um, the system uses a combination of technology
1. 2 infared emitters on the front of the TV. they let the wiimote know the small motion, accurate stuff. when the wiimote is pointed at the TV, it relies on those 2 emitters to know how close, how rotated, and at what corner of the screen the wiimote is pointed.
2. 3 axis internal sensor. picks up motion internally. for instance, the controller is very sensitive when pointed at the TV, but away from it it can only rely on the internal sensors. the sports games rely on it mainly.
3. bluetooth to send all the collected info back to the unit.