A truck sleeper or sleeper cab is a compartment attached behind the cabin of a tractor unit used for rest or sleeping.
Origin
In many countries, drivers are subject to
work-time regulations which limit the amount of time they can drive before taking a mandated minimum rest period. Many drivers chose to sleep in the cab or cabin of their trucks rather than pay for a roadside
motel. Truck manufacturers took notice of this and began developing
with extended cabs to provide a sleeping area for drivers. Work-time regulations apply in the United States,
Europe,
Australia
and in other parts of the world.
Sleeper cabins
Sleeping berths came into use as early as the 1920s, but they were often unsafe and uncomfortable.
[NTSB, Truck parking areas, Diane Publishing, May 2001, p. 6] They nonetheless allowed
to spend months at a time on road, often driving in teams of two
(one drove while the other slept).
[ With this successful formula, drivers began making requests to truck manufacturers for larger and larger sleeping cabins. Manufacturers began catering to owner operators who requested greater luxury. Sleepers were initially developed without comfort in mind at . They quickly grew to with long-haul drivers in mind. Their size came to be regulated in the US in the 1950s but length restrictions were removed in the 1980s.][ Custom truck sleepers vary in size in modern Tractor unit from to the massive . Custom sleepers come equipped with many of the amenities of modern RVs. By 2000, approximately 70% of new trucks manufactured in the US included sleeper berths.][
]
