Overview

Video demo

JJ Animation Tools - Animation Baker by JJArtworks is a Blender addon designed to simplify and automate the process of merging modular animations. It allows you to combine multiple armatures with their respective NLA animations into a single unified armature, while preserving animation integrity and intelligently managing bone prefixes to avoid naming conflicts.

Main Use Cases

Core Features

1. Bake & Merge System

Duplication
- Automatically creates copies of all armatures and meshes
- Applies transformations (location, rotation, scale) to copies
- Preserves original objects intact in their collections
Animation Baking
- Automatic baking of all active NLA tracks
- Intelligent detection of animation range (frame start/end)
- Generates one baked action per armature with complete keyframes
- Visual keying support for accurate results
Prefix System
- Automatically renames all bones with customizable prefix
- Updates FCurves to match new bone names
- Renames mesh vertex groups to maintain skinning
- Avoids naming conflicts during merge
Armature Merging
- Combines all armatures into a single unified armature
- Merges all baked actions into a single "Merged" action
- Intelligent FCurve copying without duplicates
- Preserves interpolation properties and keyframe handles
Mesh Management
- Option to merge all meshes into a single object
- Option to apply modifiers (except Armature) before merging
- Automatic reparenting to merged armature
- Armature modifier updates
Automatic Organization
- Creates a "MERGED" collection for results
- Automatic hiding of original collections
- Color coding to quickly identify merged collection

2. User Interface

Dynamic Object List

- Manual addition of empty slots
- "Add Selected" button to automatically add all selected meshes
- Automatic detection of parent armature
- Intelligent prefix generation based on object name
- Individual or global entry removal
Per-Slot Configuration
- Mesh: The mesh object to process
- Armature: Associated armature (automatically detected if parent)
- Prefix: Customizable prefix for bones (e.g., "Body", "Clothes", "Hair")
Processing Options
- Merge Meshes: Merges all meshes into one (enabled by default)
- Apply Modifiers: Applies non-Armature modifiers before merging

3. Integrated FBX Export

FBX Export Settings

• Export selection only
• Scale: 1.0 with apply unit scale
• Axes: Forward -Z, Up Y (game engine standard)
• Animation baking with all bones
• Smooth type: FACE
• Armature deform bones only
• No export of NLA strips or multiple actions

User Guide

Workflow

Step 1: Preparation

1. Ensure your meshes are parented to their respective armatures
2. Configure your animations in the NLA tracks of each armature
3. Open the "JJArtworks" panel in the N-Panel (View3D > N > JJArtworks)

Step 2: List Configuration

Step 3: Options Configuration

Step 4: Bake & Merge

Step 5: Verification

Step 6: Export

Tips and Best Practices

Before Merging

✅ Consistent Naming
- Use clear and descriptive bone names in your original armatures
- Avoid special characters in bone names

✅ Animation Preparation
- Ensure all your NLA tracks are properly configured
- Disable (mute) tracks you don't want to bake

✅ Clean Structure
- Verify that each mesh is properly parented to its armature
- Ensure vertex groups match bone names

After Merging

✅ Verification
- Test the animation by playing the timeline
- Verify that all bones respond correctly
- Inspect skinning on the merged mesh

✅ Adjustments
- If necessary, you can edit the "Merged" action in the Action Editor
- Original objects are still available if you need to start over

Technical Information

Detailed Process

1. Duplication: Copy each armature and mesh without prefixing bones
2. Transform Application: Reset transformations on copies
3. Baking: Bake NLA tracks into individual actions
4. Prefixing: Add prefixes to bone names after baking
5. FCurve Update: Modify data_paths to match new names
6. Vertex Group Prefixing: Rename to maintain skinning
7. Armature Merging: Join all armatures into one
8. Merged Action Creation: Copy all FCurves into a single action
9. Mesh Processing: Apply modifiers and/or merge
10. Organization: Move to MERGED collection and hide originals

Known Limitations

- Requires at least 2 objects in the list to function
- Constraints are not preserved after baking
- Object parents (other than armature) are not maintained
- FBX export uses fixed parameters optimized for game engines

Compatibility

- Blender: 5.0.0 and later versions
- Operating Systems: Windows, macOS, Linux
- Export: Compatible with Unity, Unreal Engine, Godot and other FBX-supporting engines

Support and Updates

For any questions, suggestions or bug reports, contact JJArtworks ([email protected])

Version

Current version: 1.0.0

Changelog

1.0.0:
- Initial release with complete bake & merge system
- Multiple NLA tracks support
- Integrated FBX export with optimized settings
- Intuitive user interface with dynamic list management

JJ Animation Tools - Simplify your modular animation workflows between Blender and your game engine