman "Switching AC/DC Power Adapter". Do I need to replace this chip, or can I just run the power leads directly to the 12v DC fans? Thanks

Ahhhhh, after some more searching and reading, I stumbled upon this diagram, which cleared things up... Since the cooler has a coupler/plug on the cord, which can be reversed to put the unit in either HOT/COLD mode, this rectifier is used to power the fans in both configurations. Definitely not useless!