A Person Operating a Chart Recorder

Based on the visible elements (the circular chart, rotating scale, pen arm, and the ruler being used to read measurements), this appears to be an analog chart recorder, sometimes called a strip chart recorder or circular chart recorder.

These machines were commonly used in laboratories and research settings in the 1960s–1970s to continuously record measurements over time—such as temperature, pressure, voltage, seismic activity, or other sensor data—by drawing a line on paper mounted on a rotating drum or chart.

Credits: 

Some technical descriptions and historical interpretations were developed with the assistance of ChatGPT, an AI language model by OpenAI.