While vanlife has taken most of the limelight, there are people who have been living on the road WAY longer than van dwellers.
These people are long- and short-haul truckers, freight delivery people, port drivers, and other transporters. The contemporary truck stops that many of us utilize were made for them.
The ZoomRoom allows truckers to haul freight and still have a place to sleep.
Much of the time these transporters will have a sleeping compartment in their truck or stay overnight at hotels. However, there have rarely been any companies that have catered to building sleeping and living compartments for these highway heroes.
This month’s Tiny House Magazine features one of these companies. The ZoomRoom Sleeper by Inoventure Industries is a unique and innovative sleeping pod that can be installed on various commercial and personal trucks. The little room features a bed that can be accessed from the driver’s area, storage, and connections for charging devices.
The ZoomRoom features a bed, storage, and a place to charge devices.
The ZoomRoom also features a hi-lo roof that lifts up with linear actuators. The feature adds additional headroom to the interior and can be adjusted for aerodynamics and various headwinds.
Unlike a truck camper, the ZoomRoom only takes a small part of a truck bed, so the rest of the bed can be used for hauling fifth-wheel trailers or other freight.
The ZoomRoom was designed by engineer Denny Herrmeyer, the owner of Inoventure Industries. He grew up in the RV industry and his father was the first ever to produce motorhomes on a production line in 1955. While working as a motor home delivery specialist himself, Herrmeyer realized the dangers of not getting enough rest while on a long trip.
The ZoomRoom has a Hi-Lo roof that extends for more headroom.
“I found the phenomena of “driver fatigue” consistent with safety warnings of the serious dangers involved,” he says. “I further came to consider the conditions many faced with their equipment as a “quality of life” issue.”
After listening to other drivers and their ideas, he came up with the idea of the ZoomRoom. Customers have had them installed as sleeping areas for trucking, camping, and storage. They also seem to be popular with traveling wildland firefighters or “hotshots”.
“It’s easy to make new friends with the ZoomRoom,” Herrmeyer says. “Always a head turner and showstopper, owners find they frequently draw a crowd when fueling or stopping for a break. The curiosity is rewarded with delight when they see it quietly raise and lower itself.”
“It can be unnerving though, when people pull up and want you to pull over so they can see it, or snap photos as they go around you.”
Read the entire interview in the October issue of the Tiny House Magazine.